GreenSeasons
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Our Company
    • Charitable Dentations | GreenSeasons
    • Clients Served >
      • Campus
      • Commercial
      • Government
      • Industrial
      • Residential
      • Testimonials
    • Bios
  • SERVICES
    • Design / Build >
      • Landscape Design
      • Landscape Installation
      • Irrigation
      • Landscape Drainage Solutions
      • Outdoor Lighting
    • Landscape Maintenance
    • Mowing Service
    • Lawn Care
    • Christmas Lights
  • CONTACT
    • Baton Rouge Office
    • Greenwell Springs Office
    • Slidell Office
  • CAREERS
  • BLOG
  • PAYMENT
  • QUOTE

How to Get Rid of Rats and Mice

1/29/2013

1 Comment

 

RATS AND MICE

As the temperatures begin to cool, the food supply for rodents begins to shrink and they seek out new places for food.  It could just be a period of heavy rain that causes rodents to look for higher ground and a new food source.  Many people have these furry uninvited critters visit their homes and offices and need to get them out.
Picture

RODENT PREVENTION

Sanitation
The best prevention with any pest, including rodents, is sanitation.  Be sure to keep anywhere you have food clean and food sealed.  Keep your trash cans and surrounding area clean

Perimeter Defense
  • Keep your grass cut to the proper height and have your yard free of debris piles.
  • Keep branches off your house since some rats enter homes this way.
  • If you can see light at the bottom of a door, including the garage door, a mouse will be able to get through.  Install a weather strip to keep rodents out.

Buy a Cat
The average domestic house cat kills an average of 10 mice per year.  Cats are natural hunters and will stalk mice, among other things, and prevent you from having them in you home.

Professional Rodent Bait Stations
If you have a recurring problem with rodents, it is time to call the professionals.  They can install bait stations along the perimeter of your home which will get rid of an outdoor problem before it becomes an indoor problem.

RODENT DETECTION

Aside from outright seeing them, there a few signs that will clearly tell of a rat or mouse problem.

Everybody Poops
  • Check your attic and all of the base boards of the walls around an area you suspect rodent activity.
  • Mice drop small pellet size feces and they do it a lot.
  • Roof rats drop spindle shaped feces up to a quarter inch long.
  • Norway rates have crescent shaped feces, shiny and black up to a half inch long
  • If you notice some that are two to three inches long and look like dog feces, you may have a raccoon problem.

Tracking
You can track a rodent's movement by using dust. (cornstarch, baby powder, etc)  Sprinkle some on the floor at the base of a wall where you suspect rodents to be moving and let it sit overnight.  If they are there, you will see footprints in the morning.

RODENT REMOVAL

Poison Bait Blocks
Using poison bait blocks is a common go to method for ridding your residence of rodents.  It is fairly effective, but does have a few drawbacks.  Naturally, the rodent will die and you have no control over where that is.  That will lead to a horrendous smell radiating from somewhere in your home or office for about two weeks.  There is also the issue of safety since it is poison. You must be extra cautious with your placement if of the bait blocks if you have children or pets.  I would not recommend using poison pellets since they can be moved easily and can lead to accidental poisoning.
Picture
Traps
Everyone has seen a mouse trap.  They are simple devices that lure in a rodent with bait and clamp down on them when they touch it.  Be sure to get the correct size trap.  If you are dealing with a large rat, a mouse trap will not work.  Secondly, be sure to use the correct bait.  Use whatever the rodent is eating in the house as bait, otherwise use peanut butter.

Glue Boards
There are two types of glue boards.  The first is a baited glue board.  These work very similar to the traps listed above.  You will probably bait them with peanut butter and when the rodent goes for the bait, they will get stuck on the glue board and unable to escape.  The second type of glue board does not use bait.  You simply place the board along an area where the rodent is likely to run through.  The idea is they will go along their normal path and cross over the board and get stuck.  This is technically the only non-lethal method of fixing your rodent problem.  A lot of people think of this as a humane way of dealing with pest.  The issue is once the rodent is caught you are not going to set them free so they will simply starve to death.  You will also have to be careful when disposing of the rodent since they may still be alive and can bite or scratch at you.

RODENT SAFETY

Rodents are disgusting.  They spread disease, have ticks and fleas and can live in sewers or waterways.  Be sure to wear rubber gloves when dealing with anything related to them.  Thoroughly clean any areas where you know have had rodent activity.  Wash your hands thoroughly when finished cleaning.




If you live in the Greater Baton Rouge, Greater New Orleans or anywhere in Southeast Louisiana, please feel free to call us at 225.752.2333 and have us help you in person.
1 Comment
Vivian Black link
1/13/2022 10:00:05 am

Our neighbors came over and told us they had rats in their patio. This was a red flag for us because we did not want them to come into our territory. Thank you for the suggestions to keep our grass cut and keep debris from accumulating in our yard. I also like the idea to get a cat. If the time comes, we may have to get a rodent control service.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    Charlie Casselberry

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    March 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    May 2017
    June 2016
    April 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012

    Categories

    All
    Aeration
    Allergies
    Ants
    Azalea
    Bed Bugs
    Butterflies
    Compost
    Diseases
    Diy
    Drainage
    Fall
    Fertilization
    Flowers
    Fountain
    Fruit
    Fundraising
    Fungus Control
    Gardener
    Gardening
    Gutter Cleaning
    Holiday Lighting
    Home Care
    Homegrown Food
    Horticulture
    Hurricane
    Indian Hawthrones
    Indoor Plants
    Industrial
    Irrigation
    Landscape Architecture
    Landscape Bed Cleanup
    Landscape Design
    Landscape Lighting
    Landscape Maintenance
    Landscaping
    Lawn Care
    Louisiana Super Plant
    Mechanic
    Mosquito Control
    Mowing
    Mowing Equipment
    Outdoor Events
    Overseeding
    Palms
    Pest Control
    Pets
    Plant Health
    Planting
    Podcast
    Pools
    Pressure Washing
    Pruning
    Roaches
    Rocks
    Rodent Control
    Roses
    Rye Grass
    Safety
    Shrub
    Sod
    Sports
    Spring
    Sprinkler
    Summer
    Termites
    Top Dressing
    Travel
    Tree Work
    Tree Work
    Tropicals
    Vegetables
    Weather Proofing
    Weeds
    Winter
    Winterize

    RSS Feed

Picture

Contact

225-752-2333
wecare@greenseasons.us

Services

Landscaping
Irrigation
​Mowing

About

About Us
Markets
Brands
​Site Map

Locations

GreenSeasons
Baton Rouge Office
11628 S Choctaw Drive, Suite 227
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70815
Review Us!
Greenwell Springs Office
14461 Frenchtown Road
Greenwell Springs, LA  70739
Slidell Office
56010 Highway 433
Slidell, Louisiana 70461
Review Us!
© 2020 GreenSeasons
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Our Company
    • Charitable Dentations | GreenSeasons
    • Clients Served >
      • Campus
      • Commercial
      • Government
      • Industrial
      • Residential
      • Testimonials
    • Bios
  • SERVICES
    • Design / Build >
      • Landscape Design
      • Landscape Installation
      • Irrigation
      • Landscape Drainage Solutions
      • Outdoor Lighting
    • Landscape Maintenance
    • Mowing Service
    • Lawn Care
    • Christmas Lights
  • CONTACT
    • Baton Rouge Office
    • Greenwell Springs Office
    • Slidell Office
  • CAREERS
  • BLOG
  • PAYMENT
  • QUOTE