Do It Yourself Pest Control Supplies for Roof Rats Treatment

Roof Rat
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The Roof Rat is a little smaller and more agile than the Norway Rat. The head and body are about 6-8 inches long with the tail being an additional 7-10 inches. Roof Rats weighs around 5-9 oz. This is about half the body weight of Norway Rats. It has a pointed nose with large eyes and ears.

Adults are sexually mature in 2-5 months. Females produce 4-6 litters per year, each averaging 6-8 young. Adults live 9-12 months. Their senses of smell, taste and touch (by whiskers) are exceptional. They have poor sight and are color blind.

Roof Rats require 1/2-1oz. of food and about 1 oz of water per day with water mainly coming from their food. They will eat almost anything, but prefer fruits, vegetables and cereals. This results in about 30-180 droppings per day and 1/2oz of urine. Their droppings are up to 1/2 inch long and spindle shaped with pointed ends.

Roof Rats prefer to nest in the upper parts of structures but will occasionally occupy basements and sewers. Outdoors, they prefer to nest in higher places such as trees. Don't overlook ground burrows; they will make these if necessary. Look for grass worn down to the dirt for establishment trails. They do not congregate like Norway Rats but will have several nests in the same general area. Their range is about 100-150 ft from a food source. In residential neighborhoods, this could extend to greater distances.

A couple things to remember about rats are that they leave their droppings where they spend most of their time. They are also gluttons if they find a preferred food, they will get a good fill out of it before moving on, only to return again and again until it is all eaten.

They are shy about new objects in their territory or runway paths. This is why sometimes it is necessary to set out snap traps but not to set them for a couple nights so the rats can get used to them before setting the trigger. The same would apply to baits set out in the area. They need some time to get used to the new object. If outside, they prefer to nest in burrows under building foundations, sidewalks and concrete pads. In buildings, they prefer the bottom floor areas or mechanical / electrical rooms. If outside burrows are present, look for one entrance hole and one or more bolt holes to escape any impending danger. Remember any hole larger than 1/2 inch is an entrance that needs to be sealed up as soon as possible.

Rats are notoriously associated with the plague. But today, diseases such as Leptospirosis is a major concern. This disease is acquired by eating food and drinking water contaminated with infected rat urine.

They cause significant structural and product damage. Structure damage could include electrical circuit failure when rats chew wiring. Many fires of unknown origin are started by rats chewing on wire insulation.

Control is usually achieved by methods in four different areas. These include good sanitation, structural and exclusion practices, glueboards, mechanical traps and baits. It may take measures in more than one area to achieve control. Good sanitation includes keeping areas clear of spilled or damaged food items, removing excess water and storing goods in warehouses at least 12 inches off the floor and 12-18 inches from the wall. Structural and exclusion practices include sealing all holes, gaps and cracks larger than 1/2 inch around doorways, windows and other openings with sheet metal, 1/4 inch hardware cloth, caulk or expanding foam. Door sweeps should be installed if necessary to minimize rodent access through entryways.

Glueboards come in different styles such as the Trapper Rat Glueboards 2pk, Trapper LTD Glueboards 72ct box, MB72 Peanut Butter scent 72ct box, Catch Master MB72 Peanut Butter scent 8/pk. Also available is the Trapper Pest Monitor Box which holds a Protecta MC GlueTrap which is available in a 6ct package. When dealing with glueboards, check which the rodent got stuck and back track from that point. You may find an entryway you did not know about. If so seal it up to minimize entryways.

Snap traps include the following: Victor Rat Expanded Trigger M326 12ct box or each and Kness Snap-E Rat Trap. A couple of helpful hints about snap traps include placing the trigger toward the wall along run ways, setting out multiple traps along a wall like a maze type setup and if you have a really stubborn rat, try placing bait or nesting material on the trap but not setting it for the first two nights to let them get used to the trap, then set the trap on the third night. Most of the time, this does the trick.

Mechanical multi catch traps serve a good purpose when you want to capture multiple rodents at one location. These are usually set up on the interior sides of doorways or long wall runs. The traps are usually inspected on a weekly or monthly frequency. Some popular traps include the Kness Ketch-All or Victor Tin Cat.

Some helpful facts about rodent bait we offer at Do It Yourself Pest Control Supply include: The bait is an anti-coagulant which means the rodent dies of internal bleeding when blood vessels break internally and cannot be repaired through normal healing. The bait takes about 24-48 hours to produce control, so this does not allow bait shyness to occur. The tale of bait making rats thirsty so they leave to find water is not true. There is no bait that dries the rodent carcass so it does not smell. The rat odor is gasses emitted during the decomposition process, which is just a biological process. Some deodorizers / neutralizers will minimize or eliminate rat odors of decomposition through an enzyme process. These products include Epolean N7C .5 gal or 4 oz size, Epolean NnZ .5 gal, and XO PLUS ODOR NEUTRALIZER & CLEANER 16 OZ. BTL or case. These are concentrates with a pleasant fragrant scent. The Epolean products are mixed to desired strength or used at full strength. Other products are deodorizers such as Rat Sorb 1oz. and Earth Care Odor Remover Bag.

There are many varieties of rodent baits including block, meal and cereal as well as different styles of bait stations. We carry these in many different types. They include Contrac All Weather Rodent Bait Blox 12 qty pkg, Contrac All Weather Rodent Bait 4lb Pail, Contrac All Weather Rodent Bait Blox 18lb Pail, Final All Weather Rodent Bait Blox 9lb Pail, Contrac 8oz Super Size Rodent Bait Blox, Contrac 8oz Super Size Rodent Bait Blox 40/case and Contrac Pellet Rodent Bait 1.5oz pk, 6pks/bag.

It seems there are just about as many types of bait stations are there are baits to go in them. These include Protecta Landscape Sandstone, Protecta Landscape Granite, Protecta LP Rat Bait Station Gray, Protecta LP Rat Bait Station Green or 6/case, Protecta LP Rat Bait Station Black or 6/case, Protecta Rat Bait Station Green or 6/case, Protecta Rat Bait Station Gray or 6/case. The LP stations are considered tamper resistant because they require a special key to open them. You can use a screw or even a small padlock to secure the Protecta Station. Non-tamper resistant equipment includes a 4oz Rodent Bait Tray 10pk, Rodent Baiters which is a plastic station that snaps together.

Always read and follow label directions. For additional information call Do It Yourself Pest Control Supplies at (972) 562-9999, (903) 891-8818 or toll free (866) 552-8999.