Dauphin County, Harrisburg Rat Control Situation:
David, I found your website very thorough and educational, especially when researching how to handle the rats in my walls/attic. I do have a question though. How do you install steel mesh barriers in the crawl space with the dirt? Won't they dig and try to get under the mesh? Unfortunately, I do not have a husband and need to try to resolve this issue myself so want to do it "right the first time". Any help you can give is appreciated.
Hi David, I found your website "Rats In The Attic" very interesting. I live in a 2-story house. My bedroom is on the second floor, and I get awaken many times at night by the sound of a rodent chewing in the ceiling, but there is no activity there during the day. I could not find any place the rodent could get in there, even from the attic. I liked your idea of setting a trap in the attic to lure this rodent from the ceiling space, and would like to get your advice. Do you have any suggestions on how I could figure out by the sound alone if the rodent is a mouse, a rat, or a squirrel - so I would set an appropriate trap? Please let me know the size of the trap and what bait should I use for this rodent. Thank you.
I have Rats in my Garage and have been using a Rat Bait plus I have a pest control company come out but the Rats do not like HIS bait but seems to be ok with the Home Depot products. What do you charge to ‘take care' of these pasty rats? I just dumped my 2nd dead rat in the trash can for this week!
What if there is scratching at 8:30 in the morning as well as around almost 11 at night on inconsistent days? Is it most likely a rat? The scratching noises arent small mouse ones . I put the fireplace on ( which i just read not to do) and deetermined it isn't in the fireplace because the scratching continued after the fireplace was on for a couple minutes. What could this be ? And outside in our very small backyard... Where are some possible entry points? Would the entry point most likely be where the rat is scratching or if the scratching is in he back yard walls the rat could have come from all the way in the front if the house (should i be looking all around the exterior if he house?)
Harrisburg Rat Control Tip of The Week
What Are Possible Diseases Rats Can Carry?
Apart from causing severe damage to the structure of houses, rats are major carriers of life-threatening diseases. This simply shows how important it is for you to remove them from your home and make sure they don't find their way back.
Disease transmission from rats to humans can occur through several routes. These include;- Human exposure to wastes of rats such as feces, saliva, nesting materials, and urine while handling or removing them from homes.
- Bites from rats that are infected.
- Unsafe handling of rats (touching of rats without wearing gloves) and eating food that is contaminated with rat feces, urine, or saliva.
Diseases can be transmitted from rats through any of the above means. This clearly shows that if you have rats running around your home, you are at a high risk of getting infected. The following are some of the possible diseases rats can carry.
1. Hantavirus
This particular disease is one of the most life-threatening diseases that rats carry. Currently, Hantavirus is yet to have a known cure, vaccine, or treatment. Some of the symptoms of this particular disease include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and nausea.
2. Salmonella
This particular disease is a bacterial infection carried in the digestive tracts of rats. When they pass feces, it usually contains a large proportion of this bacteria. If by mistake you consume any food substances that are contaminated with this bacteria, you might contract Salmonella. Some of the symptoms of this disease include diarrhea, vomiting, fever, chills, nausea, and abdominal cramps.
3. Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus
This disease is another life-threatening disease that rats transmit to humans when there is contact. LCMV is capable of causing encephalitis and meningitis if not quickly managed at its early phase.
4. Rat-bite Fever
Unlike other types of diseases, rat-bite fever is only transmitted when a rat bites you. The bacteria of this disease is found in the saliva of rats. The symptoms of this infection include high fever, muscle pain, headaches, and skin rash.
