I've looked into this and what worked for Alberta wouldn't work for NZ. Rats in Alberta can only survive around human habitation as it gets too cold in the winter for them to survive.

New Zealand is warm enough that rats can live in the forest year round.

They do.

And as a result it’s all about killing them. While poison works, there are some places you can’t use it and it’s preferable not to if avoidable. While vastly harder there are some excellent traps available. The standard has been the DOC 200, which avoids killing the good guys but gets the bad guys in a relatively humane manner (at the end of the day, you’re killing it).

http://www.doc.govt.nz/documents/conservation/threats-and-im...

Some of the new devices are vastly more efficient and don’t have to be reset nearly as often. Like this gas powered one. https://www.goodnature.co.nz

https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/313828/self-resettin...

Take the pricing with a big pinch of salt - the A24 is more like $200, and the DOC 200/Victor costs about $100 for Joe average as the cited price excludes the box. Don’t go making your own box without thinking carefully, as the dimensions need to be correct unless you want to kill your neighbours cat.

Killing your neighbour's cat would also help preserving out native birdlife. Wouldn't be great for preserving your relationship with your neighbour though.

Agreed. There are many reasons on top of this, like it spraying my shoes.