Sawston Rat Catchers (CB22): While its not such a common problem nowadays in Sawston, householders still have troubles with rats from time to time. Seeing a rat in your house or garden isn't a good thing to experience, and could be enough to cause some property owners nightmares. Individual rats should not create very much of a problem, although rats reproduce quickly and may cause problems when they grow in numbers.
There are two kinds of rat that you may run into in Sawston, common (brown) rats and black rats. Its fairly improbable that you will ever see a black rat, and if you have stumbled upon a rat just recently chances are it will have been one of the more common brown rats (Rattus Norvegicus). Black rats (ship rats) were once common and were blamed for the Great Plague, they're quite scarce nowadays, but where they do occur they are superb climbers, have good hearing, and can produce between twenty and one hundred offspring each year.
The black rat (Rattus Rattus) at 5 to 7 inches, is smaller than the brown, which grows to a length of nearly nine inches and weighs around half a kilo. A great deal of the destruction caused by brown rats is down to the fact that to prevent their teeth from growing too much, they have to continually gnaw things. Woodwork is particularly vulnerable to their attention.
Rats can cause a range of issues in businesses and homes throughout Sawston and they spread diseases, gnaw through pipes, insulation, woodwork and wires, leave droppings, and generally cause a nuisance. Sightings of rats need to be reported to the local authorities. Or alternatively post a report recording pest problems and rat sightings on the .gov website HERE, to be forwarded to the relevant local authorities.
You don't actually need to observe rats to know of that they are there, since there are a number of signs that could warn you of their presence. It could be that you may hear scratching coming from a wall, floor or loft, you may discover droppings in cupboards or on the floor, you may stumble upon a rat's nest hidden away or you could come across rat holes chewed into floorboards or skirting boards.
To tackle this issue there are two or three strategies you could take. You could put traps or poison down yourself, you could bring in a rat catcher or you can get in touch with your local Sawston council. Back many years ago, rat catchers used to be just that, but currently they're normally called pest control experts and will not solely be happy to help you manage getting rid of rats but also cockroaches, wasps, mice, ants, moles and more.
Rat Bite Wounds
Although they are not among the most common injuries sustained by humans in the British Isles, on the odd occasion bites from rats certainly do occur, and the effects can sometimes be serious. If you happen to encounter a rat in a confined area, it could attack and bite you if it is pressured or cornered, so leave it an easy exit route and try to avoid it.
These sorts of bites sometimes occur when rats are being kept as pets, and you're likely to be looking for trouble if you stick your hand in a rat's cage. Rat bites can become infected or be life threatening if they turn into "rat bite fever", so they should be avoided if possible, although of they are not of course always dangerous. "Rat bite fever" can result in death, and has has a 10% mortality rate, if it is left without treatment.
Signs of Rat Bite Fever - The symptoms and signs of "rat bite fever" (streptobacillary RBF) include:
- Joint Pain or Swelling
- Headache
- Muscle Pain
- Vomiting
- Rash
- Fever
- Redness or Swelling
If you are unfortunate enough to get bitten by a rat, carefully wash the wound in warm water, apply some antibiotic cream, and bandage the affected area. You need to make an emergency appointment with your doctor, or head to the closest A&E, even if you think it isn't that major. If it is 5 years or more since you received your last vaccination for tetanus, you must get one of these done as well, because rat bites can become a cause of infection.
Do You Have Rats?
There are a few ways that you can find out when you've got rats. If you've got an inkling that there could be rats in your property or business you can listen out for continual scratching noises coming from walls and lofts, in particular at nighttime, search for signs of tail trails or footprints in dusty areas or on loose soil, check for gnaw marks in wires, wood and cables, especially in lofts, keep your eyes open for rat droppings, they look much like large grains of rice and are darkish brown, look out for tunnels or burrows near to solid objects, watch for rub marks where their greasy fur leaves marks on skirting boards and walls.
Reporting Rat Sightings
We briefly outlined this topic previously, so here I'll go into it a bit more. The local authority Environmental Health Department is the place to report it should you discover rats in a neighbours garden, in a public place or in your own garden. When it comes to rats this is quite often a cost-free service, although you will usually be asked to pay for some other pests such as cockroaches, wasps and bed bugs. Also, it is very easy to report rat sightings via the .gov webpage which you will find HERE. To get the issue sorted out immediately schedule a rat catcher HERE.
