Imagine this: You see these little round balls in the corners of your home, you start to notice a weird ammonia smell in certain corners, you see little chewed corners on your furniture or wires. Beware, because you’re not living alone. These seemingly minor obstructions are all common signs that a rat is living with you. Rats, not to be confused with mice, are a common rodent that can destroy your home. Here at Priority Pest & Mosquito Solutions, our top priority is ensuring that you and your family have all the tools necessary to keep your property and family safe from destructive pests like rats. That’s why we have created this blog explaining the different types of rats, signs they’re living in your home, and how to get rid of them without breaking the bank, so keep reading.
Types of Rats
Rats can range in size from 5 inches to the size of a house cat. Yeah, you heard us! There are 3 common rodents that most homeowners might encounter: the Norway Rat, House Mouse, and Roof Rat. The Norway rat or “sewer rat” is about 12-18 inches in length, has brownish red hair and can produce up to 84 rat pups annually. The house mouse is about 6-7 inches in length and is usually black or dusty gray and can give birth to about 50-60 mice pups quarterly. And lastly the roof rat, called that due to their preference for attics or ceilings, can grow to 13-17 inches in length and are black or dark gray in color. They can produce up to 35 rat pups annually.
Rats don’t require a lot to survive, as long as they have a food source, water, and shelter. Rats eat almost anything they can get their paws on, and they can survive without water for a month. Rats usually live in weeds, or grasses, but when they are in your home they will take shelter under furniture, behind walls, or famously inside of and under appliances. Rats are famous for carrying dangerous diseases, which is why most homeowners prefer them not in their homes or near their family.
Signs of Rats in Your Home
You can tell you might have an rat infestation by these signs:
Droppings
Rats can leave about 50-80 small droppings throughout your home, they are small, dark, pellet-shaped, usually along their main pathways.
Smears
Rats tend to have very poor eyesight, so their usual pathways are typically along walls and floorboards, if you start noticing grease marks from where the rats brush against the wall on a regular basis, might be a sign you have an infestation.
Footprints
In dusty environments, you can notice little footprints, you can also sprinkle flour or talcum powder on the ground to see if there are fresh footprints in the morning to confirm.
Damage
Biggest one is damage, rats will chew through electrical wires, gnaw on furniture, eat any food left out, this also increases the amount of droppings, increasing risk of diseases. Rats can cause structural damage to wood, drywall, insulation and other materials.
Strange Smells and Sounds
Lastly, if you smell a strong ammonia-like smell that lingers for some time, and/or lots of squeaking and scratching sounds throughout your home, it’s a good chance there are rats infesting.
How to Get Rid of Rats
Ok, don’t panic, you might have a rat infestation. But here at Priority Pest & Mosquito Solutions, we have listed several different ways to go about ridding your home of these nasty rodents.
1. Inspection
Where are these rats coming from? Check inside and outside the house, look for access points that rats can enter and exit the house. Inside look at drains, vents, appliances. Outside look for damaged rains, cracks in your garage door or gaps around vents and in the foundation.
2. Seal Gaps
Once you find these access points you want to fill and seal them from the inside and the outside, so the rats can’t get through. Rats can fit through very small holes, if you can stick two fingers, a rat can fit though.
3. Clean up
Rats love places to hide. Cleaning up clutter and moving things away from the walls can help. Making sure trash and food are in closed containers, and cleaning up any spills will eliminate their food supply.
4. Traps
You probably don’t want to use harsh poisons as they are a bit harmful in the home, trapping is a common and effective way to rid of rats. You want to put traps in high-activity areas with peanut butter, unsalted seeds, or bananas as bait.
5. Deterrent Methods
If you are looking for a more natural deterrent, peppermint oil, cayenne pepper, black pepper or cloves help deter rats from the area, by spreading these ingredients outside your home will prevent the rats from entering.
6. Professionals
And of course the best and most effective way to get rid of rats is calling a professional pest management company. If you have rats in the walls or in hard to locate areas, having professional help is your best bet.
Exterminate Rats with Priority Pest & Mosquito Solutions
If you don’t have rats, but rather a different kind of pest, check out our website to see all of our services. We specialize in treating mosquitos, cockroaches, fleas & ticks, gophers & moles, bed bugs, and more. We get that there are no days off when it comes to a pest problem, that’s why we’re open 24/7, 365 days a year! Your safety is our top priority, give us a call, text us, send us an email, or stop by in person and we guarantee that we will take care of your pest problems.