Patent: Development

PROCEDURE FOR TRAPPING, TRANSPORT, KEEPING AND ELIMINATION OF SEWER RATS WITH FIREARMS IN A CONTROLLED HUNTING GROUND.

This invention refers to a health-sporting procedure for exterminating rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled hunting ground, after they have been caught in traps and transported in duly fitted out vans to the premises of the hunting grounds, where they will be kept in healthy conditions and properly fed until they are released. The aim is to combine the need to exterminate these countless harmful rodents that contaminate our surroundings and cause so many diseases, with a competitive and stimulating leisure activity elimination system that has the added advantage of costing practically nothing, in fact you can even make it profitable, as shooters pay for the right to take part in competitions. Quite frankly, unless activities of this kind are planned, the problem of rats just grows and grows as these astute animals easily develop defences against rat poisons, they outwit common traps and they breed so fast, apart from the fact that rat poisons are both dangerous and inefficient, so fighting them is a real problem. According to many experts the most reliable method tried so far is the use of harmless looking traps, i.e. the traps that do not arouse the suspicion of the rats, as we will describe below. But then there is the other problem; setting traps to catch rats without rewarding this task properly, which is precisely one of the problems that this invention attempts to solve, as the method that we propose could be highly attractive for a young person out of work who likes nature in its more extreme forms, for example, trapping rats to sell to the hunting ground for a succulent daily wage.

This invention falls in the pest control industry, in the sector of eliminating rodent pests, but by a system of catching the rats in traps to be hunted in hunting grounds afterwards, rather than by using poison. That is why it is also part of the hunting firearms industry and, within this industry, it is part of the target shooting sector as a modality that is similar to, but very different from pigeon shooting.

The problem of rats in towns, smallholdings, farming fields, wetlands, sewers, building sites, rubbish tips, wasteland, both in the countryside and in the city is a complex one that has not been adequately solved. The sewer rat, also known as the grey or common rat, is currently found all over the world and it is spreading, as it has an enormous capacity to adapt and has almost wiped out the black rat. The grey rat lives in all kinds of places, but it is primordially associated with buildings, warehouses and stores, where it prefers the more humid habitats. In cities, it is often found in the drains and sewers, feeding off the kitchen waste that is washed through them and building its nests from paper, cotton or whatever other material of this kind, anywhere it can find a dry spot. When the grey rat invades an urban property, it almost always finds its way in through a crack in the sewer pipes. Grey rats are omnivorous, so they can eat any kind of animal or plant food and they can even become predators, catching hens, ducks, pigeons or other birds and animals. Most of the damage that they cause is due to the fact that rats mark their territory by chewing any kind of food, dirtying and contaminating it with their urine and excrements that contain contagious germs that sometimes represent a serious hazard for people and for pets and other domestic animals. Grey rats live in groups and they recognise members of each group by their smell. They are mainly active during the hours of darkness and they always try to stick close to the walls so they always keep one side protected from any possible enemies. In the right conditions, they breed throughout the year and they are extraordinarily prolific. In fact a pair of rats and their off-spring can produce almost one thousand young in the course of a year.
Hunting is based on killing an animal by different means and in different situations. The sport of hunting is a series of activities governed by a set of written and unwritten rules and regulations, for the purpose of killing an animal. Its origins are almost as old as man himself, who first started hunting to survive, and it continues to be a matter of survival in many parts of the world.

The main problem that this invention seeks to solve is to fight against the complicated plague that these rodents represent, as driving them to extinction is not exactly an easy task. There are methods for exterminating rats by using poison or by setting traps; the most widespread method is the use of rat poison. But the use of poisonous substances is a problem in itself and it has many disadvantages: it can harm human beings, especially children because they can unwittingly swallow the poison, livestock and domestic animals like pigs, cows, cats and dogs, if they try some of the poison that has been put down. When the rats have been exterminated, remains of the poison are always left behind, which gradually spreads to the detriment of the environment. The main problem however is considered to be the rapid development of resistance to poison by the rats, even to the most recent kinds of poison. According to experts in this field, this could mean that the extermination of rats with poison could become inefficient within a few years. Moreover, from an animal ethics point of view, it is far from painless as the rat does not die instantly on swallowing the poison, it suffers long weeks of painful internal bleeding. Despite this suffering, poison is still the most widely used method for exterminating rats.