What Attracts Rats and Mice?
Irrespective of their seemingly cute look, with their pointy faces, twitching whiskers and fur covered bodies, mice and rats can be dangerous and aren't animals that you want to be living in your house or garden in Sawston. By nibbling through skirting boards, insulation materials, plastic and electrical wires, mice and rats can cause electrical fires and other accidents. Between the two mice and rats can spread more than 30 sorts of diseases including things like listeria, tularemia, typhus, toxoplasmosis, trichinosis, bubonic plague, Weil's disease, rat bite fever and salmonella. So, the following are just some of the things that will attract mice and rats to your garden or home:
- TRASH - An accumulation of garbage and garden waste piled up on your property (especially in the garden) will obviously attract rats and mice.
- FOOD - Food that is left lying around or discarded is one of the main attractions for mice and rats.
- HOLES AND ENTRY POINTS - Rats and mice can crawl through the tiniest of holes and cracks, so look out for gaps around doorways, crawl spaces, pipes and air vents.
- CLUTTER - General clutter in loft, basement or shed will be especially attractive to rats and mice, especially if there is a food source nearby.
- WATER - Active rats and mice have to drink, therefore water sources such as pet bowls, leaky pipes, dripping sprinkler systems and birdbaths are a big attraction for these unwanted pests.
- COMPOST/PET WASTE - Remarkably pet waste and even heaps of compost can be attractive to mice and rats - there are likely to be some tasty morsels hiding in there!
Rat Poison
One of the ways to sort out an infestation of rats is to use poison. A rat will die several days after ingesting poisoned bait, usually wholewheat grain. A large population of rats may be exterminated by this method so long as the poison bait is set properly. In general brodifacoum, bromadioline or difenacoum are the poisons used. Rat poison won't just kill rats, pets and birds can also be affected, therefore care needs to be taken in its use. Well known brands of rat poison sold in Great Britain include the likes of: Elixir Gardens, Pest Expert, Propest, RatKil, Roshield and Rentokil.
Coming Shortly:
Bird nest removal - article 132.
Summary
When you have a problem with rats in Sawston you may be tempted to try to take care of it yourself - and naturally lots of people in Sawston do just that. By looking around hardware stores, shops and supermarkets in the Sawston area, it's easy to obtain rat poisons, rat traps and other similar products.
Hiring a professional Sawston rat exterminator would however be preferable, unless you know precisely what you are doing, as the correct solution isn't always the obvious one.
The newcomer's use of rat poisons will likely do more harm than good, as you have to be extremely cautious with them especially if children and pets are about. If you know what is better for you, always bring in a specialist rat control service in Sawston for solving your rat problems.
Pest Control Services Sawston
Sawston rat catchers can normally help with mouse pest control Sawston, the removal of contaminated loft insulation, rat catching, rat control, garden pest control Sawston, pigeon control, the installation of pheromone stations (for moth entrapment), ingress pest solutions, pest control Sawston, restaurant pest control Sawston, bird proofing, environmental pest control Sawston, rat infestations, cockroach pest conrtol, rat poison, domestic rat control, pest netting, rodent control, anti-bird spike installation in Sawston, domestic pest control in Sawston, pest removal services, thermal imaging surveys for pest indentification, insect heat treatments Sawston, rat prevention in Sawston, ant pest control, household pest control in Sawston, ultrasonic pest control, wildlife management, fogging & spray treatments Sawston, rat proofing and other pest control in Sawston, Cambridgeshire. Listed are just a handful of the activities that are conducted by those installing pest control. Sawston companies will be happy to tell you about their entire range of services.
Pest Control Near Sawston
Also find: Duxford pest control, Whittlesford pest control, Little Shelford pest control, Little Abingdon pest control, Stump Cross pest control, Great Shelford pest control, Pampisford pest control, Babraham pest control, Hinxton pest control, Newton pest control, Ickleton rat catchers and more. The majority of these areas are serviced by professional pest control. Sawston property owners can get pest control estimates by clicking here.
Other Pests in Sawston: Also professional help with clothes moths in Sawston, fleas in Sawston, bees in Sawston, bedbugs in Sawston, mice in Sawston, hornets in Sawston, silverfish in Sawston, pigeons in Sawston, wasps in Sawston, cockroaches in Sawston, moles in Sawston, ants in Sawston, rabbits in Sawston, carpet beetles in Sawston Cambridgeshire.
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