Urban composting...will it attract rats?

Question

I want to start a compost pile in the backyard, but the alley in the back has some rats and I wanted to know if that would attract them into the yard. I plan to make sure no meat or dairy ends up in there - just plant material and maybe some newspaper. What do you think?

Answer 1

yes i did that once and it ate my 6 children and the dog.

i have never thought about Urban composting ever since :'(

Answer 2

The materials are fine.

But a compost heap gets warm and as the temperature drops

as winter approaches the rats will spot that.

You really need a compost bin, rather than a pile -

it works faster, too.

Answer 3

i have never had a problem with rats in my compost pile in 30 years.  i have seen a few small snakes though.

Answer 4

Food scraps will attract them, even if it's only veggie scraps. They're also sometimes attracted to the shelter a cool compost pile offers -- and unless you're one of those really serious, gung-ho composters, your backyard pile probably won't get very hot.  So you'll want to use one of the enclosed plastic bins, rather than a wire enclosure or an open pile.  With an enclosed plastic bin, you should be fine.  Check your local municipal resources -- some cities have programs to sell bins to residents at a discount.