New Castle County County, Wilmington Rat Control Situation:
Hi David, I rent an apartment in Wilmington DE and have consistent mouse problems. It started with a mouse in the beginning of the year- I set all types of traps (snapping, glue, poison) and it would only eat the peanut butter and not get caught. Finally it was caught, but again I have a mouse and all the different traps that are out are only feeding it. I know the only real way to stop them is to close off all points of access, but living in an old apartment building and having landlords who've stopped caring about all the mice problems makes it harder. My neighbors also have mice problems and I think they're traveling between apartments. I obviously cant secure every hole, but I can at least try with my place. Would stuffing the holes with mesh wire then covering it with caulking work? I'm not sure how to finish off the holes. Also if you have any insight on how to deal with these renter vs. landlord situations, I'm all ears. Thanks for listening, Dianna
Hello, Attached are 2 photos of what I think are from a wood rat. My family owns a large cabin in the middle of 260 wooded acres. The ground around the cabin has been cleared for years. In the past we only had mice to control, but now we have critters that we cannot control. We place rat/mice poison in 3 areas. They eat it all within 2 weeks. There is lots of poop right around the poison trays. Now the critter is eating part of the sofa and has knocked a lamp over. We have had flying squirrels and wood rats in the past. But they ate the poison and died. Not the case now. What do you suggest? We put moth balls under the cabin and the attic appears not to be an issue. We cannot find where they are coming in. VERY frustrating. Can you help?? Thank you. I have to forward the pictures from my computer.
Wilmington Rat Control Tip of The Week
What Equipment Do I Need To Trap A Rat?
Trapping a rat is not as difficult as it seems, provided you have the right kind of equipment. Rats are a highly intelligent household pest with prior knowledge of your unyielding intentions to either get them killed or captured. As a result of this, they will try as much as possible to run for their lives whenever they get the chance to.
For you to outsmart them and make your plans to trap them successfully, you need good quality traps set up at the spot the rats in your house pass through the most and the right process of setting these traps.
Have you decided to trap the rats in your home and you are looking for the equipment to use and the right way to go about this? The first thing you have to do to achieve your objective is to discover the exact routes of the rats in your house. These are the places you will be setting your traps once you are ready to capture them.
After that, the next thing you have to put in place is the right kind for bait. A good bait should help attract rats and not any other pest or animal in your home. If you just chose a random food substance as bait, you might end up trapping the pets in your home instead of the target pest.
After putting all of that in place, the most important piece of equipment you need to trap a rat is a good quality trap. Your choice of trap depends on whether you want to kill the rats with the trap or just trap them and later release them far away from your home.
If you choose to kill them directly with the trap, a lethal rat trap will be most appropriate. The only issue with the use of this trap is that you will have to get multiple traps and set them at different locations because this kind of trap can't trap more than one rat at a time.
On the other hand, if you choose to trap the rats and release them afterward, a one-way entry door trap will also be most appropriate. Also, while setting up either of these traps, you need to protect yourself at all times from the bacteria spread by the rats by wearing a pair of gloves and a protective mask.