Rats can thrive in an office environment for its abundance of food, potential entry points and the fact that it is empty at night when the rodents like to forage.
Rats aren’t just scary to encounter at the office. An infestation is a major health risk that can cause diseases such as Lyme disease and asthma. You can tell that there are rats in the office or warehouse either by physically spotting the critters or encountering rat droppings.
How to Deal With Rats in the Office
The main thing you can do if you have rats in your office or warehouse is to manage the problem. The critters break in to find food, water and shelter. Following Rat control measures to exterminate rats in warehouse will reduce the population and deter more rats in the future. Some of the measures you should take include:
- Secure all potential entry points with galvanized steel mesh or metal flashing. Some rats can fit in a hole or gap the size of a ballpoint pen tip so this is painstaking work
- Inspect utility entries for any gaps or cracks ¼ inch or larger
- Change to hard plastic or metal container garbage cans and secure them tightly to prevent the rats from foraging
- Repair leaky pipes or faucets and get rid of potential water sources including bird baths
- Encourage employees to clean up after eating and not to leave food or snacks overnight
- Do not leave dirty dishes overnight, rats are great scavengers
- Do thorough and consistent yard work including trimming limbs overhanging the roof, pruning shrubs to minimal ground cover and gathering fruit and nuts as soon as they fall
- If employees must store food or snacks in their drawers, encourage them to use gnaw-proof containers or restrict food storage to the kitchen
Dangers of Rats in the Office
The problem of having rats in the office or warehouse is self-evident but being acutely aware of the potential consequences of not taking care of the problem as soon as possible helps you to make the right choice. These dangers also make the case for why you should hire a professional rat exterminator in Ontario rather than rely on DIY methods.
Productivity Issues: employees cannot be expected to reach peak productivity in a rat-infested office. These rodents can even cause psychological problems for some employees.
Legal Problems: employee unions, public health agencies and other such bodies can be ruthless with employers who refuse to deal with rodent problems appropriately. These bodies also insist that no one who is not qualified to deal with rodents should attempt to remove or clean after dead or live rats. Refusing to attend to this matter urgently can lead to steep fines and legal issues.
Risk of Diseases: rats are responsible for a variety of diseases and parasites including rat-bite fever, Leptospirosis, Hantavirus and Salmonellosis among others. These pathogens are contained in rat feces, urine and corpses. The longer the infestation remains increases the risk of contracting diseases.
Damage: like all rodents, rat teeth continue to grow for their entire life so they need to chew and gnaw regularly to keep the growth in check. Rats will chew on anything they can sink their teeth into including office equipment, utility cables, wood beams and more. Chewing electrical wires is also a fire hazard and can lead to short-circuiting among other potential disasters.
Hire a Rat Exterminator to Get Rid of Rats
Because of the sensitive nature of shared spaces and public buildings, you should hire a professional rat exterminator to get rid of rats in the office in Toronto. Do not attempt to use rodenticides and rat traps when you are not qualified to do so as this can lead to serious injuries and even legal issues.
Arrange to have a pest control company conduct regular inspection and maintenance to prevent this problem from occurring in future. The expert will also help to rodent-proof your office or warehouse. Insist on a warranty for the extermination.
