Rat control: How to prevent rat infestations

Once rodents enter your home, it can be hard to get rid of them again. Read here how you can prevent rat infestations.

Rat infestations - Identify and prevent rodent infestations

It is much easier to keep rats and mice out then to get rid of them once they have moved in, which is why prevention is so important. Some people choose to poison rodents, but that poison runs into creeks and lakes damaging nature. Birds of prey such as owls also get the venom when, for example, they catch and eat a poisoned mouse, and with time and exposure, the rodents themselves can develop resistance. Fortunately, there are ways to remove them from home.

Tips for preventing rat infestations

Check your walls and floor for holes

Take a walk around your house and look for cracks and holes. Mice can enter through small cracks 5 to 6 millimetres, while rats only need 2 cm to invade your home. Cover all necessary holes such as ventilation grids with metal mesh with holes of max. 5 millimetres in diameter.

Secure sewers and sewer lines

There are rats in our sewers, and they should stay down there. As a homeowner, you need to secure your sewer lines and wells, and repair damaged sewer installations as soon as possible. Also remember to ensure sewer grids, because rats can lift 3-4 times their weight, thereby pushing a sewer grid up.

Prune plants

Climbing roses and other growing plants are beautiful but remember to prune them so they do not function as rat stairs to gutters and other places where rodents can find a way into your home. It is not just grown plants, but also a trash can or any other item to climb up and get in.

Install a rat blocker, flap or valve

By setting up a rat barrier, you limit the rats' options to find food and establish nesting sites. You can buy a rat blocker through Tryg at an excellent price.Read more about rat blocker

Avoid free access to food

Please do not leave food available at the house. Rodents are opportunistic feeders that will not turn their noses up at a free meal. For example, if you need to feed birds, remember to do so in smaller portions at a time, and place the seeds high above the ground.

Set up rat cages and traps

Some people set up rat cages as pest control when they suspect the presence of mice or rats. Other people also put poison in the cage, but it works better with a rat trap. A trap will kill and restrain the rodent inside the cage and prevent further damage in nature.

When the rats have already entered

Report a rat pest

All municipalities have a rat control unit, and by reporting an infestation, you assist the systematic control of the rat pest. Therefore, please contact the rat control unit in your municipality and notify the infestation.

Set up a trap

Rat traps are also a good solution for combating rodent infestations, but you should be aware that this strategy is less effective with rats than with mice. If you find a dead rodent in the trap, please use rubber gloves to remove it. This minimizes the risk of infection caused by disease-carrying rodents. In addition, you should consider that municipal assistance usually includes fighting rodent infestations with rat traps.

Table of contents

Tips for preventing rat infestations

When the rats have already entered

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