Taking Care of Rats
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Posted On :
Jun-08-2010
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Article Word Count :
511
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If you have a rat issue you need taken care of, read on...
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Catching a rat is very similar to catching a mouse. The only difference is that it may take you a little longer to catch a rat because they are smart creatures and will not jump on the first sight of food or water, like mice will. The most popular rat removal method is an electronic rat trap, which you can get for less than $50. Snap and glue traps often do not trap the rat fully. Although they are cheap and can get the job done, many complain that it’s too much of a hassle to deal with half-dead rodents.
Humane rat traps, which allow you to dispose of the pests away from your home, cost around $25. Because of their size, humane rat traps can also be used for animals such as squirrels, groundhogs, and skunks. Once you place a rat trap, try to keep it in one location because rats are sensitive to moved surroundings.
In order to get the rodent in the trap, use a tantalizing trail of peanut butter. Although you can use virtually anything as bait (fruit, chocolate, etc.), peanut butter works best because it can stay fresh for several days and cannot be easily moved. For some types of traps, peanut butter doesn’t work well because the rats can lick it clean, without activating the trap. If you stumble upon this problem, simply place some floss within the peanut butter. This way, the only way the rat can take all of the peanut butter is by moving the trap mechanism.
Although there are poison bait products available, they are not recommended because they can leave you with rotting mice in hard to reach places around your home. If the rat does not stay in the trap with the poisoned bait, and goes somewhere else, you can have a dead rat somewhere, without knowing exactly where it is.
Once you’ve gotten rid of rats in your home. It’s time to make sure that they never come back. Seal off any holes that you have on the outside of your house. Rats love basements and attics, so make sure that you inspect those two areas thoroughly. Cement, with metal shavings works well. It will also help if the outside surface of the plugged hole is smooth, so that the rats do not have anything to hold on to if they attempt to gnaw through the hole again. Make sure that the outside of your house is free of debris (which the rats can use as shelter), food (seal off your garbage in containers), and water (leave your pooch’s water bowl inside).
When dealing with rats, always wear gloves and make sure to wash your hands after dealing with them. They can carry disease, which can get you sick. To clean up rat droppings and/or urine, wear gloves and a protective mask. Sweep up the dropping with a broom and dispose of them in a plastic bag. Finally use an enzyme based cleaning product to sanitize the area.
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Article Source :
http://www.articleseen.com/Article_Taking Care of Rats _21504.aspx
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Author Resource :
Check out Rat Bait or Best Rat Bait for more tips.
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Keywords :
rat removal,
Category :
Home and Family
:
Home Improvement
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