# Rodents vs. Instant mashed potato flakes **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 8, 2019, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870 "2019-09-08T04:06:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/1 "2019-09-08T04:06:38Z")
Just ran across some “diy rodent control” involving instant mashed potato flakes. Something about the potato bits expanding in their digestive tract, yadda yadda. Is this true? Do instant mashed potato flakes kill rodents that eat them & then go drink a lot of water? ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/2 "2019-09-08T04:44:02Z")
Not sure, but I do know that rats are unable to vomit, so it’s not implausible. But it obviously depends on how much it eats. Rats don’t normally stuff themselves. They’d rather stash the food to eat it later. Although they might get frustrated trying to carry potato flakes. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/3 "2019-09-08T05:35:24Z")
I have no sources or data to cite but that sounds like an awfully over-optimistic belief about rodents. It requires them to 1) eat enough potato flakes and 2) the flakes to expand enough and 3) the rats to drink enough water. Rats are also pretty hardy things by nature. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/4 "2019-09-08T06:45:28Z")
I think if they can digest insulation and foam a few potato flakes are easy peasy. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/5 "2019-09-08T06:51:30Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I think if they can digest insulation and foam a few potato flakes are easy peasy. I think this is the key issue. Why wouldn’t the rat’s digestive system just dissolve the potato flakes, wet or dry? That’s why some rat killing tips suggest cement; it won’t break down as it passes through their digestive system. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/6 "2019-09-08T08:19:08Z")
Also seems pretty sadistic, even by the standard of rodent control methods. Sent from my Redmi 5A using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/7 "2019-09-08T13:28:34Z")
The tale of birds eating the rice thrown at weddings “exploding” afterwards is a falsehood. So I’m skeptical of this. Googling around shows a ton of “helpful hints” on this and a modest amount of semi-dubunking. Apparently it can make them sick. Fatal? No clear answer. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/8 "2019-09-08T15:46:40Z")
Knowing that my one-time roommate managed to make himself sick to his stomach by eating a bunch of dry Potato Buds, then drinking a big glass of iced tea (which apparently caused the Potato Buds to rehydrate and expand in his stomach), I suspect that the alleged mechanism would be the same – rats eat Potato Buds, rats drink water, rats suffer from exploding stomachs. That said, count me highly skeptical on the lethality of this, as well. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/9 "2019-09-08T16:33:41Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > The tale of birds eating the rice thrown at weddings “exploding” afterwards is a falsehood. So I’m skeptical of this. I remember that story and also how some concerned brides and grooms thus gave packets bird seed for the guests to throw – little ball bearings under their guests’ feet ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/10 "2019-09-08T17:10:42Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > I remember that story and also how some concerned brides and grooms thus gave packets bird seed for the guests to throw – little ball bearings under their guests’ feet Dried rice isn’t that much better underfoot. ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/11 "2019-09-08T21:52:03Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Knowing that my one-time roommate managed to make himself sick to his stomach by eating a bunch of dry Potato Buds, then drinking a big glass of iced tea (which apparently caused the Potato Buds to rehydrate and expand in his stomach), I suspect that the alleged mechanism would be the same – rats eat Potato Buds, rats drink water, rats suffer from exploding stomachs. > > That said, count me highly skeptical on the lethality of this, as well. Is the volume of the swollen flakes any larger than the volume of the liquid + the volume of the dry flakes? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/12 "2019-09-08T21:56:24Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Knowing that my one-time roommate managed to make himself sick to his stomach by eating a bunch of dry Potato Buds, then drinking a big glass of iced tea …because … it seemed like a good idea at the time? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/13 "2019-09-08T22:09:57Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > …because … it seemed like a good idea at the time? Because my roommate was an idiot. In short: he was going to make some instant mashed potatoes. While he was waiting for the water to boil, he wondered how dry Potato Buds tasted, so he ate one. He decided that it was kind of tasty, so he ate a bunch of them. Afterwards, he said to himself, “those were pretty dry…now I’m thirsty,” and drank a big glass of iced tea. Shortly afterwards, that’s when I walked in, to find him sprawled on the couch, in gastric distress. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/14 "2019-09-09T07:22:33Z")
> [@PoppaSan](#): > > Is the volume of the swollen flakes any larger than the volume of the liquid + the volume of the dry flakes? That’s a good point. Does the water “migrate” into the flakes? If so, then the volume should be the same as that of water + flakes separately, which we’ll presume the rodent consumed comfortably. It’s not like there’s some chemical reaction a la baking soda + vinegar, which produces gas bubbles and would therefore increase the pressure inside the rodent’s tummy. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/15 "2019-09-09T08:01:22Z")
The volume might be the same but it strikes me that it may not be just a matter of volume. Water as a fluid by itself can move through the digestive tract pretty much unimpeded, but soaked into a bunch of dried potato flakes it becomes a thick mass which might clog up the digestive tract, thus causing the college roommate’s distress. This would be similar to the incidents where someone chokes to death after getting a fiber capsule stuck in their throat and trying to chase it down with water. So while _exploding_ rodents may be unlikely, it’s seems to be to be at least conceivable that they could die from a bowel obstruction. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/16 "2019-09-09T10:03:09Z")
Rats characteristically eat a small amount, then _if it doesn’t give them an upset stomach,_ come back and eat more later. Dunno how that would work out. Also, in our church you _can’t throw rice_. Because it attracts rats. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/17 "2019-09-09T10:18:48Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > Water as a fluid by itself can move through the digestive tract pretty much unimpeded, but soaked into a bunch of dried potato flakes it becomes a thick mass which might clog up the digestive tract, thus causing the college roommate’s distress. I find that if I don’t drink enough water with a meal, I get very thirsty afterward. I’ve always assumed this was my stomach pulling water in from the rest of my body to help fluidize its contents. To the extent that a rat finds itself with a relatively solid bolus of potato mash in its stomach, wouldn’t it experience the same situation? Wouldn’t it feel thirst, go drink water, and thus fluidize the mash enough to let it move downstream to its small intestine? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/18 "2019-09-09T12:27:55Z")
People could get serious _intestinal_ problems due to eating poorly cook beans/peas and such. The food absorbs water _from the body_ while in the intestines and things go south from there. The movie [_The Emigrants_](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067919/) had a scene about this when one of the kids eats from a pot of cooking porridge (despite being warned not to) and ends up dead when his intestines burst. While not caused by the same issue, there are some plants that if cattle/sheep/etc. eat them their digestive systems end up swollen from gases produced by the breakdown of the plants and can kill them. Swelling in the (first) stomach can usually be fixed by burping or puking, which I guess is why the thing about rats not being able to vomit is attached to this notion. But generally it’s the stretch further along that is at greater risk. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/19 "2019-09-09T12:59:36Z")
Another vote for urban legend. There are other pests for which it’s claimed that putting out certain foods will cause their stomachs to explode and kill them, including [fire ants](https://www.thoughtco.com/do-grits-kill-fire-ants-1968079) (grits are supposed to do the trick, but don’t). ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodents-vs-instant-mashed-potato-flakes/839870/20 "2019-09-09T19:42:04Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > I remember that story and also how some concerned brides and grooms thus gave packets bird seed for the guests to throw – little ball bearings under their guests’ feet > [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > Dried rice isn’t that much better underfoot. So _cook the rice first_ - then throw it! Tchoh! Some people. j