Are Rodents Eating the Bait?

Why So Many Rodent Droppings?

Rodents nibble often on their food sources, which means they also defecate frequently. Combine this with a fast metabolism and you have quite a lot of rodent droppings. Rats and mice defecate where they feed and also while they are traveling between their nests and food sources. Rodent urine and rodent feces contain a pheromone that attracts other rodents. 

Which Rodent Control Method is Right for You?

There are different options when it comes to rodent control. Some residences and commercial buildings are good candidates for traps and/or glue boards, while others are effectively controlled by single-feeding baits placed in tamper-resistant bait boxes. Other situations are able to be rodent-proofed by excluding entry points that are accessible to rats and mice. Rodents can gain access to a structure pretty easily and with just the smallest of openings.

A pair of House Mice can produce up to 18,000 droppings in a 6 month period. One Roof Rat can produce 30-150 droppings in one day. 

Rodent Nesting Sites

In the below case study, rats have been using this water heater to build a nest. Notice the droppings on the top of the water heater unit. The droppings have rounded ends instead of pointed ends, meaning that these are Norway rats.

How to Tell if Rodents are Eating Bait

You can see that the rats have been feeding on the bait. Each side of the bait blocks have been gnawed and shaved down. Most importantly, the rodent poop is colored, which confirms that this rodent (or rodents) is feeding on the bait and should have received a lethal dose. A second-generation anti-coagulant bait should produce dead rodents within 4-5 days.

Rodent Baiting Programs

A successful baiting program for rodents requires the help of our customers. For example, pet food must be stored in tightly sealed containers and empty bowls picked up after pets are finished eating. Rodents are attracted to pet food and prefer this as a food source. All other food sources need to be removed In order for rodents to be interested in feeding on the rodent bait and to avoid competing food sources.

Rodents can be controlled by a variety of methods. AmeriGuard Pest Defense is available to answer all of your rodent questions and concerns. We can recommend a control program based on your rodent problems. We can provide trapping services, glue boards and/or a baiting service. If you are in Southwest Riverside County, give us a call today at (951) 652-0505 for a free rodent estimate.

Noises in the Attic - Rodent Exclusion

Rodent Noises?

If you are hearing noises in your attic or walls, chances are it is not just your imagination. Mice and rats are common visitors in home attics, especially in the colder fall and winter months when they venture indoors looking for food and shelter. Your attic insulation provides a warm, comfortable and secluded nesting location for rodents. Rodents are likely to be undisturbed in your attic and wall voids.

Since rodents are nocturnal, you might start hearing sounds at night just when you are laying down to go to sleep when all is quiet. Since mice and rats produce offspring rapidly, chances are that the sounds you are hearing above are not just from one rodent. One mouse can produce up to 60 offspring a year.

Once it is confirmed that you have rodents invading your structure, you will want to lure them out of the home. Most likely, the rodents are traveling between the inside and outside of your home where they return to their nesting location. Rodents will take the same pathway, which will be worn and marked by the body grease trapped in their fur. Rodent bait boxes should be placed strategically to draw the rodents out of the structure, if possible. 

Rodent Control Program

An effective rodent control program should be combined with an exclusion or rodent-proofing service. A free exclusion quote will be offered with each scheduled rodent service. Rodents are getting in to your attic through some means.  A small hole the size of a 1/2" in diameter (approximately the size of a quarter) is all that is needed for a rat to gain access into the structure. Mice need even less of an opening - about 1/4" in diameter or the size of a dime. 

Rodents can also invade sub areas below a house, especially in a crawl space under a home with a raised foundation. 

This sub access area was providing access for rodents to burrow 

under a home with a raised foundation. 

Sub areas beneath homes are perfect secluded
harborages for rodents.

Our wood repair and rodent experts constructed this new sub access cover. 

Rodent proofing your home is a necessary step to
preventing a rodent infestation.

Rodent Exclusion

As you can see, a rodent control baiting program may be only half the battle against controlling rats and mice on your property. If you have never had a rodent issue before, a one-time rodent control service may be sufficient to rid your house of unwanted mice or rats. However, if you have been battling rodents for some time and live near fields or vacant land, we recommend combining a rodent service with an exclusion job as well as maintaining a rodent control service on a regular basis until effective control is achieved. Preventing rodents from entering your structure requires a cooperative effort from our customers. For example, an overhang of a tree branch in close proximity to the residence provides the perfect opportunity for a rodent to gain access to the structure via the roof. If there are missing screens or vents, the likelihood of a rodent infiltrating your home increases. Rodent control is usually successful with the implementation of the following:

Each rodent control baiting or trapping program comes with a free inspection at the initial service. The technician will inspect for entry points and provide an exclusion quote for any work that needs to be done to secure the property against rodents. The technician can also provide a quote for a decontamination service to disinfect, sanitize and treat for viruses in areas where there is evidence of rodent droppings and urine and/or dead rodents.

If you suspect rodents in your attic based on noise, droppings and/or damaged items, contact AmeriGuard Pest Defense to set up a rodent control service by calling (951) 652-0505. We often have same-day services available.