Saint Louis County, St. Louis Rat Control Situation:
Hi David! I have a quick question that I'm hoping you can help me with. My husband and I are hearing noises in the attic and we noticed that the outside vent to the dryer has been pulled away from the house. We have some contraction going on in two rooms and after we put Sheetrock up, the next morning a hole was chewed where the ceiling meets the crawl space between the first and second floors. There were also rat droppings on the floor. We went out and bought snap traps (6) and set 2 in the room with the hole, one in the laundry room, 2 in the main attic, and one in the smaller attic above the room. The next morning half the traps were triggered but nothing caught. We reset all the traps and the next morning all the traps were triggered and empty. The rat had also gotten into the pantry during the night and found a bag of dog treats and tried to pull them out under the door. The reset all the traps, wrapping the trigger with gauze and coating it with peanut butter to make it harder for them to just lick it off. For three weeks now the traps have been untouched. We don't have much activity in the attic either. Last night I took some of the dog treats and put it with the peanut butter as added incentive and we finally caught one... A big one. My question is, is it likely that there are more or that we only had the one? We have two dogs inside and it boggles my mind that rats would be ballsy enough to roam the house when there are dogs around! Should I keep the traps out and see what happens or do you think we got it? Only the one trap with the rat was triggered. Thanks so much for your time, Zui in St. Louis MO
My response: If the traps were triggered with no trap, you were definitely using the wrong traps for the animal you were dealing with. So if it was definitely large rat traps that you were using, then you didn't have a rat - maybe an opossum or something. And if it was rat, then you used the wrong traps - did you you mouse traps, by chance?
St. Louis Rat Control Tip of The Week
Reasons Why Rats Die Inside Attics And Houses
They Get Thirsty:
Rats often get thirsty when they have ingested any type of poison or when they cannot find their way out of a house. When rats go in search of water, they go towards an area where they will be closest to the outside world. When they have difficulty getting out of the home, they may find themselves in the attic close by their water source that they desperately need but unable to access a way out of the home.
They Get Poisoned On The Way Back To The Nest:
Rats will often travel throughout the home after they've been poisoned. Because poison often takes a bit of time to take effect, a rat might make its way up to the attic to stay warm and then die on its way back from the attic.
They Bleed Out:
Rats that have been affected by spring traps and other means for capturing may bleed out if they sustained serious injuries. This can happen quite quickly especially if the rat has made its way up to the attic to try and escape. This often becomes the final resting space for rats and this can eventually lead to foul odors.
They Get Stuck In Glue Traps:
Glue traps can be another cause for a rat to get stuck in an attic area. When a rat gets stuck in a glue trap it's possible that it will simply die in the area which can lead to people finding the rat or the rat causing a series of issues with smells and rotting. Glue traps are commonly placed in attics because this can be an easy place as it is out of sight for pets, toddlers, and home/business owners.