As for traps, even the experts consider that it is relatively difficult to catch rats with existing traps, which is why they are mainly used either if poisons are directly prohibited or when poisonous substances cannot be used or are undesirable for other reasons. That is why they are used in the food industry, in the health sector and generally inside buildings. Experience with common traps, the ones that are found on the market, like bolt traps or net traps, has clearly shown that traps, directly or indirectly, provide the rats with a negative experience that they can pass on to the other members of their group, who then avoid the traps. Rats caught this way usually leave a trace of smell to warn others of the danger. This acts as a deterrent that keeps them away. Practise shows that traps fitted with more benevolent capture mechanisms are the most effective ones, i.e. the ones that do not cause panic or concern among rats. Patents literature includes several examples of rat traps, like documents US-A 4 741 121 and US-A 4 566 218 that describe traps in which the rats are killed with carbon dioxide. With these traps, it is essential that the rats do not react to them in a decisive and frightened manner, which is why the construction of these traps is fairly complex. Along these same lines, document EP 0 395 135 A explains a system for fighting rats with an electronic recording system and bait boxes, each one of which has an entrance opening, a movement sensor, a suction pipe and a suction unit. When the rat enters the bait box, it is picked up by the intruder sensor and the suction unit is fired. The rat is sucked up a pipe and then eliminated by impact in the chamber. As the invention is also based on the principle of the most benevolent traps being the most effective ones, a certain number of animals are allowed into the trap’s detection unit before the suction mechanism is triggered; hence these animals gain a certain trust in and familiarity with the trap. This way, some of the rats are given the chance to visit the trap a couple of times before they are caught. This allows them to return to their group and pass on their positive experience with the trap. The rats return full of confidence to the trap because, unlike when bait is used, they are given food in combination with the entry mechanism. In their experience, they can come and go as they please, and they will find food in the trap. The fact that a rat disappears from time to time is something that is considered a natural occurrence by the rest of the group. In most situations, as in the case of rats and mice, the animal is then killed, usually by gas, preferentially carbon dioxide. In the case of the invention proposed here however, the aim is to keep them alive, as they are going to be shot in a shooting competition. A trap for this purpose should have the following features: the detection unit and/or trigger mechanism should be triggered after the rat has taken a certain number of steps after passing the detection unit and it should never kill the animal.

The trap can be made attractive and tempting for rats by choosing the right material, construction, design and bait. The chance of rats acquiring negative experiences from the traps can be eliminated by, for example, avoiding repulsive smells, shapes, surfaces or sounds, and making the trapping operation harmless, gentle, quick and relatively quiet, so as not to cause any pain or fright to the animals when they are caught, or when they are in or around the trap. Furthermore, the trap should be built to remain in place, and to keep the rats, for long periods of time.

We propose this invention to mitigate the problems explained above and only partially solved by the techniques currently available. It includes the novelty of trapping live rats, without the trap becoming a gas chamber, and then transporting the rats and keeping them in good condition to be released in a specifically prepared hunting ground to be eliminated in organised competitions with firearms, offering the following advantages:

- Hunting grounds of this kind can be located in different places, as close as possible to the point of contamination, or wherever a plague is detected. But, what is more, as these rodents are everywhere, the location of the hunting grounds will not cause any problems with regard to the distance of the supply of rats to be hunted, as this supply is always guaranteed.

- The method proposed for exterminating the rats is extraordinarily cheep, and it can even be profitable, as those taking part in the sport will pay for hunting rights, for each trophy hunted, for a ticket to watch or as members of a hunting club.

