How to Get Rid of Rats in Your Home

Rats are persistent pests that will steal your food, chew your wires, leave their droppings, and squeak and scurry through your attic at night. However, as much as you might try to keep them away from your house, they somehow manage to keep coming back. To prevent the spread of damage and disease, it is important for you to take action as soon as you spot a rat in your home. Here are some ways to get rid of rats in your home.

Rat Removal Tips to Help Get Rid of Rats

1. Set up a caged rat trap.

   Tiny caged rat traps are one of the most effective ways to catch the pests. Ideally, you will want to bait the trap with whatever food the rats are stealing in your home. Try using peanut butter, a slice of fruit, or some meat as bait to lure hungry rats to your trap. When in doubt, choose food that has a distinctive and alluring scent, so the rat will be attracted to it.
   
   

2. Leave glue traps in places where rats will pass by.

   While deemed inhumane by some, there are also many types of glue traps available on the market to help get rid of rats. There are paper glue traps and others made with heavier materials. Paper glue traps are good for smaller rats and tiny mice. If you spot a larger rat in your home, make sure you get a stronger kind of glue trap so the rat won’t escape too easily.
   
   

3. Keep your pet dog or cat indoors.

   Rats will stay away if they know you have a pet guarding your home. Keep your dog or cat indoors. If they spot a rat, they’ll surely know what to do.
   
   

4. Clean your home thoroughly.

   Rats like dirty places. Keep them out by making sure your home is clean at all times. Even rat traps won’t be enough to get rid of rats completely if your home is constantly messy. Afterall, a cluttered home will give rats many places to hide. Schedule a general cleaning session in your home and get rid of everything that may attract or house rats.
   
   

5. Don’t leave food unattended and keep garbage outdoors.

   Rats are always on the hunt for food. If you leave food or waste out in the open, rats will be attracted to it. All leftover food must be covered or placed inside the refrigerator or storage cabinet. Your trash should be bagged in a garbage can with a tightly closed lid and taken to your curb the morning of your designated pickup day. Leaving trash at the street overnight could attract more rats and other pests.
   
   

6. Only use rat poison with caution.

   There are also rat poisons readily available on the market, but be very careful when using them. Firstly, rat poisons can be harmful, even fatal, to pets and humans if accidentally ingested. Secondly, if a rat is poisoned and doesn’t die instantly, it might crawl away and breathe its last breath within your walls or above your ceiling. You’d only know a rat has been killed when you smell a very foul odor seeping through your home. In some cases, walls or ceilings have to be broken open to find a dead rat’s carcass.

7. Call for professional rat removal services.

   There are also rat poisons readily available on the market, but be very careful when using them. Firstly, rat poisons can be harmful, even fatal, to pets and humans if accidentally ingested. Secondly, if a rat is poisoned and doesn’t die instantly, it might crawl away and breathe its last breath within your walls or above your ceiling. You’d only know a rat has been killed when you smell a very foul odor seeping through your home. In some cases, walls or ceilings have to be broken open to find a dead rat’s carcass.
   

Rely on Central Florida’s Rat Removal Professionals

If you are dealing with a rat infestation, trust the experienced professionals at Animal Wildlife Trappers. Our trained and certified rat removal experts have the experience to trap and get rid of unwanted pests in the most humane way possible. We will also eliminate any messes and odors the pests leave behind and install safeguards to prevent nuisance rats from coming back.

We offer our safe and effective rat removal services across Central Florida in neighborhoods and business districts around Lake County, Orange County, Seminole County, and more. To schedule an appointment and receive a free rat removal estimate, contact the professionals at Animal Wildlife Trappers today at 352-267-0546.