A piece of news emerged earlier this month in which the mayor of New York published his decision to hire what many people now prefer to call a 'rat czar.' It is simply a position in which the hired person will lead the fight against rodent infestation in the city. The headline drew a lot of comic responses until the content shows that a salary range of $120,000 to $170,000 is involved. That's a whole lot of money for just killing rats, one might say.
Or maybe not.
I am certain the mayor of New York has weighed the potential cost of the damages incurable from the rat infestation against the money being set aside to fight it. Mind you, that salary is just for the person that will be heading the onslaught against those annoying vertebrates. There will be so much more.
The truth is, rats are not just destructive in nature, they do the most when it comes to constituting nuisances at home or within the neighborhood. Between rats and cockroaches, I have difficulty picking the better nuisance even though rats can significantly be more destructive than roaches and more difficult to control. The fact that some species of roaches decided to start flying is quite terrifying.
There is a childhood story of mine that always cracks me up each time I recollect it. My stepbrother and I slept on the same bed immediately after having dinner. He slept immediately after eating without washing his hand. He woke up with a cry that made me dash for the door in the middle of the night, only to realize that it was about rats. Apparently, they have been feasting on his fingers while he was deeply asleep. His blood-dripping fingers tell the complete story.
Even though it wasn't really funny when the event was new, we do make a mole of jokes out of it after then. That single event is a pointer to the level of nuisance that rats can create. Now, imagine that the rat that bit my stepbrother is a carrier of the Ebola virus.
Yes. Rats are not only destructive in nature, but also have the tendency to be a carrier for a host of pathogens that can cause deadly diseases in humans. Apart from the popular Ebola virus, rat-borne diseases include hantavirus, leptospirosis, lymphocytic choriomeningitis (LCMV), Tularemia, and Salmonella. If you have been wondering why the mayor of New York is all over the place because of rats, now you have an idea why.
Image Credit: British Pest Control Association on flickr
Dealing with rats infestation at home
When dealing with rat pests at home, there is a golden rule I always observe.
Get rid of them as you see them.
In other words, rat infestations don't just start overnight. It usually starts with one or two and then multiplies. Then you start seeing them everywhere, including on your bed. The period between sighting the first rat in your home and when you start seeing them everywhere in the house may not be more than two weeks. Yes, you heard me right, two weeks.
Even though the average gestation period of rats is between 21 to 23 days, that single rat you have just sighted in your house may be close to giving birth. And when it does, you are going to have problems in your house. They give to 8 to 12 pups on average. Each pup needs about 9 weeks to get to maturity and starts giving birth too and a female rat can give birth 6 times within a year on average. In other words and according to mathematicians, that single rat you refused to get rid of right away may become 1,250 rats within a year.
That's one of the hallmarks of pests generally. The ability to swell in population within a short period.
Apart from the golden rule stated above, here are a few more tips that may help you deal with rat infestations in your crib:
Look for the entry point and block access
Rats have emerged in places that one would never think of. So much so that some people will argue that these rodents just arise spontaneously from nowhere. This argument was shared by people like Aristotle in the past when scientists were busy investigating the origin of life and has long been dispelled. No living organism, not even the tiniest, can arise spontaneously.
In other words, that rat you are looking at in your house gained entry from somewhere. If you don't want to be feasting with rats in your house in a couple of weeks, brainstorm on the possible entry point and block further access. Thereafter, look for that single rat and kill the bitch, even if you have to turn the whole house upside down.
Cut access to foods
Irrespective of the reproductive capacity of any living organism, they need food in order to reach their reproductive potential. The same rule is applicable to rats. If they are not able to get the much-needed food in your house, this will significantly hinder their population from growing. Thus, denying them access to food by putting them in plastic containers is a good way out.
In addition, left-over foods should be properly disposed of in a way that those nuisance rats will not be able to get access. If you can effectively cut them off foods, you are on your way to making your house rat-free.
Clear your environment
The source of rats inside a house is always from the outside of the house. Rats thrive in environments where they are not easily discernable. In other words, they need bushes or piles of loads in order to thrive. With a cleared environment, it becomes more difficult for them to gain entry into the house. Although this does not totally eliminate the chances, it significantly reduces them.
How about a minimalist crib?
Rats can be stubborn to the extent of confronting you in the open within the house. However, their places of abode are usually corners and hidden places within the house. A minimalist house has very few household items which make it difficult for rats to hide. Even if any rat should enter such as, getting rid of it would be a piece of cake.
By observing the tips given above and many more, it is possible to avoid rat infestation within your crib. If you already have rats feasting in your house, the best recommendation would be to physically get rid of them. Any other method involving the usage of chemicals has consequences for the environment and will not recommend.
What do you think?