One of the best ways to implement a Norway rat control strategy is to understand how the vermin thinks and behaves. Effective rodent control is now more necessary than ever, since the population of Norway rats in urban areas has increased around the world.
To start, pest control specialists must understand the biology of the rat. Rats are complex animals, and knowing how they feed, where they hide, and what they prefer, can help with trap, poison and bait placement. In urban areas this is even more essential, since you have heavily infested areas where there are large concentrations of rats. As such, it’s important to notice the amount of litter near a building, and look for signs of rat urine on the pavement and inside the building.
When trying to understand the behavior of the Norway rat, there are two main factors to take into consideration – first, they like to burrow into the ground for safety and shelter, and second, they are very gluttonous. Norway rats also have predictable movement patterns, and knowing that rats will travel anywhere from 90 to 450 feet in any given day, can help pest control specialists locate the exact area where the rats are nesting.
By knowing that Norway rats need large amounts of food at night and that they love to burrow, you can restrict the area that you have to inspect in order to find the focal point of the infestation. The rats will be in a zone where it has easy access to a lot of food, and if they are nesting outdoors, you will see signs in the vegetation. In areas where there is a heavy rat population, the vegetation is no longer growing due to their burrowing activities.
Behavior-based control is currently big in many food processing plants, where you would otherwise have to lay down a large number of traps to catch the rats. However, if you take the pests’ behavior into account, you can lay the traps in areas of interest, such as areas where there is a heat source, or in areas where the rats look for food. These principles can also be used in domestic infestations.
If you would like to know more about behavior-based rodent control, or if you currently have a Norway rat infestation on your property, contact us today. We can answer any questions you may have or come over and remove any rats that are causing your trouble.
