Bexar County, San Antonio Rat Control Situation:
In mid July of 2008, a friend brought me a 4 week old baby girl rat that she found by the garbage. I live n San Antonio TX. I kept and raised her, she was my little girl and she was a sweetheart. I fell very much in love with her, but not until after I released her to the outside world. In December I started taking her outside for a couple hours each day until she got to the point she wanted to sleep in the tree. She was outside for about four months until April 1st, when she didn't come home. Everyday for those four months she came to me when I called her name, until that morning she didn't show up to get her breakfast. My husband called her for lunch that day, but she never came and I tried again at dinner time, but no show. We tried to find her for two weeks after that, but she was no where to be found. I wish I would have never let her outside and kept her as a pet. I loved her very much and she loved me, we would play together for a couple hours everyday, she was different from the other squirrels. I would like to find another baby squirrel if I could. I see that you trap them and relocate them, do you ever come across any that are special needs and if so what do you do with them? Or do you know who I could contact to see about getting one for a pet? I feed the rats in my back yard everyday and my husband now has a girl squirrel that comes to him for peanuts, she is very cute. I could set and watch them all day. Can you help me? Thanks, Candace
San Antonio Rat Control Tip of The Week
Using Exclusion Funnels To Get Rid Of Rats Without Killing Them
Rats are probably the second most common species of rodent to be found in our towns and cities after rats, and like their larger relations, they can also often find their way into many different areas of the domestic property. Because rats can carry diseases, and can also transmit them by soiling food and water sources, it is natural to want to get rid of them as soon as possible. Exclusion funnels are one approach that can be used to try and get rid of rats from your home.
How Do The Exclusion Funnels Work?
Ultimately, the funnels are designed so that the rats can easily get in through the wide end of the funnel, and can then push themselves out of the narrow end of the funnel when they are leaving a particular area of your property. However, when they try to get back in the narrow end of the funnel the entrance is too small and cannot be prized open, meaning the rats are not able to get back into the area where they are causing the problem. The key aspect with exclusion funnels is that the rats really do need to be contained in one area of the home.
Preparation Work To Install Your Exclusion Funnels
The first step before you install any exclusion funnels in your property is to carry out a detailed search of where they are active, and then to identify all of the holes the rats are using to get in and out of that area. The reason for this is that you need to be able to deal with each entry point the rats may use so that when you install the funnels, they cannot simply come back in through another entry point. While carrying out this work, it is usually a wise precaution to wear long sleeved clothing and gloves, along with a breathing mask and goggles to protect yourself from any disease transmission.
Where To Place Your Exclusion Funnels
It is usually best to only place one or two exclusion funnels, and then seal the remaining access points that you can find in the area where the rats are nesting. When choosing which entry points to install your exclusion funnels, the best options are usually those that have the heaviest traffic, and should be indicated by a greater buildup of rat droppings and urine stains.
Monitoring The Rat Activity In Your Home
Once you have installed the exclusion funnels, the next step is to monitor the area to see how effective the funnels have been. In some cases, this part of the work can actually prove to be quite trial and error, as the rats will often have other secret entry points that you may not have found on your first search of the area. In this instance you will then have to search the area again, and try and find the other access point the rats are using to get in and out.
The Challenges Of Using Exclusion Funnels To Deal With Rats
One of the key benefits of using exclusion funnels to deal with rats is that it doesn?t kill the animals so you don?t have to dispose of any carcasses. However, this also means that the rats can try and find other ways to get into your home, which means it can take longer to deal with them than if you were to use lethal means to deal with a rat infestation. The other issue with using exclusion funnels for such small animals is that because of their size, it is very difficult and detailed work to actually find all of the holes they are using to get in and out.
