Albemarle County, Charlottesville Rat Control Situation:
Hi David, My name is Nancy my family and I live in Charlottesville Va. and we have had a rat problem in our house. We hired a company for rat removal and got rid of the rat problem for now. However the rat(s) were living in the ceiling in the basement laundry room. There is feces in the ceiling and the removal control recommended we pull down the ceiling which is just thin wood paneling, in order to remove the feces, and take away a place for them to hide in the future. After reading your website we are concerned about having my husband do this work. I'm pregnant an we have a small child in the house as well and don't want to be stirring up potential illness or problems. Also there are a lot of electrical conduits attached to the ceiling which we are concerned about. Do you think we can do this ourselves, or do you think we should hire a professional if you recommend a pro, how do we find someone to do this work? Everyone we've found just seem to be about removal of the rats, not clean up.
Dear David- Help! Need man. However, I am a single gal of retired age -semi rural. I am about to use a cylindrical attachment for drill to cut a 2 " drywall plug out of bathroom wall. This bath was added on. The noise does not always come from the same "section" so I am about to guess and go along the wall avoiding studs and taking plugs out (under counters) until I get to him/her. Then I will put a live rodent trap up to the hole and hopefully remove it that way before it dies. Question: Does this approach make sense? If I wait for a man to come help I fear it will die in the wall.
Dear David, We had heavy rain this past spring in the Charlottesville Virginia area ( so much for the drought) and there was a huge exodus of rats and mice into all of our homes. It was so widespread that traps were sold out in a 50 mile radius. Recently I pulled the bottom cushions of a sleeper coach up to turn them and discovered large clay colored dropping ( it was almost the size of rabbit food pellets) all over the back part of the seat area. Then a mouse or rat ran out a few days later. I believe it was in the mattress for some time. They also came up from a heating vent in a little used room. I am concerned about using the heat since they are under my house in the crawl space. What kind of company could I call to remove and dispose of the mattress safely? Would I be able to use a fabric safe disinfectant to save the couch and then replace the mattress? It is a very expensive couch that I wish to keep. I had my ducts cleaned a few years ago and I wonder if that loosened them and made it easy for the rats to get in.Thank you
Charlottesville Rat Control Tip of The Week
Tips On Removing A Rat Stuck In A Dumpster
If you have a rat stuck in your dumpster, please, don't forget that this is a scared creature that is now under a lot of pressure and fear for its life. Try not to additionally irritate it or mess around with it, as it might attack you, trying to protect itself. Rats carry illnesses which they can transfer directly through bites, scratches, or if their saliva drops on an open wound on your skin.
Place a lethal snap trap inside the dumpster. Accurately managing rats implies eradicating the vermin. You will need to do this as fast as possible as to not prolong the rat's suffering. Killing a rat with a deadly wooden snap trap is the most accommodating method of disposing of that rat. The rat will be frightened, so you might want to smear some peanut butter on this trap. Leave the scene, and return two or three hours later to check whether the problem is solved. If the rat was caught, use a fabric, towel, or gloves to place the carcass in a fixed plastic holder, pack or sack, which you will then be able to toss in a garbage sack. Most urban areas will permit you to discard rat remains in your garbage bin; however, you should first check your local laws.
You can also help the rat escape. You might not have any desire to kill the rat out of the blue, and would instead like to assist it with liberating itself to continue its life. The rat is stuck presumably in light of the fact that the dumpster isn't full enough, and it hasn't got anything to climb on. Toss in some more trash, or add a branch or something comparable for the rat to move up on. Stay away or leave the scene completely.
If all else fails, you can always call a wildlife removal expert.
