Do I Need Professional Rodent Control Services For My Bay Area Home?

What is the difference between an amateur and a professional baseball player? These players know how to hit and field the ball, and they know the rules of the game, so what is the difference? The distinction is that the professional play for money while the amateur plays for free. Skilled players get paid because they have proven to be better than most other players, and people will pay to watch them execute their baseball skills. We expect professionals to know every aspect of the game and to be able to perform their tasks on a near-flawless level. 

When you wake up to scratching sounds underneath your feet or inside your walls, you want a professional who knows how to fix the problem. If you see signs of rodents in your house, you need someone who knows how to remove them safely. When a mouse runs out from beneath a cabinet, or you have witnessed a rat scurrying across the floor, you need pest control in The Bay Area from Bay Pest. With over 40 years of rodent control experience, we know how to remove rodents from your house. Please continue to read this article to learn how we can solve your rodent problem. 

What Is Rodent Control?

Before we explain what is involved in rodent control, let's first define rodents. Apart from the typical fur, two eyes and ears, and four feet, the primary characteristic of these mammals is a pair of continuously growing massive incisor teeth. Because rodents must keep these teeth trimmed to control them from growing too large, preventing them from eating, they gnaw on objects constantly to keep them manageable. 

Another characteristic of these incisor teeth is that the front side is covered with thick, hard enamel, while the back has softer dentine. The edges where the dentine and enamel joint create a razor-sharp cutting edge that enables the animal to chew through wire, thin metal, wood, cardboard, plastic, and even concrete!

Squirrels, moles, voles, and gophers are some examples of rodents that occasionally cause problems for homeowners; however, mice and rats are the rodents that are a headache for most Bay Area homeowners. Although there are many rat species, Norway and roof rats are common in our area. Harvest mice, brush, pinyon, and California pocket mice are in the Bay Area, but house mice are the species that infest most homes. Now that we know what rodents are and which are problematic in Bay Area homes, we can discuss rodent control. 

Professional rodent control is the safe removal of rodents from a location using tools designed to protect families and pets living in the home. This type of rodent control is necessary because rodents do the following:

• Spread disease
• Damage contents
• Contaminate food
• Bite people

Rodents are omnivores that eat practically anything they can find and are not choosy about where they find food. Rats and mice forage in sewers, drains, compost piles, animal feces, and trash to find organic materials to eat. Rodents have oily fur, and as they move through those areas, their coat attracts disease-causing organisms lying on the surface in filthy locations. 

Rodents have poor eyesight, so when the animals enter Bay Area homes, they bump against walls and objects and contaminate them with pathogens. Leptospirosis, rat-bite fever, tularemia, and salmonellosis are examples of diseases spread by rats; mice spread many of the same infections as well as hantavirus and adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). You need to use professional rodent control to get rid of rodents in your Bay Area home before they infect your loved one. 

Fleas, ticks, lice, and mites hitchhike and feed on rodents. When rats and mice enter Bay Area homes, the insects migrate throughout the house and search for new hosts. Fleas spread some of the same infections but may also infect people with murine typhus, bartonellosis, and tapeworm. If rodents bring ticks into the house and they latch onto people, they can transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick paralysis, and the infamous Lyme disease.

Although it is tempting to think that setting a few traps will resolve a rodent problem, the snares will not stop an infestation due to the rapid reproduction rate. One female house mouse can produce 35 offspring in one year, and newborn female mice can start reproducing within six to ten weeks. When you consider that a female Norway rat can breed up to 500 times and produce seven litters annually with an average of eight pups per litter, it is no wonder that an infestation can quickly occur within a short period. 

When service technicians from Bay Pest arrive to stop the rodents in your house, they inspect the house and develop a strategic plan to remove them from your home. 

Five Tips For Effective Rodent Prevention

When you see or hear rodents in your Bay Area home, you need professional rodent pest control from Bay Pest. Once our service technicians have removed the rats or mice from your home, here are five suggestions to keep rodents out of your home for good:

1. Seal entry points
2. Eliminate debris
3. Provide drainage 
4. Remove exterior attractants
5. Clear interior attractants

Rodents can enter your home through holes and gaps as small as 1/4 inch. Examine the foundation, roofline, and joints around window and door frames and where siding and mortar meet. Norway rats and mice typically enter homes at ground level, but roof rats often climb trees and enter through attic openings. 

Like all animals, rodents need food, water, and shelter. Leaf piles, firewood stacks on the ground, old tires, stones, timber, and other debris scattered throughout a yard provides rodents with cover from the elements. Removing potential sheltering locations will discourage rodents from staying in your yard; if they do not find your property attractive due to a lack of food, water, and shelter, they are not likely to enter your house.  

As mentioned previously, rats and mice need water to survive. When a yard has standing water due to poorly draining ditches, low-lying areas, baby pools, old tires, and other water-trapping debris, rodents are likely to stay around your house.  

Rodents eat meat, seeds, nuts, grains, sweets, and almost anything they can find in the trash. Remove attractants to your Bay Area property by covering outdoor garbage containers, storing compost in sealable containers, picking up animal feces and rotting fruit in the yard, and keeping the area around bird and squirrel feeders clean.

If rodents enter your home, maintaining a clean interior will discourage them from creating nests and reproducing. Vacuum the house regularly and suction the corners and along the baseboards to remove crumbs. Before you go to bed, remove dog food from bowls, wash and store all dishes and wipe down eating and cooking surfaces. Use garbage cans with lids and keep them covered, do not store full garbage bags in the garage, but place them in sealable storage cans.

When you schedule an inspection from Bay Pest, our service technician can identify specific ways to prevent a future infestation based on your situation. 

Easy Rodent Exclusion Tips To Prevent Future Rat Infestations

Effective rodent control begins with removing access points in your Bay Area home. Rats come onto your property searching for food, water, and shelter; if they find those things, they will stay outside. Also, when temperatures decline significantly or if we experience a dry spell, rats on your property will try to access your house. 

Norway rats are usually at ground level. Install door sweeps on all exterior doors to prevent Norway rats from entering your house. Cover crawl space vents with wire mesh and use steel wool, mortar, or other construction-grade building materials impervious to their sharp teeth to plug holes and gaps larger than 1/4 of an inch.  

Roof rats are so-named because they prefer to live in trees and attics in homes. Prevent their entry by installing wire mesh over attic vents and chimney openings. Also, seal holes and gaps along the roofline with the materials mentioned above.

Contact Bay Pest For The Best Rodent Prevention And Control

When you schedule the best rodent control near you from Bay Pest to inspect your house, we will investigate the interior and exterior to identify what type of rodent is infesting your home, entry points, attractants, and hot spots. 

Based on the findings of our trained service technician, we will strategically install a one-way door that allows rodents to leave but prevents re-entry. We also use glue traps (if mice are the problem) or snap traps (if rats are the problem) to stop the infestation. After two weeks, we will remove the one-way door and check the traps. Once the pests have left the premises, we will remove droppings and sanitize and deodorize your house to prevent allergic reactions and disease transmission. For those who choose reoccurring plans, we install bait boxes. 

Contact us today at Bay Pest to learn more and see why over 1,500 homeowners have entrusted us to stop California rodents from invading their homes.