Polk County, Lakeland Rat Control Situation:
I'm having trouble with a rat(s?) that is constantly chewing through the wires under my hood. The car is parked outside. After the last two times, my mechanic sprayed some red stuff over everything and that has provided me with some temporary relief. I have some traps w/ poison set around now, but I still need to protect my car in the meantime. What can I do? What is the "hot spray" that you refer to on your website? I will be moving and I've been told by the homeowner of the new home that he has seen rats in the garage... I also found mouse traps under the sink... We will be replacing the carpet before moving and at that time we will try to seal any holes. He said they were kangaroo or desert rats... I'm terrified as I have a phobia about this, I need advice on how to permanently get rid of any rodents in my new home. I've used moth balls and sonar devices, I've never seen rodents were I live, we also put poison in between the walls. Is this okay? Please help!
David, My son-in-law and daughter has for the last month trying to catch a rat in their attic. This is a very smart rat, we do not want to poison the rat for we do not want it to die in the attic. We are at whits end trying to catch this rat. We have tried glue trap, electronic trap, bucket of water trap, home defense trap, wooden mouse and rat trap. He is so smart he knows how to side step all the traps.Some one has seen the rat, it is a small size rat, He roams through the garage and attic. and he chews on card boxes and eats whatever food he finds.We wonder if you can help us catch this rat, with your expertise. He or she is a nuisance and we may have more rats, if it is a she. We sincerely thank you if you can help us or try to help us. Gratefully yours, May
Lakeland Rat Control Tip of The Week
Reasons Why Relocated Rats Don't Survive Out Of Their Usual Territory
After trapping a rat in your home, you will have to decide either to kill it or relocate it. If killing a rat doesn't go down well with you because it makes you feel inhumane, you will be left with no other option but to relocate it.
If you have decided to relocate a trapped rat into a new territory, you need to understand the fact that it might not survive. Despite being a very smart household pest, rats find it very difficult to cope in a new environment for several reasons. The following are the reasons why a relocated rat won't survive out of their usual territory.
The first reason why rats won't survive in a new environment is that they are accustomed to their old environment. They have spent their entire life studying where they stay, knowing the exact place to find water and food in order to survive daily. Transferring this survival instinct to a new environment is a quite difficult thing to do for rats. As a result of these differences, they will find it difficult to locate food and water which they need to survive in any environment they are relocated to.
The presence of predators in the new environment is another reason why rats will find it difficult to survive. Animals like cats, snakes, and birds hunt for rats and will take advantage of the fact that the newly introduced rat doesn't know its way around to capture it.
When you introduce a rat into a new environment, it is going to meet other street rats that are already accustomed to that specific environment. Rats being animals that exhibit dominance in the form of hierarchy, where the submissive group is traumatized by the dominant rats, your rat will face multiple brutal battles and might end up in bad shape in the process. Over time, they will either get killed or too weak to look for food and shelter.
All these clearly show why any rat you decide to relocate might never survive the effects of leaving your home and being transferred into a new environment.