5 Pest Controllers' Tricks to Stop Rats in their Tracks
Rats incoming!- 5 ways to stop them in their tracks
So the cold weather has arrived and, guess what, you’re not
the only one who prefers to be inside in the warm.
Most wild animals are averse
to close contact with humans, that’s what makes them wild. The thing about rats
is that they are wild animals that don’t mind getting up close and personal,
that is largely why they are considered a pest.
What is it about rats that give us the willies? There’s the
scuttling gait, the prodigious bowel movements, the damage to property and
spoiling of food to worry us but we only have to jump on a chair with our
skirts hitched to know there’s more to it than that. There has been a lot
written about genetic memory in recent years and I think that’s where our
hatred of rats really lies, programmed into our limbic brain. And there are the
endless stories of bubonic plague fed to us as school children which is enough
to keep us alternately fascinated and wetting the bed for years.
Yes, it’s the threat of disease that accompanies the
presence of these hated rodents that really get us reaching for the nearest
blunt object.
Just for fun, here is a list of the zoonoses (transferrable
diseases) and transferrable parasites that rats are known to carry:
Salmonellosis
Yersinosis Plague Tuberculosis Leptospirosis Lyme Disease Relapsing Fever Campylobacteriosis Melioidosis Tularemia Rat Bite Fever Pasteurellosis Rickettsial Pox Murine Typhus Dermatophytosis Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis
Hantaviruses
Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis LaCrosse Encephalitis Rabies Acariasis Ticks Fleas Babesiosis Giardiasis Leishmaniasis Capillariasis Trichinosis Angiostrongyliasis Cestodiasis Sparganosis Schistosomiasis |
So I think we are all agreed that it’s best to keep rats
outside, yes?
Want to know how? Yes?
Then let’s go.
Pest controllers’ secrets to stop rats in
their tracks
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Rats are genuinely nervy creatures. Once you
get to know them, this nerviness genuinely becomes their defining feature. As
new pest controllers get to know their job they realise that this is a
character trait that can be easily used against rats. They call it ‘neophobia,’
a fear of new things. Why is this useful? Let me tell you.
A rat will only be making its way to your property
for four reasons, it wants food, it wants water, it wants somewhere to hide, it
wants warmth. Anywhere it can find all of these things is a place good enough
to call home. But how does it choose where to go? It’s the neophobia, dummy.
Like electricity following the path of least resistance rats will follow the
path of least scariness. Bear that in mind while I walk you through the next
five points.
“often people aren’t aware of the problems caused by an untrimmed bush”
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1.
Make sure they don’t have an easy way onto your
site. Overhanging trees, overgrown vegetation, long grass, piles of rubbish,
untended verges, climbing ivy, all give rats an easy route into your buildings.
If there is a clear break between buildings and the surrounding vegetation,
rats are not keen to dart across the gap. Their own wild instincts will keep
them from being in the open for too long. They prefer to skulk away in the dark
places so they don’t get picked up by a hungry owl or fox. The wider gap you
can make between your buildings and the natural habitat around, the better it will
be for you.
This is one of the reasons why we made the
decision to begin a grounds maintenance service, so often people aren’t aware
of the problems of an untrimmed bush. Because we spend our whole time thinking
like rats we often cringe walking round a site and seeing the easy routes in.
Pass me the hedge-trimmer!
“There are multiple ways into a building through underground routes.”
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2.
Rats are equally at home above or below ground.
That’s great right? If they’re below ground then they can’t walk into my
factory/my home/across my face at night. Wrong! There are multiple ways into a
building through underground routes.
Drains are one way in. We’ve had great
success in finding the source of infestations using the CCTV cameras that
drainage companies use to check drains for faults. Huge infestations can
(literally) arise out of nowhere when a
previously happy family of rats has had their previous route blocked off or
experienced rising water levels. Please make sure you aren’t the easy way out.
Make sure all drain covers are in place, now. Make sure all old drains and
rodding eyes are capped... now.
In Latin, Rodere means ‘to gnaw.’
3.
