Why you should immediately call rodent control professionals?
Rats are warm-blooded rodents with oversized front teeth. They chew their food, but can also chew on many items they find on their way. Therefore, they can cause a lot of damage in your home and cause many unwanted repair expenses and headaches.
Rats and similar rodents breed quite quickly. If you don’t act immediately and call good rodent control experts to prevent their breeding, rats can ruin your home. Rats can cause even bigger damage to your life by jeopardizing your health. Besides eating your food and your pet’s food, rats can contaminate everything they touch.
They can contaminate your food by simply stepping on it, or even worse, by urinating in places where you keep or prepare your food. Sometimes, you may notice and clean or throw away the contaminated food, but it’s also possible that you fail to notice and end up eating the food.
Rats can cause a lot of damage in agricultural communities. Their diet consists of grain and seeds, but they also eat food such as fruits, eggs, and dairy products. They can eat as much as one third of their own body weight in a single day. They can also squeeze through the tiniest holes and get to places where you don’t want them.
Therefore, it is crucial to act promptly and call rodent control professionals to estimate the situation. The sooner you have professionals come over and check if there are rats in your home, the sooner you can get rid of them.
5 sure fire signs you have rats
If you suspect that you might have a rat issue in your home, you should thoroughly check everything. Take a good look around and see if you recognize some of the most common signs that show you have rats.
As soon as you suspect you may be dealing with a rat infestation, you should immediately contact rodent control experts. Trying to get rid of rats on your own usually has no effect at all. If you notice strange occurrences in your house, immediately call termite control and pest control, and make sure your home is safe from any unwanted guests.
1. Rat droppings and urine trails or pools
Rat droppings are rounded at the ends, shiny black in color, and less than an inch long. Rats leave their droppings mostly in kitchen cabinets, drawers, cupboards, and anywhere they might find food. You may also notice droppings in boxes, along walls, as well as in travelling bags and cases.
If you have rats in your home, there will be rat urine marks all over it. Rats have weak bladders, and they often form these pools which have a contaminating effect once you get in touch with them. Protect yourself while checking for urine spots and if you spot some – do not touch them with bare hands.
2. Weird noises and squeaks
Rats mostly move around at night, so if there are some in your home, you will probably hear them in the dark. You may hear some weird noises and squeak sounds as they nest and move. Rats build their nests from soft materials such as shredded paper or fabric and furniture stuffing. It is typical for rats to use grass or other similar soft material and stuff it into well sheltered places.
They mostly nest in closets and boxes, or in the open space between ceilings or floors. Rats basically look for places that are warm and out of human reach. Those are the places where noises and squeaks may come from.
3. Small bites on your food packaging
Rats are curious and always hungry so they can dive into almost anything. They enjoy beans and rice, but will also try to open other boxes and bags with food. Rats will also try to grab cat food or dog food, especially if it smells like meat.
4. Gnawing
The main distinguishing characteristic of rats is gnawing. They love wood, so your nice wooden floor may be a real deal for them. Rats gnaw to check on their incisor teeth. If you have no wooden floor or furniture available, they’ll chew on whatever they find.
Even if you don’t notice gnaw marks on your shiny wooden floor, you may notice things like wood sawdust or wood chips. Besides your wooden floor, rats seem to enjoy your kitchen cabinets and window frames. Apart from wood, they are attracted to electrical wires, which can cause structural fires.
5. Pets acting weird
Pets can get really upset when they sense or hear rats in your home. Rats spread a typical, unpleasant smell around them – it’s a dirty odor that pets can easily sense. However, a pet acting weird means it will probably try to show you a possible rat nest or a hiding area. This will be a good sign for you to ask for rodent control services.
Rat prevention plan
Once you hire rodent control professionals to help you get rid of rats, you need to make sure they won’t come back. One of the most important things to do is to deprive them of food and nesting. Fallen pieces of fruit in your garden are a delicious meal for rats. If you have any fruit trees, try to keep the surrounding area clean.
Check the lids on your garbage cans – they should be made of a heavy material, such as metal. If you use a plastic garbage can, make sure that dogs or cats can’t flip it over. Since rats love the taste of pet food, avoid leaving food and feeding your pet outside. Try to use a metal can or a glass can with a lid for storing pet food.
After you have done your best with your food-protection plan, the next challenge is to remove rat shelters. It’s always a good thing to fix the small holes and cracks in your walls or anywhere in your home. Don’t forget your garage – this is a place that consists of many food sources and nesting commodities for rats. Keep in mind that rats can’t resist using firewood as their favorite shelter.