Passaic County, Paterson Rat Control Situation:
I've been searching the web to find a way to get rid of mice that's been running around the house for past couple of weeks. I never thought of a situation where I would actually face a mouse in my living room! I saw it coming from the kitchen so I bought bunch of snap traps that's covered and placed it along the walls but it did not work at all. I bought glue traps and placed it along the walls and under the washer/dryer areas but that didn' t work as well. it left 2 dropping on the countertop and 3 droppings near the fridge this morning. It looks like it knows where all the traps are! it usually comes out from the kitchen area to the living room but it couldn't last night because I placed the glue traps on the kitchen entrance. I have 2 kids so I'm extremely worried about any diseases those things might carry. Can you please suggest any solution that might actually work?
I work for a return center (warehouse) and I saw your site. We are trying to get rid of a mouse problem. We have many pallets of food here. We understand that there may be a few, but we have lots of them right now and customers complaining about their product coming back chewed up. We have glue strips around the facility and traps as well that are maintenanced by the pest control. We have created a "quarantine" built with wood and metal sheeting around our good product to try and keep the mice out and they still get in. We cannot use poison because we have food here.... any thoughts you may have would be appreciated. We are pretty sure that the mice are coming off of inbound trailers. Is there anything we can do before we unload the truck to remove the mice?
Paterson Rat Control Tip of The Week
Rats And Black Pepper
Rats eat almost anything. In their search for food, they can gnaw on plastic, wood, and even electrical wiring. A rat presence in your home can cause a lot of economic damage.
When this expense is added to the health problems rats' body fluids can cause, the best thing a person can do is getting them out of the house as soon as possible. The most common extermination way is using traps or rodenticides. However, there are more natural methods such as the use of peppers that cause unpleasant odors and tastes for the rodent and quickly drive them away.
Odors That Repel
Using repellents with unpleasant odors for rats is a way to keep them away from you in a friendly way. The advantage of not having to deal with the rodent's carcass can be worth the effort of constantly using these temporary methods. Rodents use their sense of smell to socialize as well as to survive. An odor such as ammonia often drives them away because it is very similar to the urine of large animals that could devour them. Spicy odors are perceived as dangerous chemicals that are also often avoided at all costs.
Black Pepper
Spicy food odors are unbearable for rats, thanks to their high capsaicin content. These natural compounds give the food its spicy effect, but they are also often very irritating to the mucous membranes and lungs of rodents. If ingested, they can cause a burning sensation in the taste buds and olfactory glands. Pepper is known to be able to scare away rats temporarily although this is not scientifically proven.
For all those people who are afraid of having to deal with poisons or homemade traps, finding new and less harmful options is a headache; however, homemade repellents like black pepper avoid harming other animals and humans, being a perfect choice. In any case, even if they are harmless odors, it is advisable to seek the advice and follow the instructions of a professional in the field.