How to Get Rid of Rodents

To exclude roof Rats:

• All openings greater than 1/2" should be sealed
• Likely access points for rodents are where utility lines come into walls and openings around air conditioning, drainpipes, and vents.
• Look for broken basement windows, warped doors, and unscreened vents as possible points of entry.
• All spaces beneath doors should be checked if the opening is too large. Door sweeps can be installed to close the gap.
• Roofs should be checked to see that shingles are intact and sheathing not damaged. Also, check to see that screening is in place and secure on attic ventilators, soffit vents, and louvered gable vents.
• Look for a gap between the fascia and the roof deck often called a “construction gap.” It is a common entry point for roof rats and can be sealed with “drip edge” metal flashing, which is available in most hardware stores.

See our Rodent Exclusion page for more in depth information.

Sanitation is more than cleaning. It also involves removing debris and maintenance of the landscape so that rodents don’t have easy access to suitable nesting sites adjacent to structures on your property.

• All rubbish piles and refuse should be eliminated.
• Landscaped areas need to be appropriately maintained with firewood piles elevated off the ground.
• All garbage containers and dumpsters should have tight-fitting covers.
• Spilled food from bird feeders should be picked up regularly
• Pet food should be left out no longer than necessary.
• Roof Rats require food, water, and shelter. Look around your property to see what can be addressed to deny them any of those needs. When there is a heavy infestation of rats, it is usually indicative of sanitation issues

See our Rodent Sanitation page for more in depth information.

• The house mouse is about 1/2 - 1 oz in size and is slender. The ears are large with their tail as long as the head and body together. The mouse's tail is seminaked.
• Mouse fur is usually dark gray on the back and light gray on the belly, but there are other color variations.
• The Roof rat is 5-9 oz and is sleek, and the Norway rat is larger and more robust and is between 7-18 oz in weight.
• Roof rats are often mistaken for house mice. Young roof rats have larger heads and feet in comparison to their bodies; their bodies are slender. They have a very long tail (longer than head and body combined.) A house mouse's head and feet are proportionally smaller than their bodies.
• Mice excrement droppings average 1/4" and have a rod-like shape. Roof rats have a rod or spindle shape dropping but have an average length of 1/2 inch. The excrement dropping of the larger Norway rat is an average of 3/4 inch and is shaped more like a capsule.
• Excrement droppings vary between the Norway Rat, Roof Rat and House Mouse.

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• Table Of Commensal Rodents is a chart to summarize the differences between rats and mice. This difference becomes critical if you choose to trap as an option. You need to choose the proper size.
• FAQ'S on Rodent Control

Since rodents are dependent on their environment, it may be difficult to describe typical behavior and habits. But there are generalizations of their habits for practical purposes of rodent control around and inside buildings. For further information, go to Rats, or Mice.

Rats

• Rats tend to eat most of their food at one time.
• Rats are excellent swimmers and can swim up to 1/2 mile in open water and go through sewer lines.
• Norway rats prefer food with high carbohydrate and protein content, although they eat almost any types of food.
• Roof rats prefer to eat grains, fruit, sweets and peanut butter and nut butter but will eat what is available in their environment. They are "picky" eaters, due to their natural suspicion of new items in their environment. Roof rats do not readily accept meat or fish.
• Rats tend to be cautious with new objects. Since they are cautious of new elements in their environment, it may helpful to place unset rat traps
• Rats cannot survive long without water, while mice may survive longer.
• Norway rats are not often found indoors, they typically nest outside in burrows. A young Norway rat may be mistaken for a mouse. The young Norway rat has a rounder body than the slender house mouse.
• Roof rats like habitat in attics and trees. They may enter your home with a power line or a tree. Like mice, the roof rat is an excellent climber. The larger Norway rat is not as agile as the roof rat or mouse. Since roof rats are often found in the upper levels, they may be undetected for a while.
• A Norway or roof rat will move within a diameter of 98 to 164 ft. and a house mouse, 10 to 33 ft. If conditions are unstable or there are changes such as new buildings, they may expand the diameter. They may also expand their range in protected areas such as in sewers, in passages between buildings, and under ground covers.
• Roof rats and Norway rats are both opportunistic and will eat almost anything that is available.

Mice

• Mice will nibble a little at a time. If food is plentiful, they may make 20-30 visits to their food source at night. They feed heaviest at dawn or dusk. Mice prefer grains and seeds but may eat meats, peanut butter, and sweet items.
• Mice are curious about new objects, so it is easier to place new traps or bait placements in their habitat or running space. It is easier to trap mice than rats.
• A mouse may spend its entire life in a building in an urban/city setting. In rural/suburban settings, they can be found both inside and outside among foundations, shrubs, below structures, or in-ground burrows. Once inside, they may establish their nests close to a food source. Common inside nesting sites include appliances, in walls, closets, cabinet and ceiling voids, storage boxes. Mice make their nests with soft material that has been chewed up from paper, insulation, furniture stuffing, etc.
• Mice constantly explore their territory. They investigate any changes due to their curiosity. Their average territory ranges between 10-30 feet, but mice readily adapt to their environment. They nest close to food sources. Their territory is less when they have abundant food sources close to their nests.

What Mice and Rats Have In Common

• Mice and rats reproduce rapidly with significant activity at night.
• Rats and mice have poor eyesight. When placing our rodent bait, place the bait where they travel and live. Do not randomly make rodent or trap placements. The rat's territory is larger than the mouse's territory. Generally speaking, place rat baits out every 25 feet, and mice bait out every 10 feet. Rodents have a strong sense of touch from their whiskers. They explore with these whiskers. They prefer a stationary object on one side of them as they travel, so they commonly travel along walls. Place rat traps spaced 15-20 feet apart. Place mice traps every 3-5 feet.
• Both rats and mice can squeeze through tiny openings; 1/4 inch for mice and 1/2 inch for rats. If they can not get around an object, they may chew through it. They can gnaw through cinderblock, lead sheathing, aluminum siding, and glass.