- It reduces environmental pollution and eliminates the cost of poison and the risks inherent in the remains of poisonous substances. It also eliminates the problem of rotting animals that have died of internal bleeding, whose bodies remain hidden in sewers and waste tips, or in damp places where they can pollute crops or allotments, like the remains of the rat poison, or where they can be eaten by pets or by endangered species of predators. Moreover, it avoids the problem of the resistance that these rodents quickly develop to the different kinds of poison as these appear on the market, which undermines the efficiency of this method of exterminating them.

- There are savings in the management and maintenance of pest control campaigns.

6. Well run, this can also be a prosperous business for anyone running a hunting grounds based on the procedure proposed by this invention.

The procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them in a controlled hunting grounds, as proposed by this invention, takes place in three stages: catching live rats in traps, transporting them in suitable conditions to the hunting grounds and keeping them there in humane conditions until they are finally released in the hunting grounds to be eliminated by regulated firearms in a competition.

For the first stage of the procedure, courses are required so that the trappers do not run the risk of getting bitten or catching any possible disease that the rats may carry. Trappers need to know the habits of this tireless, omnivorous rodent, which, according to the data available, numbers in the hundreds of millions in Europe alone, concentrated to a greater extent in the large cities.
For this invention, the trappers would be independent of the hunting grounds, which they would supply with rats in accordance with the demand of these and they would charge for each live rat in good condition supplied. Bearing in mind the large number of rats required, this could well become a well paid and interesting job for many people and companies who like communing with nature in one of its more extreme forms.

They would also have to apply for a permit from the competent authority to trap them in waste tips, sewers, uninhabited areas, waste grounds and wetlands, and to sign-post these places with a warning to passers-by and pedestrians.
Wherever traps are placed, in the country side, waste tips or on waste ground, the traps would be clearly marked with a red sign, made from plastic or other suitable material, announcing the “Rat Trap”. In the city, the traps would be set in the sewer network, and access to them would be via the normal manholes used as access to the sewers themselves.

Three kinds of traps would be used in this context, depending on whether they are to be laid in the countryside, in the sewers or in the city.

The trap for catching live rats in the countryside is a rectangular box or crate with a closing lid made from a sheet of black painted aluminium with holes and a side door. The box is 40 to 70 cm high with a counterweight on the right to keep the lid closed, while allowing it to give way due to the weight of the rat when it approaches the bait. When the rat falls into the box, the counterweight closes the lid again. There are handles on the sides of the box for transporting it. The lid plate can also be made from galvanised iron so that the rats slip. There is food on the floor of the cage as bait. This type A cage is buried in the ground up to the counterweight mechanism, making it ideal for farming lands. The shape and the mechanism of this trap can be varied or modified.

The trap for catching rats in the sewers is a box made from marine ply wood or galvanised sheet metal that is closed with a sliding galvanised grill mounted on rails. The door is kept half open, held by a hook-shaped piece and two fine steel cables, one on each side, connected to a piece that triggers the closing mechanism. This closing mechanism is at the back of the cage and it is activated when the rat puts pressure on it, thus enabling the animal to gain confidence. The bait is placed in the centre. The carrying handles are on the top or on the sides.

The trap for catching live rats in the city is a box/cage about 80 cm high, 62 cm wide and 58 cm deep, made of marine ply wood or galvanised sheet metal. A tube about 7.5 cm in diameter runs up the outside of the cage in a gentle slope from the mouth at ground level to a high point, where it enters the trap and continues downwards, where it hangs, attached to the roof by a belt. About half way along this final stretch, in the lower part of the pipe, there is a mechanical device fitted with springs or tensors that, acting as a trap, open as the rat goes in and close behind it when the rat falls into the trap. At the end of the pipe, there is a lid that is baited, preferably with Roquefort cheese for the rat to eat. The bait lid is held by a cord so that it can be repositioned from a trap door that is protected by a moving metal grill on the lid of the cage, which is closed with a padlock and a hasp lock. The cages are painted dark earth colour or grey.

