Rodent Pest Control from Exopest Control

Rats and mice can be found in and around every city, town and farm in the country. It is a conservative estimate that there is one rat for every person living in the Australia. Rodents have followed man to almost all parts of the world. They have no respect for social class; they are equal opportunity pests. The first introduced pest rodents arrived in Australia with the first settlers and convict ships back in the late 1700's early 1800's.

There are 3 introduced pest rodents:

Roof Rat - Rattus rattus
Norway Rat - Rattus norvegicus
House mouse - Mus musculus

Rats and mice are so closely linked to man they are called domestic rodents. Man supplies their three basic needs: food, shelter, and water.

Rodents are a threat to health, and they interfere with our economic and physical well being.

They are destructive pests and serious safety hazards.
They start fires by gnawing on electric cables. The next time you hear the phrase "fire of unknown origin," think about rats and mice.
They eat large amounts of food, and they contaminate even more with their urine, faeces, and hair. At least 20 percent of the world's food is eaten or contaminated by rats and mice each year. Food spoilage is a big issue.
They damage structures, books, furniture, even appliances, through gnawing and burrowing.
Worse, they spread disease to humans and other animals through their bite, by transporting fleas, lice, mites and ticks, and by leaving their droppings in food and other materials that humans contact. Rodents are vectors for bubonic plague, rat bite fever, leptospirosis, Hantavirus, trichinosis, infectious jaundice, rat mite dermatitis, salmonellosis, pulmonary fever, and typhus. Mice have also been linked to asthma.
As gnawing and burrowing animals, rodents inflict serious damage to our structures, equipment, furniture, utilities and transportation vehicles.

Rodents can be found in our homes, supermarkets, restaurants, livestock pens, and farm fields. Warehouses, grain mills, elevators, silos and corncribs are especially vulnerable to rodent infestation. Rodents will eat anything man or his livestock eats. They are mainly active at night. Rats are seldom seen during the day except when populations are exceedingly large. Rats and mice can crawl through very small crevices, which make it hard to confine their movement. Even if you can't see them, you may hear them moving after dark.

If your pet paws at a wall or cabinet it may be after a hidden rodent. Cats and dogs are not much of a deterrent to rodents, however. Cats just have fun with mice, and rarely eat the dead animal.

Usually, the first clue of a serious rodent problem is finding droppings on the kitchen counter, in kitchen drawers, cabinets, or in the pantry. When one dwelling is infested, it's likely the immediate neighborhood is, too.

That's why rodents are so difficult for one homeowner to control. Rodents are a community problem. Effective control necessitates that all homeowners in a community work together to eliminate sources of food, water, and shelter. Rodents are persistent in their efforts to invade the home, but you can deal with them effectively if you know their capabilities.