Hartford County, Hartford Rat Control Situation:
Hi David, We are very impressed with your website! Sadly, we found it after spending hundreds of dollars with a local exterminator/pest control company. Naturally, we still have a rat problem... We would like to attempt to eradicate and/or handle our "little problem" ourselves (we are pretty handy...) and in this economy we need to conserve where we can (especially after we spent money on the worthless "experts"!) My first question for you is... how do you make a one-way door for rats? We roof rats in our attic. The openings to outside have all been closed up, but we would like to be able to leave the animals a way out... just not a way IN. We liked the photographs on your website of the mesh funnel and the tower-looking one-way door, but we can't figure out how to make them. Do you have specifications or design plans for those two items? We would really appreciate it! My second question is... the product that you use to fog/disinfect after clean-up... does it have to be a fog or can it be a spray? If we fog the attic, how long do the people and the house pets have to be out of the house? My third question is... is an N-95 mask sufficient protection when working in the attic? Thank you, David! Sincerely, Carrie
My response: To make a one-way door, roll steel mesh into a funnel a foot long, with an opening the size of a quarter on the exit end. I wear a Tyvek suit, latex cloves, a HEPA respirator mask, and I remove the feces by hand, plus the soiled insulation, and bag it in plastic bags. I then fog the attic with a special cleaner called Bac-Azap, which helps decontaminate. You can try this yourself at your own risk, or hire a local company in your area off of my professionals directory.
Hartford Rat Control Tip of The Week
Do Rats Feel Pain?
Rats are one of the few animals with a developed brain and a sense of empathy. When handled with care, they can be playful and tickled. But when handled without compassion or roughly, they showcase a high level of anxiety and express their pain in a special kind of way. This clearly shows that just like every other animal, rats also feel pain.
When it comes to expression, rats express their pain in a special kind of way. They do this by slightly changing their facial appearance and making a grin that clearly shows that they are in discomfort. Apart from this, rats also show that they are in pain by narrowing their eyes, puffing out their cheeks, flattening their ears, and rhythmically increasing the size of their nose.
If you want to know if a rat is in pain or not, you will have to pay attention to its facial expressions. Since they are inaudible animals, waiting to hear them make excruciating sounds is a no-brainer. But with visual clues shared above, you will be able to know when a rat is in pain and when it is not.
Rats are sensible animals with a high level of empathy. Another way you can know when a rat is in pain without actually studying its facial expressions is when you see another rat showing concern for the isolated rat. This behavior in rats is also exhibited when one rat is wounded or ill. In situations like this, other rats will come around the indisposed rat to show their concern.
Having shared this, you can be certain that rats also feel pain. Therefore, if you notice any rat around exhibiting any of the signs above, the rat may be hurt or ill. Also, you need to understand the fact that rats are major carriers of diseases, hence you should avoid having direct contact with them.
