Knowing how to kill rats is an art form. I’ve met many homeowners over the years that have tried and failed miserably because they thought it would be easy. Before you take on a rat job you need to know a few things about the enemy.
This entire post will deal with the subject of how to kill rats. The rat we’re going to focus on is the Norway rat. This rat is the most common rat we have in CT. Last, we are going to provide the information based upon a typical home in the suburbs. If you live in the inner city, hiring a professional is best.
(Be sure to follow label directions on any poison baits that you may purchase.)
Step 1
You love to feed the birds and who doesn’t they’re a great learning experience for your children and it gives you pleasure. However, you’re also inviting rats to the table and before you learn how to kill rats you must know the following.
The Norway rat in suburbia needs a food source and feeding birds, leaving gardens to rot in the off season, having chicken coupes and fruit trees in the yard are all food sources. The first step in killing rats is to eliminate the food source.
Step 2
The Norway rat loves to burrow holes and in this hole is where the Norway rat spends much of it’s time. In order to get rid of rats in burrows you must use pellet sized poison bait. This formulation when poured into the burrow works with great efficiency and the likelihood of poisoning an off target animal is slim as most of the bait will remain in the hole. After pouring about an ounce of bait in the hole fill it with dirt. You can also use a block of bait, but the rat will likely “kick” it out. This is a safety concern for children and pets so pellets are your best bet.
Alternatively, you can also purchase tamper resistant bait stations and set them around the yard. This method is not very efficient, but will work.
Step 3
The rats have made it into your home so step 3 is very important. If you have rats in your home the single best way to get rid of them is with traps. The rat trap was designed hundreds of years ago and still works the same way today, but you need to know a few things about the rat trap before you get started
- Rat snaps can injure you: The rat snap traps kill bar comes down with tremendous force. If you catch a finger it may break a bone. The rat trap is also a danger to children and pets. Set them in areas the rats will find them and not the kids
- You must prebait: The Norway way is very shy. In order to catch a rat you must leave many traps out with some type of food based bait and allow the rats to feed on it. Once you have feeding you can set the trap and voila you’ll catch a rat.
Step 4
How did the rat get into your home in the first place? After you have eliminated the rats it’s very important to seal all the locations that they got in. You must do a thorough inspection remembering that rats only need the size of about a quarter to get into your home. Cover all these areas with .25″ hardware wire purchased at Home Depot.
Finishing up
Not all rat problems can be handled by the homeowner. There are situations where a professional is needed. If don’t think you can kill rats at your home we can, call Envirocare Pest Control at 1-888-879-6481.