Make sure that your
electrician/plumber/handyman/engineering team always fills the gaps around new
pipes or conduits. Those guys love cutting holes in things! If they seal up
after themselves, not a problem. If they don’t, big problem.
One small point though. ‘Rodent,’ like so
many of our great words in the English language, comes from Latin. In Latin, Rodere
means ‘to gnaw.’ These creatures have ever growing incisors that they
compulsively file down by nibbling on pretty much anything.
The consequence of this is that they have some pretty handy tools in their mouths for getting through pretty much any obstacle. They chew through wood, plastic, even metal and concrete. We’ve been using a product called MouseStop for ages. It’s basically a caulk with super hard plastic beads in it that rodents just can’t gnaw through. If you want us to come out and do a proofing survey just ask. FYI this is free for customers! Problem solved.
Rats and mice have collapsible skeletons
The consequence of this is that they have some pretty handy tools in their mouths for getting through pretty much any obstacle. They chew through wood, plastic, even metal and concrete. We’ve been using a product called MouseStop for ages. It’s basically a caulk with super hard plastic beads in it that rodents just can’t gnaw through. If you want us to come out and do a proofing survey just ask. FYI this is free for customers! Problem solved.
Rats and mice have collapsible skeletons
So when is a gap big enough to be a
problem? Pretend to be a surfer, make a fist, now stick out your thumb and
little finger. Gnarly. Now look at your hand.
Any gap as wide as your thumb is big enough for a rat to squeeze through. Any gap as big as your little finger is big enough for a mouse to squeeze through. Yes, really! You see, these little critters have collapsible skeletons so they can get through the tiniest of holes. The only bit of them that isn’t collapsible is their heads so, anything big enough to fit their skull through is an open door.
Any gap as wide as your thumb is big enough for a rat to squeeze through. Any gap as big as your little finger is big enough for a mouse to squeeze through. Yes, really! You see, these little critters have collapsible skeletons so they can get through the tiniest of holes. The only bit of them that isn’t collapsible is their heads so, anything big enough to fit their skull through is an open door.
Move the bins away!  |
4.
Bin stores- put them far enough away from the
building. Come on guys, I don’t have to tell you this! Yes, the cleaner will
have to walk that extra twenty yards in the rain but that’s better than a rat
in the canteen, right?
Closed Door Policy
5.
Just shut the doors. An open door is exactly
that, an open door. Some factories that should really know better have even
been known to prop open a fire escape on a summers day. Yes, I know it’s hot
and yes, I know it smells nice outside but you’re offering a passing hungry rat
a very unscary way to enter the building. They may wipe their feet on the way
in but that’s pretty much the only benefit. A decent 'closed doors policy' is a
good start for any high-risk site. It’s not a sexy solution, but it is
effective. Do remember as well, rodents are prolific breeders. You might have
one rodent crossing the threshold but she might be carrying eight little’uns
and looking for some room at the inn. One sneaks in, nine hang out.
Badly Fitting Doors
So many places we get called in to will
have a rodent problem because they’ve got ill-fitting maintenance doors.
Remember, all it takes is a pinky-sized gap. We fit bristle strips to overcome
this problem. They resemble giant draft excluders with bristles that can’t be
chewed through. They’re not the prettiest things to behold but they’re cheaper
than getting the engineers out. But, be warned, don’t go too cheap because the more
budget brands are too soft to keep out our furry friends. Go to a reputable
supplier or give us a call so we can point you in the right direction.
I hope this makes sense to you all. Five
tips that are easy and cheap to employ. Remember the four things a rodent
needs- water, food, harbourage, warmth. Take them away and they’ll head
elsewhere.
And just bear in mind that not once in this article have I mentioned rat poison. At Dealey we use poisons as a last resort. Everything else should be tried first for the most environmentally responsible pest control solution. Call us for a site survey so you can find out how to control your environment, not just the pests: 01359 269713
And just bear in mind that not once in this article have I mentioned rat poison. At Dealey we use poisons as a last resort. Everything else should be tried first for the most environmentally responsible pest control solution. Call us for a site survey so you can find out how to control your environment, not just the pests: 01359 269713
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