Palm Beach County, Boca Raton Rat Control Situation:
Hello: I just read the information from your email. I recently moved into an actually nice home in the Boca Raton area; however the backyard is a woody area and cross from it is the swamp. The owners of the home told me they had a cat so they never saw a rat except what the cat bought in after killing it. When I moved in which was 3 weeks ago, I started to experience rats in the kitchen, saw droppings all over my stove area. I became overwhelmed and my two children (girls) are now petrified. The owner reluctantly paid for an exterminator because they swore they never had a problem. When the exterminator came out they did a walk through. In the attic rat droppings everywhere, in the downstairs closet rat droppings and in the garage. The exterminator sealed up two openings from the attic, and I was told a tree need to cut down because that was how they were getting in, but in the closet downstairs they seem to have inhabit that area. The exterminator wanted me to remove the poison that was put down and they set traps in all 3 areas mentioned. Do you think this will rid the problem or do I need to relocate?
Hi David - I'm in Boca Raton FL and you don't have anyone here!!! I've had mice in my attic since we built our house - 10 yrs ago. I've snap trapped probably over 100 over the years, and again, now that its getting cold here, we hear the scratching at night. I've also used poison blocks that I scatter throughout the attic. I find them scrivelled up sometimes, but with blown in insulation it is hard to find their paths etc. I've got a stone veneer which results in lots of gaps where the top of the wall meets the metal soffit, so I'm wondering how to proceed on sealing that up? Any help you can suggest would be much appreciated. Thanks Bob
Boca Raton Rat Control Tip of The Week
Why Are Cage Traps Only Occasionally A Good Option For Rats And Why Do Relocated Rats Rarely Survive?
When it comes to getting rid of rats, homeowners are usually faced with the dilemma of how to get them out without actually killing them. This usually makes them consider every possible option just to achieve their aims. To make this possible, several devices have been designed to trap rats in homes. But when considering a humane way to get rid of these pests, cage traps are one of the best devices to use.
The use of cage traps helps to capture rats without actually getting them killed. Unlike the use of other devices such as lethal traps, cage traps help to capture the rats in the most humane way. Using a cage trap doesn't automatically guarantee the fact that the rats you are getting out of your home will be in good health when they are being captured. In most cases, before the homeowners get to even remember to check the cage, the rats are already dehydrated, exhausted, or too weak to survive.
To avoid this and keep the rats in good health, you need to try as much as possible to check on the cage trap constantly and make sure the traps are placed away from sunlight coming from windows and other openings in your home.
After catching a rat, the next thing to do is to relocate the rat. But in most cases, these rats never survive. Rats that are relocated have very slim chances of survival and will not make it past a few days.
Relocated rats find it very difficult to feed on available food in a new environment and might die as a result of starvation. Also, relocating them to an environment they are not familiar with comes with the need to urgently find shelter. In the process of finding shelter with no already established route, a vast majority of them become prey to other animals.