Delaware Rat Control and Extermination

If you own a home or business in Delaware, protecting it from pests is an important part of ongoing maintenance. Some pests like rats pose a serious threat to property and human health. Rats carry disease, damage property, and create a nuisance if not properly controlled. It’s important to periodically inspect for these pests so that you can take action before a problem gets out of hand. To protect your Delaware home or business from rats, you need to learn about the behavior of this pest, take steps for prevention, and find effective treatment options should an infestation occur.

What is a Rat?

Rats are long-tailed rodents similar to mice, only bigger. Viking Pest’s certified entomologist, Craig, explains “rat” is a name that is used to describe several different species of rodents, all of which have long snouts, large incisors, and short hair. The most common rats are the black rat and the brown rat, both of which originate from Asia.

Anticimex SMART Rodent Control

Viking is Delaware’s exclusive provider of SMART rodent control, an advanced pest management program that utilizes infrared monitoring and automated messaging to manage mice 24/7. SMART is a non-toxic solution to rodent problems that works at residential, commercial, and municipal levels.

How to Identify a Rat?

Delaware pest control experts at Viking Pest explain the most common rat in Delaware is the brown rat, also known as the Norway rat or Norwegian rat. Brown rats are also referred to as sewer rats, common rats, street rats, and water rats. Viking Pest’s certified entomologist, Craig, explains this pest is either brown or grey with a body (including head) up 11 inches in length and a tail almost that long. Brown rats make burrows under buildings, near garbage heaps, around ponds, and near other areas with food and water. They eat almost anything, including trash, meat, fish, and feces, and need to constantly gnaw on things to keep their teeth from getting too long, explain the DE pest control experts at Viking Pest.

Even if you haven’t seen one, you may be able to tell if you have rats. Look for gnaw marks on doorways, plumbing, electrical outlets, windows, and pipes, dark-colored droppings near walls or in corners, and fresh holes near foundations, bushes, sidewalks, and basements. You may also find worn pathways in grassy areas or dark track marks along indoor baseboards and walls.

When are Rats Present in Delaware?

Delaware pest control experts at Viking Pest explain rats are present year-round in Delaware and are generally most active at night. Like any animal, they’re likely to seek shelter and warmth in the Winter and are attracted to food sources at any time of year.

How to Prevent Rats in Delaware?

The best way to get rid of rats is to make sure there’s nothing for them to eat around your home or business. Local Delaware exterminators at Viking Pest recommend closing trash cans with well-sealed lids, picking up waste items and blocking off compost heaps. Keep rats from entering buildings by closing off any cracks or openings that they can get into. Make sure to pick up leftover pet food and pet waste, as rats will eat both of these things. Also, pick up dropped fruit from trees, vegetables, apple cores, and other natural food waste that may lay on the ground, and clean up birdseed that’s fallen from feeders. Seal up any stored food or animal feed in containers with tight lids.

Delaware exterminators at Viking Pest recommend removing clutter from your yard or lot, such as lumber, old furniture, and abandoned cars, and keeping the grass at your home or business trimmed and short, so they have no place to hide or make nests. You can also close off inactive burrows (identified by the presence of cobwebs or debris), seal off doors with door sweeps, add metal flashing to windows, and install heavy-duty screens on vents. If you find rat paths in the grass, try cleaning and removing those tracks.

How to Prevent Rodents During a Renovation

According to statistics, mice and other rodents invade approximately 21 million homes during the winter in the US. Besides causing extensive damage, mice can also carry a variety of diseases, including salmonella and hantavirus.

If you are renovating a home, this can open even more opportunities for rodents to get in, especially if it is left unoccupied for certain periods without rat and mice control.

To protect your home and renovating projects from mice, our mice exterminators state how to deter and eradicate them.

Clear up the Yard

During renovations, it’s easy for the yard to get cluttered. Piles of building debris and materials can mount up, as well any garbage from the remodeling/renovation process.

Unfortunately, this can create a paradise for mice. Mice love piles of wood, unraked leaves, garbage heaps, etc., explain the rodent control experts at Viking.

This gives mice cover to hide in before they make an entry into your home. To discourage this, our pest control experts recommend clearing any unnecessary heaps of building refuse. Stack materials neatly, rake up dead leaves and dispose of woodpiles.

Get Rid of Garbage and Food

Do you have any full trash cans standing about? Maybe with food containers in them? If so, you want to empty these as soon as possible.

Garbage cans can act as both a food source and a place of shelter for incoming mice.

Seal the House

If you are renovating an older house, chances are there’re some chinks and cracks here and there that mice could get through. Mice and rats and can squeeze through very small holes and crevices and find their way into your home.

To stop this from happening, and prevent mice from invading your home and its renovations, Viking’s pest management professionals recommend making it a priority to seal up your eaves, windows, doors, and vents as soon as you can in the renovation process.

Protecting Your Delaware Home or Business from Rats with Viking Pest Control

Viking Pest offers expert treatment designed to effectively and efficiently control and prevent rats from invading your home or business in Delaware. Our use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques focuses on finding the core of the pest concern and controlling rats from the source. Through IPM, pest control materials are selected and applied in a manner that minimizes risks to human health, pets, and the environment. Call Viking today for your FREE and NO OBLIGATION estimate at 1-800-618-2847 or schedule online today!

Protecting Your Home or Business From Rats in Delaware With Viking Pest Control

Viking Pest offers expert treatment designed to effectively and efficiently control and prevent pests from invading your home or business in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware. Our use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques focuses on finding the core of the pest concern and controlling Rats in Delaware from the source. Through IPM, pest control materials are selected and applied in a manner that minimizes risks to human health, pets, and the environment. Call Viking today for your FREE and NO OBLIGATION estimate at 1-800-618-2847 or Schedule Online today!