Rat Control Tampa

Whether you’ve got a mild rat problem or a full-blown infestation, you need to get it under control immediately. The sooner you can identify and eliminate the problem, the less damage and expenses you’ll incur. Take a look at the top rat control tips and tricks curated by the team at Critter Control® of Tampa.

Important Facts to Know About Rats

Rats are not only a nuisance to your home or business but also a serious threat to your health and safety. But before you can create an effective plan to control rats, you first need to know a little bit about them. Here are some facts about their behavior and biology that will help you to keep them at bay:

• Rats are very flexible. They can squeeze through openings that are just ¾ inch wide, or roughly the size of a quarter, to get inside your home or business. And if they come across an opening that isn’t quite the right size, rats will chew, scratch, or tear a hole big enough to fit through.
• Rats’ teeth never stop growing. To keep their incisors from getting too long, rats chew through tough material like wire coating and wood, which can lead to structural damage, cause power outages, or create fires.
• Rats can breed with speed. Certain species, like brown rats, have a gestation period of under 30 days, meaning they can conceive and carry babies to term in less than a month. So, the longer you wait to control your rat infestation, the larger it will get.
• Rats are mostly nocturnal. These critters prefer to stay out of sight, which is why they tend to only come out and cause trouble at night. But because you might not see rats running around during the day, you might not know just how severe your situation is.

How to Take Control of an Infestation

At Critter Control® of Tampa, we’ve rounded up a few proven methods to control rats before they can create more chaos in your home, which include:

• Trapping — Trapping rats is all about placement. Since rats’ super-sensitive whiskers give them a good sense of their surroundings, they can sense when something’s off and easily avoid traps.
• Checking — Remember, rats can fit through some of the tiniest holes and cracks around your home, which means quarter-sized openings or larger gaps could turn into points of entry.
• Sealing — Once you find potential entry points rats could chew and widen, you’ll have to patch them with industrial, durable materials like sealant and wire mesh.
• Removing — You should never attempt to handle, confront, or contain a rat on your own. Only a trained professional with all of the proper tools can safely handle these wild critters.

As you can see, the steps for keeping rats under control are pretty involved — and best performed by pest professionals. When you’re ready to get rid of rats, contact the team at Critter Control® of Tampa so we can get started on a personalized rat removal plan.

What You Can Do to Prevent More Rats

By taking proactive steps to keep your building safe, you could save hundreds of dollars in repair, removal, and restoration fees. Therefore, the best method of rat control is prevention. Early adoption of these practices will help you keep your Tampa home or business safe from rats:

• Store food in tightly sealed glass or metal containers
• Keep trash in secure cans with airtight lids
• Trim trees that hang near or over your roof
• Reduce clutter, keeping paper and cardboard to a minimum

These DIY preventative methods are very useful when done correctly and consistently, but they alone won’t be enough to keep rats out. While you focus on keeping up with these pest-proof habits, let the team at Critter Control® of Tampa secure your home with tools like vent screens, chimney caps, and pipe covers.

What We’ll Do to Secure Your Space

At Critter Control® of Tampa, our team of licensed wildlife experts is dedicated to making sure you have access to professional rat control services. With over three decades of experience helping homeowners and business owners in Tampa, we have the tools and proper training to quickly and safely remove rats from your building. We’ll even repair rat damage in key points of interest and sanitize areas the critters contaminated. To schedule your free consultation, call us today at 813.948.0870.