Orange County, Orlando Rat Control Situation:
hi david, i came across your site... guess why? There's a rat between my unit (main level condo) and the upper unit. it runs up and down the chimney, across my ceiling in a soffit in a space about 4' wide x 12' long x 2' high. my handyman set 2 rat traps yesterday via removal of a can light ( also took photos of the feces to verify not squirrel). they both went off withing 20 minutes of setting but the creep didn't get caught even though there was a huge scuttle that sounded like the tasmanian devil. to find out, the handyman set the traps on top the 2x4. argh. it was quiet all night and just as soon as we thought it was scared away, the noise started up this morning. local exterminators want to drop pellets after an 'exterior inspection' for $300 - $400. (the squirrel catcher assessed the roof and grounds yesterday and yes there are a few places and probably more.) people who have poisoned rats that haven't been able to get outside say not to use poison because the animal stench is hideous and lasts up to 6 weeks. at the moment, the varmit is banging around up there, i guess walking around the traps. any suggestions? it's driving us crazy, esp when it gets aggitated or perhaps fending off a competitor - it literally sounds like a bar room brawl. thanks - gaylene
AAARGHH!!! Never use poison! It only makes the problem worse! You need to seal the entry holes and trap and remove the rats.
so i've seen what i think is a mouse in my son's room. It was a little bigger than the palm of my hand and grey. i live in a three story apartment complex in Winter Park and hear them in my walls at night. I had made a couple of holes at the bottom of each of my two bedrooms and the living room for my cable wire. I wanted to know how to get rid of them, which traps work best, how long does it take to get rid of them and how do i know if i got them all? any help would be greatly appriciated. thanks.
It's more likely a juvenile rat than a mouse in central FL. You need to have either the building sealed shut, or the inside areas leading into your apartment. Give me a call, and I can come inspect the apartment for free.
Orlando Rat Control Tip of The Week
Steps To Make A Rat Trap
Catching a rat is a pretty easy job if you have the right tools. Without a doubt, rat traps are one of the oldest and simplest methods that could be used when catching these nasty rodents.
Homemade traps are very effective for catching rats, and making them is really simple. There are infinite options. Below, we will explain all the steps to make a rat trap.
But before doing that, here are some points that you should take into account:- Evaluate your materials: depending on the materials you have, you can make different types of traps. This time, we will make a homemade trap whose main materials are a plastic bottle, newspaper, cardboard, and rat glue.
- Define specific points: there are places in your home that can be very attractive to rats, especially those that provide food or shelter: the kitchen, dining room, or holes in the walls.
- Building the trap is really simple: you can cover the surface on which you will place the trap with newspaper, and you can place a piece of cardboard on which you will put rat glue, leaving a space in the middle to place the bait, -which could be a piece of cheese-. This bait will attract the rat and it will get stuck.
Sounds pretty easy, right? But...
What Happens If The Rat Evades Your Traps?
You may be dealing with a rat that has learned to survive in the most dangerous environments, so they will completely avoid all those things that could be a threat. In this case, you must add poison to the list of materials.
If you use the same technique, it is likely the rats will evade it again. So change the strategy; you can keep the traps with rat glue but poison the food this time.
It is important to note that poisons may have a delay in taking effect, so it is important to locate the rat after it ingested the poison. If not, it might die in places that are difficult to access.
