Rodent Control

Because of recent urban expansion, rodents who once thrived in many local natural areas are now being pushed into people’s homes for food and shelter. As recently recognized, Good News Pest Solutions formerly Macy's Termite & Pest Controlhas become the area’s leading expert in stopping rodents from entering your structure, reducing existing nearby populations, and removing those who may already be present.

All about Rodents

(Information Below Courtesy of Bell Laboratories)

Rodent Senses
Sight

• Rodents are nearly blind and use their sense of touch for guidance
• Rodents use their limited eyesight to seek darker areas

Taste

• Rodents can taste up to 250 parts per billion
• Food Preferences: Newborns taste mothers diet through her milk and prefer the foods she ate when they grow up
• Taste Aversions: Rodents react negatively to foods that made them feel ill – and it only needs to happen once for them to remember
• Dietary needs: if deprived of a certain nutrient, rodents learn which foods fill that need and prefer those until that need is met.

Smell

• Approximately 1% of rat’s genes are involved in their sense of smell
• They produce & release pheromones to communicate information with other rodents (i.e. colony status, reproductive behavior, etc.)

Touch

• Rodents’ long whiskers, or vibrissae, are located all over the body, but are most prominent on the face.  These hairs are used for guidance as they move along walls and other objects.  Because of this, rodents rarely travel in open spaces, place bait and/or traps accordingly.
• Rodents have sensory pads on their feet so metal bait stations should be avoided as they could become too hot or cold

Sound

• Sonic and ultrasonic range:
• - Rodents can hear sounds that we cannot: they can hear ultrasonic frequencies well above the range of human perception
• - Rats produce ultrasound too, and communicate with each other in squeaks, clicks, and whines that we cannot hear
• - Rodents aren’t great at pinpointing the location based on sound

Kinesthetic Sense: Detects bodily position, weight, or movement of the muscles, tendons, and joints.

• Rodents exhibit memorized muscle movement in which they effectively memorize their environment
• They create memory of the environment and how to move through it without looking
• Develops when the rodent gets very comfortable and used to its environment

The Roof Rat

General Behavior

Rodents are nocturnal

• Mode of self defense for rodents as most of their enemies are inactive during night hours
• Rodents typically feed at night; daytime activity is a sign of a large infestation.

Feeding habits

• Commensal rodents are omnivorous and opportunistic foragers; they eat a variety of food items (grains, meats, fish, fruits, etc.) and take advantage of the foot items they encounter
• Rats hoard enough food to last them weeks
• Rodents will cache bait in an area where they are comfortable feeding
• Pregnant females particularly will build up large food supply in their nests.

Travel Behavior

• Corners are used for grooming, eating and nesting
• Runways are used for following lines and pheromone trails

Hierarchy

• Rodents establish an order with more dominant rodents getting to feed first and getting the prime nesting sites.  If ample food and harborage are available, less dominant rodents can also survive, but are more likely to be seen feeding during the day.

Mice are

• Prevalent and exist in all climates
• Found both indoors and out
• Curious
• Nervous nibblers
• Likely to groom often

Rats are

• Neophobic (they tend to dislike anything new)
• Mammals that will consume a lot of food once they feel comfortable
• Likely to groom once or twice a day, in their burrow
• Norway rats are natural burrowers and will burrow near their food and water supply in areas that provide harborage
• Roof rats are excellent climbers and will nest in high places

Capabilities of Rats

• From a standstill, rats can vertically jump nearly 2 ft. When running, they can jump horizontally 3.5 ft on average.
• Rats can fall 5 stories without causing themselves any harm
• Rats are excellent swimmers – Norway rats can swim in a 30 mph current without drowning
• Rats can easily climb in small spaces between two surfaces, such as between a drainage pip and the outside of a building.

You may not even be aware that you have a problem since they are most active at night! Call Good Newstoday for a free home inspection and evaluation. We very strongly recommend taking preventative measures in advance to save potential future damage.

Be aware that rats are everywhere in Florida, we commonly find them in even the most exclusive homes and neighborhoods, so call us now for a free inspection!