Updated: Dec 26, 2022
Rodents are everywhere. You can meet them in Europe, Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Australia. To identify types of rats, you should focus on the diet, life cycle/reproduction, and also on their appearance. Identifying the types of rats will also help you to do the regular rat control in your homes and lawns.
The most common types of rats are Norway rats and Roof rats. The main identifying point is its appearance. In appearance, Norway rats have brown fur, with lighter gray to the white underbelly. They have small eyes and ears. Moreover, its short tail (shorter than the length of their head and body together) will hint to you that it is the Norway rat. On the other hand, Roof rats are typically thin with large eyes and ears, a pointed nose, and a scaly tail. The fur is mainly brown with mixed black spots. You will not always see the roof rats as there are nocturnal.
In terms of diet, seems like the Norway rat prefers foods with fat content like grease and meat. At the same time, Roof rats prefer grains, nuts, seeds, and plant-based foods.
Are rats dangerous?
Probably, it is one of the first questions that you’ll ask yourself once you have found them in your house. Well, unlike previous centuries, when rats spread the Black Death plague and cause the deaths of millions of people, now they do not carry the plague ,but can still lead to many diseases like salmonellosis, leptospirosis, and E. coli infection. These mentioned diseases are spread directly through bites, droppings, etc. However, they can damage your house as well. Norway rats can leave some holes in lawns and also damage building foundations. In addition, both species chew paper and cloth to make their nests. So, in this case, when you are suspicious about rats in your house, regular and proper rat control is a must.
Why do I have a rat problem?
One of the possible reasons for a rat problem in a house is the not proper sanitation.Besides the health concerns and many other problems that poor sanitation causes, it can also lead rats and mice to have easy access to food and water. Consequently, they will be encouraged to stay there and make their nests in a warm place full of water and food. Generally, rats seek three main things when invading homes: water, food, and shelter, especially in the fall and winter months.
However, gaps in the house’s exterior door, windows, and pipes are the perfect ways for rice to get into your homes. After some time, doors and windows eventually break down as they are not meant to last forever. Thus, do not wait until the rat enters your home, start rat control, replace the old windows and doors, and prevent their future entrance and damages that they cause.
Where are rats commonly found?
Rats are everywhere and due to their small size, they can easily move indoors through tiny openings near the ground. Generally, you can find them in vents, attic, roof, chimneys, etc. Once they get into a vent, they’ll soon appear inside your house. But don’t worry, you can prevent their entry into a vent by covering it with metal screening, and without preventing the ventilation. The latter is also considered to be a type of regular rat control.
The chimneys are dark and out of the way, but they are also warm which appeals to rats to get into it. So, make sure that the chimney is regularly clean. And so does the attic. Though it is one of the out of sight places in our homes. not proper attic cleaning will lead not only rats to invade homes, but also can cause many other health problems to you and your family.
How can I prevent rats in the future?
Here, we have singled out some steps you should do to prevent rats in the future. But,
make a note that rat control is not meant to be done once. It requires regularity and
only after that you can get rid of rats and other types of rodents.
- Seal up your home
- Eliminate outdoor access
- Clean up your yard
- Remove outdoor food sources
- Clean your attic and chimney
- Use traps
- Use baits and poisons outside