The measurements and materials indicated for the three kinds of traps can be modified and adapted to meet the specific circumstances of the operation.

Transport from the capture site to the holding cages at the hunting ground is done by isothermal vans, where the traps are placed and covered with a canvass. At the hunting ground, the rats are kept in large cages with food and fresh water. These cages are divided into compartments in order to control the aggressive nature of the rats. The rats are kept in good condition of hygiene and good living conditions for whatever time they remain in the holding cages. The holding cages have glass walls so that they can be monitored and to prevent any escape.

The holding cage is a glass box about 1 metre high by 2 m by 2 m with a galvanised grill floor and a lower tray about 40 cm below to collect the excrements on a removable galvanised tray with a handle. There is a food box on one side and a drinking trough on the other. There is a hinged door on the roof with a bolt and other trap doors for putting the rats in and taking them out without having to open the main door.

For the third stage of the procedure, this invention has developed several methods for designing rat shooting grounds, which are described below:
The first way of making a rat shooting ground is based on a rectangular covered area of just over 2000 m2, with a general access gate at the front and the reception, bar, changing rooms, toilets for men and women on the two sides and then the hunting ground itself, as described below. At the rear of the building, there is an access door for the service staff and the rooms for providing the services. The hunting ground itself is an oval area, divided lengthwise by wooden panels about 15 cm thick. The oval shaped perimeter wall is made from galvanised iron plating or varnished wooden boards between 1 and 3 metres high A second, oval perimeter wall of the same materials is connected to the hunting ground by about 6 pipes, allowing the surviving rats an exit route from the shooting ground to return along suitable pipes to the area where the survivors are returned to the above described glass walled holding cages. From here, the rats have an underground access to the centre of the shooting ground. The shooting ground is marked with different circles marking the different scoring zones for the competition, with the scoring scale marked in relation to the proximity to, or the distance from the bull’s eye. The floor of the shooting ground consists of a lower layer of 2 cm iron plating with a 2.5 cm thick marine ply wood board on top, and finally, a thick layer of white sand or artificial grass. The players shoot from the right or left sides, or from the front, from raised hides about 20 or 25 above the ground.

Another form of the hunting grounds is an open air, circular shooting ground with a cement perimeter wall and the armoured glass wall described in the version above, as are the escape pipes for the surviving rats. In the centre of the shooting ground, there is a pillar with a door and a lift to a shooting platform about 35 to 50 metres high. The platform can revolve slowly around its axis and it has duly fitted out posts for hunters and judges. There are iron posts at different points around the perimeter corridor for a judge to monitor the release of the rats from the different cages. In this shooting ground, players compete with the same number of cartridges or ammunition, and, at the end of the hunt, the judges count the number of rats killed and declare the winning team or individual hunter.

Another form of rat shooting ground, is one that uses a natural or man made hollow or depression in the ground that is large, long and deep enough. The minimum measurements for the shooting ground are a depth of 20 metres and a diameter of 500 metres. The shooters, with team or individual competition numbers on their backs, shoot from posts situated around the rim of the depression, accompanied by judges or staff at all times. These shooting posts can be protected by armoured glass booths. There can be steps leading down to the shooting ground. A circular line defines the zone for killing the rats and there are protected boxes for the surviving rats to hide in. The rats are released into the shooting ground along a metal or iron pipe that runs underground, at least along the stretch under the shooting field itself. For hunting at night in these open air grounds, night vision goggles can be used.

The release of the rats from the holding cages to the centre of the shooting field along the underground piping can be assisted by a compressed air generator, fire or one way traps to prevent the animals from hanging back or returning to the holding cages.

The firearms to be used shall be the most appropriate ones for this job, although in the case of shot guns, closed choke guns are preferred as, on the one hand, this prevents the dispersion of the shot from injuring the animal instead of killing it, and, on the other, the sport would not be so attractive with a wide spread of the shot as it would be relatively easy to hit the animal even without good marksmanship. In the absence or other, more specific guns, pigeon shooting shot guns are the best, although, as in this case, the hunters are shooting downwards rather than into the sky, special conditions are required, similar to the conditions used for hunting rabbits or hares.

