You can use rat traps both at your home and office, and the reasons for them are obvious. Rats can damage buildings by gnawing on pipes, wood and wires, and can cause food poisoning and respiratory illness. They can also drag in fleas and mites, distributing them around your house or office wherever they go. Clearly, exterminating rats is a high priority.
While we can all agree that rat control is important, it's hard to know where to start. Several kinds of traps exist, each with its own way of getting rid of the pests. You may opt to make your own homemade rat traps, but most ready-made traps are so cheap that it may cost you more to take the time away from work to make one than it would to buy one. Rat exterminators are another option, but are usually more expensive than a few rat traps. Choose from the following main types of rat traps:
1. Electronic rat traps;
2. Humane traps;
3. Traditional rat traps.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Buy an electronic rat trap to avoid any mess
With so many options today, it is not necessary to use the traditional traps that require you to see the dead rat. Instead, buy a trap that uses more modern technology, such as electricity. Many such traps are considered more humane than traditional traps because an electric shock kills the rat more quickly than trapping a rat and starving it to death.
I recommend: Ratmousezapper.com offers a trap that uses electric shock to kill rats, leaving no mess behind.
Terradisiac features a trap that simply repels rats using a high frequency sound that pets and humans cannot hear. It plugs into a wall outlet and is easy to use.
Buy rat traps that allow the rat to live
Humane rat traps are popular with animal lovers who simply want to get the rat out of their house or office rather than kill it. If you are comfortable with transporting the rat to a more rat-friendly location, a humane trap is a good fit for you. Just make sure you check the trap often to make sure a rat is not trapped in it for days because that obviously defeats the purposes of a humane trap.
I recommend: Both
Safeguard Products and
Havahart offer live traps for rats and other rodents. They are specially made to ensure that the animal does not escape, but is not hurt.
Simplify by purchasing a traditional rat trap
If you want to keep this process simple, you can make use of traditional rat traps, such as snap traps and glue boards. Snap traps contain a metal arm that snaps down once the rat grabs the bait, breaking the animal's neck. Glue boards use wet glue that sticks to the rat's feet, ensuring that he is stuck there until he either starves to death or you find him.
I recommend: Do-It-Yourself Pest Control offers a selection of snap traps, while
cooperseeds.com features glue trap to get rid of rodents.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Place the rat traps in areas that you know rats travel through daily. If you are not sure, put some flour along the paths that you suspect attract rats, and check the next day to see if there are tiny footprints.
The official source of Rat Traps is the Rat Traps page at Business.com
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