Rodents Can be a Real Problem!
Rodents are a common issue in the Northwest. Rats and mice of all shapes and sizes can invade your home or business. Don’t panic, we know just what to do to safely and effectively remove them.
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Rats
Rats pose a threat to humans by spreading diseases via food supply. They have a reputation for destroying and contaminating insulation, wood, electrical work, vapor barriers and air ducts. At about 8″ long (its tail adds another 6 inches) and weighing as much as a pound, these nocturnal rodents are able to enter through a hole in a structure as small as half an inch. They tend to nest in lower structures such as burrows, around water sources like rivers and streams and even under sidewalks. Their diet includes grains, meat and fish. Coarse, shaggy hair covers their thick body and can vary in color. Droppings are a sure sign of a rat infestation.
Types of Rats
Norway Rats
Norway rats are large and can get up to about 7-18 inches in length with their tail, and the head and body being 7-9.5 inches of that length. They can weigh anywhere from a half-pound to a pound. Their hair is coarse, shaggy, brown with scattered black hairs. The underside it grey to yellowish-white. The muzzle is blunt, eyes are small, and the ears are small and densely covered with short hairs. The tail is bicolored and scaly. Norway rats are nocturnal and are cautious. Although they constantly explore their surroundings, they shy away from new objects and changes.
Each female rat can give birth to 20 pups in her lifetime. Some factors affecting rat populations in cities include continuously mild winters, weather-related disasters and encroachment of their habitats by new urban development. They are excellent climbers and often enter a home in the fall when outside food sources become scarce. Norway rats live in fields, farmlands and in structures and can also often found in woodpiles
They prefer to nest in burrows in the soil along railroad embankments, stream/river banks, piles of rubbish, under concrete slabs, etc. Their burrows will have a least one entrance and one escape hole, but these animals are social and tend to have more than one entrance hole. The opening will be greater than 1/2 inches. Indoors this rat will nest in basements and the lower portions of buildings in piles of debris or merchandise as long as it is not disturbed. On occasion, you can find this rat in the attics, roofs and other higher places.
Why Should I Care?
Rats can chew through wiring, causing fires. Norway rats eat and contaminate food and damage properties by gnawing and burrowing. They spread diseases that affect people and pets.
Browns Rats
The brown rat is one of the best-known and most common rats. One of the largest, it is a brown or grey rodent with a body up to 10 in long, and a similar tail length; the male weighs on average 12 oz and the female 9 oz. Thought to have originated in northern China, this rodent has now spread to all continents, except Antarctica, and is the dominant rat in Europe and much of North America—making it the most prevalent mammal on the planet after humans. Indeed, with rare exceptions the Norway rat lives wherever humans live, particularly in urban areas.
Selective breeding of the brown rat has produced the laboratory rat, an important model organism in biological research, as well as pet rats.
The Brown Rat is usually active at night and is a good swimmer, both on the surface and underwater, but unlike the related Black rat (Rattus rattus) they are poor climbers. Brown rats dig well, and often excavate extensive burrow systems. A 2007 study found brown rats to possess metacognition (knowledge and regulation of cognition), a mental ability previously only found in humans and some primates.
Roof Rats
The Roof Rat (AKA Black Rat, Ship Rat, House Rat, Alexandrine Rat, Old English Rat) is a common long-tailed rodent in the subfamily Murinae (murine rodents). The species originated in tropical Asia and spread through the Near East in Roman times before reaching Europe by the 6th century and spreading with Europeans across the world. Today the Roof Rat is again largely confined to warmer areas, having been supplanted by the Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) in cooler regions.
In spite of its name, it exhibits several color forms. It is usually black to light brown in color with a lighter underside. A typical rat will be 6 – 8 inches long with another 8 inches of tail. It is nocturnal and omnivorous, with a preference for grains. Compared to the Brown Rat, it is a poor swimmer, but more agile and a better climber, tending even to flee upwards. In a suitable environment it will breed throughout the year, with a female producing three to six litters of up to ten young. Females may regulate their production of offspring during times when food is scarce, throwing as few as only one litter a year. R. rattus lives for about 2–3 years. Social groups of up to 60 can be formed.
