Dane County, Madison Rat Control Situation:
Hi my name is Sabrina. I own a beautiful home in Madison WI. I have an area in my garage where the drywall was removed near my water heater. I was sound asleep tonight and woke up to this really loud scratching noise above my bed. I'm a total scaredy cat and I have no idea what to do. Last week I was asleep and the doorbell kept going off but no one there then the actual doorbell box Above the closest started buzzing so loud And I climbed on the chair and it smelt like it was burning I called the fire dept and thank god they disconnected it. It was burning. Do you think this may be a big critter it sounds so big and I'm so scared. Please help me.
Hello, I own a two flat brick building. I live on the first floor. I have set traps and attempted to close up all holes in my home. However I heard some scratching in my ceiling and in the walls. What can I do that is not so expensive.
We just recently got a rat or mouse in the house and we assumed it upstairs since we heard scratching and walking. We set traps and we seemed to be waiting long for it to finally work. However, we realized it wasn't upstairs but between the downstairs ceiling and upstairs floor. It's hard to put a trap between the floor. We are confused on what to do. Some advice on how to solve the problem would be great.
I have been searching the internet for clues on my husband memory and confusion issues. I came across your article. Almost two yeas ago he cleaned out a shed that had been invaded by rats and squirrels, he did wear a mask for some of the time but once he got used to the smell he did not use it any more. Now he shows sign of dementia or allzimers. I have trouble with that as I can't get out of my mind the feeling that it is related to that filthy building. The smell was over powering even from standing outside of the door. Could there be a link? Thanks
Madison Rat Control Tip of The Week
Can A Rat Have Rabies?
Rats have powerful bites:
Rats can have very powerful bites and are capable of damaging the skin quickly. A rat can bite through cinderblocks to get into an area if it needs to. Rats could bite through clothing or manage to break the skin even unintentionally with a very quick bite. Handling rats with care or using heavy gloves is recommended if you have to remove one or relocate it. It is ultimately best if you avoid handling rats whenever possible.
Many people are bitten each year with low rates of infection:
Rats bite over 50,000 people in the USA each year. Rabies vaccine shots are very rarely delivered in these cases and the risk for other types of diseases that rats carry can be far greater. Going to see a doctor about a rat bite can be wise if you are starting to feel some of the secondary symptoms or it looks infected.
Rats do spread disease:
Rats do spread a series of diseases including rat-bite fever. It can be transmitted through a bite or through pets. Rabies can be a deadly disease but most of the diseases that rats pass on are only able to cause the chance for fever and infection which carry lower rates of mortality.
Other animals can be much riskier to receive bites from:
If you are bitten by other animals like raccoons, coyotes, woodchucks, or skunks, this will give you a much riskier chance of receiving something like rabies. When bitten by a rat, you should be concerned but you may not have to run to get the bite checked out with the same urgency.
The main theory of low rabies cases:
A rat would have to survive a bite from a predator in order to become a carrier of rabies. As coyotes and larger animals will be likely to kill a rat in an attack, this leads to the chance of rats not being able to spread rabies at all.