The dead rats shall be cremated in cremation ovens or buried, preferably buried as this latter option is more environmentally friendly.

The characteristics of the invention are explained in greater detail below, referring to the enclosed drawings, which represent a preferred form provided by way of example, but it is not the only one.

In the drawings:
Figure 1. – View of a trap for catching live rats in the city
Figure 2. – View of a holding cage
Figure 3. – View of an open shooting ground with lift and revolving shooting platform.
With reference to the figures above, these show the following numbered elements:
1. Trapping cage
2. Entrance mouth to the pipe
3. Pipe running up in a quadrangular spiral
4. Suspension belt from the final stretch of the pipe
5. Trap with springs that give way when the rat steps on it, which then falls inside.
6. Lid of the pipe for placing the bait
7. Cable holding the lid
8. Grill
9. Cage lid closure
10. Cage trap door
11. Hinge
12. Holding cage
13. Glass wall of the holding cage
14. Trap door of the holding cage
15. Door of the trap
16. Hinge
17. Food box
18. Drinking trough
19. Galvanised grill floor
20. Tray for removing the excrements
21. Cement perimeter wall around the shooting ground
22. Glass dividing screen for the shooting ground
23. Lift door
24. Revolving shooting platform
25. Shooting platform roof
26. Shooter
27. Judge’s post
28. Rat cages
29. Escape pipes for surviving rats.

A preferred form of the invention is based on a first stage of the procedure consisting of catching live rats in the city with a trap (1) that, in this preferred version, is a box (1) measuring some 80 cm high, 62 cm wide and 58 cm deep, made from marine plywood or galvanised metal sheeting. A pipe (3), about 7.5 cm in diameter runs up along the outside walls of the cage (1) in a gentle slope from the mouth (2) at ground level to the top, where it enters the cage (1), continuing downwards, where it is suspended from the roof by a belt (4).
About half way along this last stretch of the pipe, in the lower part of the pipe (3), there is a lid (6) that is baited, preferably with Roquefort cheese, which the rat will not actually eat. The lid (6) of the bait trap is held by a cord (7), with access to it from an opening trap door that is protected by a metal grill (8), which can also be opened, in the roof of the cage (2), which is closed with a hasp and a padlock. The cage (1) is painted black earth or grey in colour.

The second stage of the procedure consists of transporting the rats from the capture site to the holding cages of the shooting grounds, in isothermal vans, which carry the traps, covered with a canvas. The rats are stored at the hunting grounds in different, large cages (12) with fresh water and food. These holding cages are divided into different compartments to control the aggressiveness of the rats. The living conditions shall be good for the entire time that the rats are in the holding cages. The holding cages shall have glass walls (13) to facilitate their control and to prevent them from escaping. The holding cage consists of a glass cage approximately 1 m high and a floor area of 2 x 2 metres with a galvanised grill floor (19) and a lower area of about 40 cm for collecting excrements in a removable galvanised sheet tray (20) with a handle. There is a food box (17) on one side and a drinking trough (18) on the other. In the roof, there is an opening trap door (14) with hinges (16) and a lock and other trap doors for putting the rats in and taking them out without opening the main door.

The third stage of the procedure consists of shooting these animals in a controlled shooting ground in a sporting competition under whatever rules may be established by the shooting club or by the federation, if any. Of the different versions of shooting grounds proposed, this preferred version is based on an open air, circular day time one, with a cement perimeter wall (21) and an armoured glass wall (22) around the ground, with pipes (29) for the surviving rats to escape. In the centre of the shooting ground, there is a pillar with a door and a lift (23) up to the shooting platform (24), situated about 35 to 45 metres above the ground. This can revolve slowly around the axis and it holds duly fitted out posts (26) for the different shooters and judges. At the opposite ends of the perimeter corridor, there are iron posts (27), from which a judge controls the release of the rats from the different cages (28). In this shooting ground, the players compete with the same number of cartridges or ammunition and, once the hunt is over, the judges count the rats killed and declare a winning team or individual.