Adults with combined head and body length 6-8 inches and the tail length is between 7-10 inches. The fur is soft and smooth; color is between brown with black intermixed to gray to black above with underside white, gray, or black. The muzzle pointed, eyes and ears are large, and they are almost naked. The tail will be scaly, uniformly dark, longer than head and body combined. Once established indoors, roof rats tend to follow the same route or pathway between their nest and food sources. Runways along vertical surfaces will usually include dark rub or swing marks on the vertical surface where their fur makes contact. Their runways will be free of debris, outdoors, the grass will be worn away to the bare soil.
Pack Rats
Pack rats, or also known as “wood rats” or “trade rats”, are found throughout most of the United States. Pack rats are commonly called Wood Rats or Trade Rats because they collect or “pack-around” various objects and bits of material to deposit in, or use in the construction of their nests.
Pack rats are especially fond of small, bright, shiny objects that they will readily confiscate; but bones, cow chips, and bits of wood are all common. When pack rats encounter an interesting object they drop or trade what they are carrying for the new item, consequently the name “trade rat”. There are 8 species of pack rats in the U.S.
Pack rats are about the size of a common Norway rat but the tail is fairly well furred and looks like a short-haired squirrel tail. They are also well furred and have large protruding ears.
Pack rats nest are built of plant material like branches, twigs, sticks and other debris. The huge, beaver dam-shaped structures may be up to 4 feet across. They may be constructed in a tree or on the ground at the base of a tree, on rocky ledges but also in your attic, wood shed, or vehicles and machinery which are abandoned or parked for long periods.
Why Should I Care?
Pack rats can become quite a nuisance around homes on the edge of town, vacation homes, cabins, outbuildings, and other infrequently used structures or buildings. They will take up residence in parked farm equipment and vehicles, gnawing on wires and other mechanical components, in addition to stealing treasures for their nests or building large nests in the vehicle or equipment.
What about Mice?
Mouse Control and Removal
Mice are the most common rodent that live within proximity to humans. They are notorious for contaminating food supply and air duct systems with disease. Most often, these pests are found nesting in quieter areas with less opportunity to be noticed and disturbed. Their adaptability to maneuver into small holes within the home structure, coupled with their expert climbing and jumping skills, makes it a nuisance that is difficult to control. At about 3-4″ long, these tiny rodents typically weigh around one ounce. Drippings are a sure sign of mouse infestation.
Adults are about 5.25-7.5 inches with the tail. The tail can take up 2.75-4 inches, relative to the size of the mouse. The fur is smooth and usually dusty gray above and lights gray or cream on the belly. The color will vary considerably from area to area regardless of living habits. The muzzle is pointed, eyes are small, incisors are ungrooved, ears are large with very little hair on them, feet short and broad, and a uniformly dark, scaly, semi-naked tail. Their preferred nesting sites are dark, secluded places where there is abundant nesting material nearby and little chance of disturbance. Nesting materials include paper products, cotton, packing materials, wall/attic insulation, fabrics, etc. Mice are nocturnal inhabit. They require an opening of greater than 1/4 inch to gain entry.
Why Should I Care?
Micro droplets of mouse urine can cause allergies in children and spread illness. Mice can squeeze through spaces as small as a nickel. Mice can also bring fleas, mites, ticks and lice into your home.
A&A’s Integrated Pest Management Program for the control of rodents involves the use of traditional trapping and exterior baiting, but also includes exclusion or entry prevention practices. Exclusion is the only truly long term solution to control rodents in structures. In addition we will address those issues that are attracting rodents to the structure with recommendations for habitat and harborage modifications. Upon completion of the inspection detailed information will be provided pertaining to rodent issues and solutions.
What is a House Mouse?
The house mouse is the most common rodent pest in most parts of the world. It can breed rapidly and adapt quickly to changing conditions. House mice can breed throughout the year and can share nests. House mice live in almost any type of household structures, but they can live outdoors.