Many homeowners are skeptical about poisoning rats and rightly so. Rat poison may be effective but works just as well for human beings, pets and small children. Keep in mind that there are strict regulations regarding the use of rodenticides in Toronto especially for indoor use so make sure that you are familiar with this before attempting to poison rats on your own.
Rat traps are also effective and can be helpful if you want to take a go at it yourself, but these take a surprisingly large amount of technical know-how to use successfully. Many homeowners are also squeamish about finding dead or dying rodents in traps. Rodent corpses also pose a serious health risk and are classified as toxic material. For these reasons, one may prefer natural deterrents. There are many myths out there that you need to be familiar with to save yourself time, money and energy.
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Natural Rat Deterrent Myths
Unfortunately, natural rat deterrents and repellents do not work otherwise exterminators would be out of business or would make huge budget cuts on expensive training, equipment and rodenticides in favour of these remedies. It is useful to debunk some of the most commonly touted natural rat deterrents.
Ultrasonic Rodent Repellents
Ultrasonic sound repellents rely on ultrasonic sound waves to repel mice. Apparently, the frequency is not harmful to humans but is extremely disruptive to rats. The first point of contention is that rats and humans share much of the same basic physiology and organs so much so that many of the breakthrough studies relating to humans are conducted on rats. Any sound waves that could successfully disrupt a rat’s behaviour could almost certainly affect a human being.
These devices are sometimes successful but not for the reasons the manufacturers allege. Rats are very shy and sensitive to changes in their environments. Installing any object or new sounds would definitely trigger changes in the rat behaviour. Rats are however very intelligent and will soon figure out that these new changes don’t pose a mortal threat and will come back to the location eventually.
Mothballs
There is some credence to the claim that moth balls repel rats but not to the extent that is believed. Naphthalene is used in insecticides and can affect an animal’s cells ability to carry oxygen if inhaled or ingested in enough quantities. The naphthalene found in mothballs may be enough to keep moths away but is not enough to cause any serious threat to mammals including rats and mice.
Peppermint Oil
This includes suggestions for peppermint herbs, spearmint herbs and oils. The reasoning behind this is rats have a sensitive nose so the peppermint smell is potent enough to keep them away. Considering rats live in sewers, peppermint smell or any odour for that matter may not be very effective in keeping the rodents away.
Hire an Exterminator to Get Rid of Rats
You may not be able to avoid using rodenticides and traps but it is best to let professional handle rat extermination in Toronto you can call The Exterminators – Pest Control Toronto. Setting traps is a subtle art that includes choosing the best bait, identifying the right location to place the traps and using the right number, size and type of trap. Most DIY trapping that works is a matter of trial and error and blind luck which is underwhelming in the face of a serious rat invasion. Rats breed and mature quickly so spotting one rat should cause you to assume you have a sizeable infestation on your property now or in the near future.
A professional rat exterminator will rely on his experience, expertise and training to use the best combination of methods including safe rodenticides, trapping and exclusion. The professional will also help to rat-proof your home to prevent the rodents from getting in again in future and disinfect and sanitize thoroughly to eliminate the risk of contracting disease found in rat corpses, urine and feces. Only a professional can guarantee that the rat problem is resolved successfully.
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