So, I’ve concluded that hiring a cat to handle your rat problem is the best route to go, unless you prefer to bait them out…

Check out this tidbit (courtesy of: http://hubpages.com/hub/Pack_Rats):

“If they [rats] see a parked car with a still warm engine on a cold winter's night, they are not adverse to crawling up under the hood and warming themselves. An additional attraction of a car's engine compartment is that while it is easily accessible to a pack rat it is not easily accessible to {predators such as bobcats, coyotes, owls and snakes}. If the car is returned to the same spot every night, well they can't resist bringing the family and building a nest under the hood. Being nocturnal creatures, they don't sleep much at night so, after dinner they like to kick back, relax and, being rodents, have a good chew. What better thing to chew on than the nearby engine wiring – firm but pliable and obviously, to a pack rat at least, tasty.”

Key point: rats and rodents try to avoid predators such as bobcats, coyotes, owls and snakes, so… get ahold of a predatory animal and put it to work. Get yourself an animal that enjoys eating varmints just as much as varmints enjoy eating your intake and wiring.

As many of you suggested — I too would hire a cat (and as some of you have proven, cat’s are good for some things every once in a while—this situation being one of them).

I disagree with hiring a snake to do the deed, only because I’ve seen them cozy up behind washer and dryer machines in houses, which proves that they may take over residency under your hood once the rodent(s) is gone. Stick with an animal with fur that can handle the weather elements, and is carnivorous in nature, to do the job.