McLennan County, Waco Rat Control Situation:
Hi David,We are struggling with mice in our garage. We've caught 2 on plain sticky traps (both actually caught on the same trap), did a thorough clean out, left about 5 other various styles of traps around the garage and there was no sign anything for about a week and a half. I had some suspicions (although, I didn't see any droppings) so I put another plain flat sticky trap near the area where we caught the other two and a few days later...bam...another one. Now I'm a little freaked out that there is some sort of colony living in the garage walls and/or garage attic. When we were putting stuff back on the garage shelves after the deep clean we thought we heard a scratching or scuffling sound but couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Can you give me an estimate on the cost of having your team come out and track down the source? It should all be relatively easy access.
Hello my name is Henry from Waco TX. We have been hearing cracking noises in the ceiling at night. Mainly in the master bedroom bathroom. I don't know why. Could it be a water source. I will set traps in the attic. I was thinking of cutting a hole in the drywall placing posion there. It says that rodent will not smell. Please any advice will help.
I have found two burrow holes on either side of my front door. One smells of urine and the other I watched a chipmunk disappear into. I am not entirely sure if they are in the house now, but I know that they were and those entry points have been sealed. So a few questions....... What do I do to eliminate the burrows at front door? How to get rid of that horrid urine stench? Do chipmunks share tunnels with rats? If they are going under the deck should I set traps? I have a lot of vine coverage in the back yard, what should I replace that with? Do the rats dislike a certain type of mulch/woodchips? I am in the process of removing the vine coverage, but what else should I do? Thank you for any suggestions and guidance!!!
Love your site. Just curious why you don't talk about crawlspaces and only attics? I assume it's the same concept, but I never saw anything about it mentioned.
Waco 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.