What types of rat are we likely to see in the UK?
The Brown Rat - Rattus Norvegicus, Most common.
The Black Rat - Rattus Rattus, can be found in dock lands.
Interesting fact: Since the start of COVID London homes have seen seen a 25% increase in rats due to a decrease of waste in London city centre.
What attracts Rats to your house?
Food, smells, water and harbourage are the main reasons rats will enter your home.
What will Rats eat?
Food from both plant and animal origin, Rats are omnivorous (like us).
What food will rats eat in our house or business?
We all know that rats will feed from bin areas however once they make it into our building they will eat almost anything. Potential food sources we see them eat on a daily basis:
Food waste, bread, fatty based foods, meats, fruit, biscuits grains and pet foods.
They need to eat 10% of their body weight each day approximately 20-30g of food. Drains/sewers have been a great harbour for rats, faeces from us and other animals will also be seen as food. As you can imagine, the pathogens carried on the fur from the sewer and on to your food preparation surfaces and stores can cause harm to you, your family and business customers health.
Rats need water to survive, unlike Mice that can take moisture from food, rats will need a stand alone water source. Leaking taps, moisture from baths, bird feeders and ponds are some of the things we need to think about when protecting our homes from unwanted visitors.
Baiting - Eradication
Eliminating harbourage, food and water is our best way of eradicating a rat infestation in your home however, sometimes this is just not enough.
One of the most effective ways of getting rid of rats is by implementing a baiting programme, this is to be used as a last resort due to the effects of rodenticides in the environment but is often most needed when they’re living in the cavity of our building.
We have access to professional baits and will target the rats using their behavioural patterns. This gives us the best chance of eradicating the whole infestation.
Trapping
Trapping rats has its uses but can be quite inhumane as the rat may be trapped by one limb and the time it takes to die can be prolonged. Also, if you miss with the trap, the rats are clever enough to see the danger and may go bait shy, meaning they will not feed in that area.
How to keep rats out of your home
- Remove their food source– if this is food waste, ensure that food bins are sealed, so rodents can’t access them.
- Replace damaged waste bins and keep them clean and tidy.
- Any food stored outdoors, like bags of dry pet food, fishing bait etc, ensure it’s in sealed plastic boxes.
- Use a professional company to implement a baiting programme
- Proofing/sealing all entry points internally and externally.