CLAIMS
6. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, characterised by its implementation in three stages: catching the live rats in traps, their transport in duly fitted out vans to the shooting grounds and holding them there in good conditions of hygiene and food until, finally, in the third stage of the procedure, they are eliminated with regulated firearms in competition.

For the first stage of the procedure – trapping with duly manufactured traps, with all the due authorisations and warning signs – one of three kinds of traps are used, depending on whether the trap is to be laid in the countryside, the sewers or in the city. The trap for catching live rats in the countryside is based on a rectangular box with a collapsing roof made of aluminium sheet painted black with holes and a side door. The box is between 40 cm and 70 cm high and a counter-weight on the right keeps the roof closed, but allows this to fall open with the weight of the rat when it approaches the bait. When the rat falls into the bottom of the box, the counter-weight closes the roof behind it. The trap has handles on the side for transporting it. The roof plate can also be made of galvanised iron so that the rats will slip. There is food on the floor of the cage as bait. This countryside trap is buried up to the counter-weight mechanism in the earth, making it ideal for farming lands. The shape and the mechanism of this trap can vary and be modified.

The trap for catching live rats in sewers is based on a marine ply wood or galvanised metal plating with a sliding front door made of a galvanised metal grill mounted on rails. The door is left half open, held by a hook shaped piece connected to a thin steel cable on either side, connected to the mechanism that triggers the door to close. This closing mechanism is at the back of the box and it is activated by the weight of the rat stepping on it, hence allowing the animal to gain confidence. The bait is held in the centre. There are handles, either on the top or the sides for carrying the trap.

The trap for catching live rats in the city is based on a box about 80 cm high, by 62 cm wide and 58 cm deep, made of marine plywood or galvanised metal plating. A pipe about 7.5 cm in diameter runs up the outside of the walls of the trap in a gentle slope from the mouth at ground level until it reaches a high point where it leads into the box, and then hangs down from there, held to the roof by a belt. Approximately half way along this last stretch of the pipe, there is a mechanical device in the bottom of the pipe, fitted with springs or tensors that open the trap door when the rat walks over it, and closes behind it when the rat falls into the trap. At the end of the pipe, there is a lid with bait, preferably baited with Roquefort cheese, which the rat does not actually eat. The lid of the bait tray is held by a cord for repositioning it from an opening trap door protected by a metal grill in the roof of the cage that closes with a hasp and a padlock. The cages are painted a dark earth or grey colour.

The second stage of the procedure, transport from the catch site to the holding cages in the shooting grounds, is done in isothermal vans, in which the catching traps are placed and covered with a canvas. At the shooting grounds, the rats are held in large cages with fresh water and food. These cages are divided into different compartments to control the aggressiveness of the rats. The rats will be held in good conditions of hygiene and well fed for as long as they are held. The holding cage is a glass box approximately 1 metre high and with a floor area of 2 metres by 2 metres, with a galvanised grill floor and a lower area of about 40 cm for collecting excrements in a removable galvanised metal tray with a handle. There is a feeding box on one side and a drinking trough on the other. There is a hinged trap door in the roof, with a lock and other trap doors for putting the rats in and taking them out of the cage without opening the main door.

