Rodents & Rats
Here at We care pest control, controlling rodents both externally and internally is something we specialise in. We’re dealing with daily residential callouts from distressed customers, whilst supporting commercial clients with ongoing Maintenance contracts.
Our aim here at We care pest control is to be proactive; working directly on the initial rodent clear up, whilst implementing preventative measures from our proofing or hygiene recommendations.
Helping With Rat Control
There are two species of rats found in the UK, Rattus Norvegicus which is more commonly known as the Brown Rat or Common Rat and the Rattus Rattus, which is more commonly known as the Black Rat or Ship Rat. The latter is now rarely found in the UK. The Brown Rat often weighs over half a kilo and can measure 23cm in length, excluding the tail and is the larger of the two species. Both species reach sexual maturity at around 3 months of age and each female can produce between 3-12 litters of 6-8 young in just one year. Rats will live in any area that provides food, water, and shelter. Within a property they will live in roof spaces, wall cavities and under floorboards. In gardens they will burrow into grassy banks, under patio areas and garden structures and under decking. Once a suitable habitat is found rats very quickly reproduce to take advantage of the new food supply and in no time at all they become a major infestation.
Rats are known to harbour several diseases including: –
- Weil’s disease
- Salmonella
- Tuberculosis
- Cryptosporidiosis
- E-Coli
- Foot and Mouth disease
Due to high reproduction and infestation rates it is advisable that a professional pest control company is contacted for all manner of rat control.
We will only use professional rodenticide if essential, we avoid using rodenticide internally to avoid our customers being left with horrific smells, Rats can unfortunately consume the lethal dose and die within a wall cavity or ceiling, whilst we have amazing rodent deodorants to mask the smells, it’s always a last resort internally here at We Care Pest Control Hull. We have a wide range of equipment + non-toxic baits to effectively trap and remove the rats from your homes or business.
Neighbours
Occasionally rodents can gain entry via another home or business and move across wall cavities, floors, lofts, basements and voids into your home or business. If all entry points have been sealed and drain confirmed ok on your home or business, you will then need to speak with neighbouring properties about the situation, we usually find speaking to neighbours supports the process anyway.
You can also escalate to local authorities / environmental health if they don’t take any action for advice / support. Terrace blocks are usually the most problematic, with some blocks having over 20 different homeowners, landlords and tenants to get on board.
Recommendations
After the initial inspection we will provide a detailed report with all our recommendations.
Repairing rodent entry points into your home or business is usually the most common recommendation, ranging from a small gap around the waste pipe to a collapsed drain.
Repairs
The repairs need to be done using the correct materials or new rodents will gnaw back through, we can supply and install also to ensure everything is done correctly but can also offer free advice. Removing any harbourage points like overgrown hedges, piles of wood / waste can support and make the area less inviting by removing these harbourage points.
They also love setting up home under sheds / decking / summer houses, rodent mesh can be installed to prevent easy access. Damaged drain inspection covers are another common route into gardens, so we would recommend replacing or repairing any damaged covers. Cover any household waste where Rodents can get access to it, close dustbin lids and cover compost heaps.
If you feed garden birds, try, and limit this, over 90% of all residential callouts last year had bird feeders in the garden, providing rats with an easy food source. Rodents need a good water & food source, some jobs are resolved by simply removing the food and water source, if they are well established though, they won’t mind traveling to next doors bird feeder. If we suspect rats are gaining entry into your home or business via a drain fault a CCTV drain survey will be recommended.
UV Tracking Dust
UV Tracking Dust is a non-toxic powder that is used to track the movement of rodents. Otherwise known as rat tracking powder, the dust glows under UV light. Placing rodent tracking dust in areas where you are unsure if there is rodent activity, it helps detect the presence of rats and mice, aiding you to know where is best to place poison and traps.
Here is a video of UV Tracking Dust in use, as you can see in the video foot prints from the rats which enables a clear vision of the entry point in the property.
