Fulton County, Atlanta Rat Control Situation:
Hello, I ran across your article rats in the Attic online earlier today. I have some type of critter that moved in a couple of weeks ago. I thought it was a squirrel until I read your article that said squirrels are diurnal in nature. The thing in my attic is most active around 11pm, I can hear it move around a little bit and chewing on something-it sounds like a handsaw operating, and then again about 6am when it chews much more often and much louder. Is this symptomatic of a squirrel or could it be something else? You say rats live in the attic at night, but I don't even want to say the word rat. I live in Southeast Atlanta Georgia, so I'm not sure it's a flying squirrel, and it's definitely not big enough to be a raccoon or a opossum. Any help you could offer me would be very much appreciated. Thank you!
My response: Sounds like rat activity to me. Maybe you should have a wildlife expert come out and inspect your attic. You've got to find out how the rats are getting in, and seal those areas shut with steel.
Hi, I have a rat in my mini van and I can't get rid of it. I have tried traps - they didn't work. Poison - I think this rat thrives on it . I‘ve clean the van of any food and as it is a newish van there isn't anyway to get in. Help! Minnie
David, I live in Atlanta, not near you in Orlando, but I was looking over your photos of the rats. What are you using for bait on the snap traps or does it vary? Specifically dealing with roof rats and have you used traps outside? I'm fairly sure that I have most of the roof rats (sealed all points and it's been a while) but I feel like making sure by setting a few traps. Any hints would be greatly appreciated.
I bait the traps with a thin spread of peanut butter. But the location of the traps is 10x as important as the bait. Set the traps in areas of high rat activity.
Atlanta Rat Control Tip of The Week
How Do Rats Use Pheromones To Communicate?
Releaser Pheromones:
Rats communicate using releaser pheromones to send information to other rats that they are in their own territory. Rats often urinate in areas to send information that they are ready to nurse or that a specific area where their nest is located is their own. Rats use these releaser pheromones to claim territory and to make sure that other rats will stay away.
Primer Pheromones:
Primer pheromones are designed to be excreted during the peak of fertility and this is the type of pheromone that sends sexual signals to males in the area. These scents are released in order to attract males and to make sure that the female is going to mate during a time where she is more than likely to conceive.
Primer pheromones are some of the main types of communication tools used by rats and it's one of the most powerful ones that can be sensed in the area. These responses are triggered by the area of the brain called the Vomeronasal and this refers to the overall sense that an adult male gets of the pheromone.
Information Pheromones:
These types of pheromones are designed to be useful for identifying something about the animals or about the area. Rats often use these to convey fear or to share information about an area. Certain species of rats can share information about a food source, safe space, and more with these types of pheromones. Most of the time informational pheromones are designed to identify the smell of other species and to warn other rats of dangers in the area.
Scientists are continuing to study rats to determine the total number of ways that they are able to communicate by pheromones alone.
