Ratatouille in Real Life (Part 1)

So contrary to Disney pop culture living with a rat is not that fantasic. I was sadly disappointed that my rat did not get up and cook me breakfast.. (or maybe I’m not) or at least help me with my chores, but that might have something to do with the fact that he was exiled to little laundry garage off the back patio of my apartment.

So Pet Louie first came to be noticed back in October 2007, fortunately I was not the first to discover him. I returned from a weekend away and Alycia (my roommate) informed me that she had gone into our laundry garage.. at night… had flicked on the light.. and she had seen SOMETHING scurry into the recesses of the laundry room some where near the water heater.. she wasn’t sure exactly what it was either mouse or rat or a trick of the light?... needless to say.. neither of us were going to venture out to the patio or the laundry area anytime soon.

I did call our landlords and then the Homeowners Association since their monthly newsletter said to call them with rat problems.. note to self.. beware of communities where the newsletter actually sites rat problems. Their ever helpful solution was to put out a bait station.. in the front of our condo… uh.. did I mention that the rat was near the back patio… I wasn’t exactly sure how this was going to help the situation.. but I was hopeful that one day Pet Louie might wander out to the front of his kingdom and take a leisurely stroll into the bait station and hopefully die somewhere other than underneath my washer and dryer.