The third stage of the procedure takes place in the shooting ground. This invention has developed several versions of a rat shooting ground. The first of these is an indoor rat shooting ground. This is rectangular area, measuring just over 2000 m2, with the general access gate at the front and the reception, bar, changing rooms and toilets for men and women on the two sides, followed by the shooting ground itself, described below. At the back of the building, there is a service staff entrance and all the service rooms and offices. The shooting ground itself is an oval shooting area divided lengthwise by wooden panels about 15 cm thick. The oval perimeter wall is made of galvanised iron plating or varnished wooden boards between 1 and 3 metres high. A second oval perimeter wall of armoured glass is connected to the shooting ground by some 6 pipe orifices that allow the surviving rats to escape from the shooting zone back along suitable pipes to an area for recovering the surviving rats. On one side of the shooting ground, there is an area where the rats are held in glass walled cages. From here, the rats go along an underground pipe to the centre of the shooting ground. The shooting ground is marked with different rings that define the different scoring areas for the rat hunt. The scoring scale depends on the distance from the bull’s eye. The floor of the shooting ground has a lower layer made of a sheet of iron some 2 cm thick with a layer of marine plywood about 2.5 cm thick resting on top of this, covered by a thick layer of white sand or artificial turf. The players shoot from the left or right side, or even from the front, from shooting posts set on platforms about 20 or 25 metres high.

2. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, pursuant to claim 1, characterised by a different version of the shooting ground, based on a circular, open air shooting ground with a cement perimeter wall, an armoured glass wall and escape pipes for the surviving rats as per the description above In the centre of the shooting ground, there is a pillar with a door and a lift up to a shooting platform, which is a beam about 35 to 50 metres high that can revolve slowly around the axis, holding the duly fitted out posts for the different shooters and judges. At two opposite points along the perimeter corridor, there are posts for the judges, from where they pull the cord tied to the different cages of rats, which fall open when pulled. In this shooting ground, all players have the same number of cartridges or pieces of ammunition and, at the end of the hunt, the judges count the rats killed and declare the winning team or individual.

3. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, pursuant to claim 1, characterised by a different version of the shooting ground, based on building the shooting field in a natural or man made hollow or depression in the ground that is large, long and deep enough. The minimum measurements are 20 metres deep and 500 metres in diameter. The players, wearing team or individual numbers, fire from posts situated on the upper rim of the ground and they are accompanied by judges or staff at all times. These posts can be protected by armoured glass booths. There can be steps providing access down to the shooting ground. A circular line defines the rat killing area and here are boxes around it where the surviving rats can hide. The rats are released into the shooting ground from a holding cage along an iron or metal pipe that runs underground at least along the stretch running below the shooting area. In the night time version in these open air shooting grounds, night vision goggles may be used.

4. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, pursuant to claim 1, characterised by the fact that the release of the rats from the holding area to the shooting zone along the underground pipes can be assisted by a compressed air generator, fire or trap mechanisms to prevent the animals from lagging behind in the pipes.

5. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, pursuant to claim 1, characterised by the fact that the firearms used shall be the most appropriate models for this job, although, in the case of shot guns, the closed choke ones are preferred in order to prevent the dispersion of the lead shot from injuring a rat, rather than killing it, on the one hand, and, on the other, to make the competition more attractive as it would be relatively easy to hit the target with a wide spread of lead shot. Pigeon hunting shot guns shall be considered the best for this, if there are no other more appropriate arms. Although, as they are aiming down, instead of up into the skies, special conditions are required, similar to those used for hunting rabbits or hares.

6. – Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground, pursuant to claim 1, characterised by the fact that the dead animals are cremated in cremation ovens or buried, with the later option preferred as it is more environmentally friendly.


SUMMARY
Procedure for catching, transporting and eliminating sewer rats by shooting them with firearms in a controlled shooting ground.

Implemented in three stages: catching live rats with traps, duly fitted out transport to the shooting ground and holding them there in good conditions of hygiene and well fed until, finally, in the third stage of the procedure, they are released into the shooting ground to be eliminated with regulated firearms in a competition. Field, sewer and city traps with a harmless appearance and constitution are used for the first stage of the procedure, to win the trust of the animals. Duly fitted out holding cages are used for the second stage of the procedure and three kinds of shooting grounds have been designed for the third stage of the procedure; one indoor and two outdoor versions, with the bodies of the killed rats being recovered and the shooting zones defined for competition purposes.