Rats
There are 2 species of Rats that you may come across, the Black rat or ship rat and the Norwegian Rat or Brown Rat. The Black Rat is in decline due to the rat control efforts within the UK however, the Norwegian rat continues to be a common pest throughout the Country. It’s known by many names, the common rat, sewer rat and brown rat but whatever you choose to call it, where man is prevalent, so are these. The cooler and wetter months will start to drive them indoors and once they have become established, they then will stay year-round. The only true method to remove these is with a proper pest control management solution.
This can be carried out with minimal pest control knowledge with the following:
- Rat Baits are highly effective at killing rats and easy to use. There are 3 common active ingredients, Difenacoum, Bromadiolone and Brodifacoum. All our poison bait has effective proven attractants and food grade additives to ensure rats consume their lethal dosage quickly. To protect non-Target species, we always recommend using bait stations where it’s not possible to bait safely.
- Rat Traps are a very effective and an easy method for controlling rat infestations and are almost 100% guaranteed to work giving you the peace of mind that once set you have put a highly effective treatment in place, however traps do need to be reset after each kill and if a medium to large infestation is prevalent then you may need numerous traps to bring the infestation under control quickly. Rat Traps are the perfect choice if chemical treatments are not an option or cannot be used.
- Rat Killer Kits are a combination of products we feel are best suited to contain rat infestations of varying sizes. We have chosen products that will aid in the control of your issue drawing on our years of rodent control experience.
- Rat Cages can be used both indoors and outdoors. They are efficient at catching rats without risk to the rat or non-target species. Due to the pest prevention act rats must be destroyed once caught and cannot be released back into the wild so have to be destroyed humanely.
- Proofing is always a good idea to try and prevent further infestations where possible as well as protect cars and personal belongings.
Rats can consume up to a tenth of their body weight each day and will consume anything you may have in your kitchen! Their teeth can gnaw through plastic without an issue so plastic containers are no match. They are larger than mice, up to 500g for males, up to 25cm in length without tails and usually brown or grey fur. The females start breeding from around 6 weeks of age and will have around 6 litters per year however they can have more if necessary. They can carry several diseases such as Weil’s disease (Leptospirosis) which can be fatal to humans, salmonella, and hepatitis among others, and they can also carry ringworm. Rats can climb easily can do no end of damage to property chewing through cables and electrical wires, this is not only an expensive repair but poses possible issues such as fire risks. Understanding this will ensure that you understand the need to control these once they have been identified as in your home or property.
Keeping your area clear from rubbish and food leftovers and clear from debris will assist in your overall treatments and help keep them at bay.
Treatment is pretty much the same no matter which option you choose. Locate the areas they are active, this can be sightings of rats, droppings, and damage - Place your chosen treatment method along these areas to entice them to feed and then be patient! Check traps daily and reset where required and replenish baits as required.
Treatment is complete once no more rats are being caught or baits stop being taken.