Monterey County, Salinas Rat Control Situation:
Roof rats in apartment walls - Hi! I saw your page and hope this is still a valid email. I live in an apartment and do not have rats inside yet but do have them in my walls. The property manager called pest control who put traps with peanut butter on the roof but that is it! I called the county complaint line but they said it will be 7-10 days til they can come. What else can I do or get the manager to do? The noise is becoming more frequent and in more walls. I asked them to cut into walls but they won't yet. Thanks, Lindsay
Hello David, I have visited your site after searching for an answer to my problems. I think I have a rat living in my ceiling. Its driving me crazy, it makes so much noise especially in the evenings and it even wakes me up in the middle of the night. I live in a council flat on the top floor and the rat lives in the attic. The problem is that there is no human access to the attic at all, I have called the council and they said as there's no acces to the attic they cannot do anything. Only if the rat comes into the flat. It's outrageous! I stood outside one day and have noticed that on the top of the roof there is a very small gap, which I don't know what it's for but I think the rat is using this passage to come in or out, or perhaps the pipes. Anyway, how can I get rid of it without being able to put any poison or traps in the attic? Please help! Thanks you, Adriana
Salinas Rat Control Tip of The Week
Why Do More Rats Live In Urban Areas Than In Wild Areas?
Statistically, more rats are living in urban areas than in the wild. This is simply because urban areas have an abundant availability of food that is easily accessible, compared to the wild where they have to go in search of food before they can find something to eat. Although, rats in the wild are known to live longer simply because they feed on natural foods.
The most dominant species of rats living in urban areas are roof rats and Norway rats. These species of rats have an adaptive feature that allows them to survive in any kind of environment and their rate of reproduction allows them to multiply rapidly in any home they find themselves in.
Apart from the availability of easily accessible food, urban areas have an abundant supply of places to nest and proliferate. In urban areas, there are houses around and each of these houses has attics, walls, roofs, and other hidden places where rats can nest. The search for a place to nest makes takes rats into urban areas that seem to have many good nesting places.
Also, the absence of predators in urban areas makes rats prefer to stay in urban areas than in the wild. In the wild, there is no adequate protection for them, and more than half will be hunted as prey before they even reach maturity.
All of the above reasons clearly show why there are more rats in urban areas than in wild areas. Having realized this, you need to do all you can to prevent them from infesting your home because if they do, they will multiply rapidly within just a short time.