Rat & Rodent Prevention Information

Rodents are a public health risk because they spread disease.

The rats and mice in our homes, businesses and cities are a real problem because they:

• Consume and contaminate food with their fur, urine and feces.
• Start fires by gnawing on electric wires.
• Are a vector for diseases such as: leptospirosis, hantavirus, pulmonary syndrome, rat bite fever and plague.
• Can cause asthma and allergies.
• Damage furniture, clothing and other valuable possessions.

Rodent control has three main aspects: sanitation, rodent proofing, and rodent trapping/baiting. Sanitation and proofing although costly, time consuming, and slow to show results, are the most important parts of rodent control. Conditions that foster the rodent problem must be eliminated.

Sanitation: The presence of garbage and other refuse allows rats to exist in residential areas. Good sanitation will not eliminate rats under all conditions, but will make the environment less suitable for them to thrive. This involves proper storage and handling of food materials and refuse, and elimination of rodent shelter.

While rodents find warmth and shelter inside structures, food is their first reason for living in and around structures. Eliminate possible rodent food sources:

• Keep food in rodent-proof containers with tight-fitting lids.
• Clean up spilled food right away and wash dishes and cooking utensils soon after use.
• Feed pets only as much as they can eat in a few minutes. Do not leave pet food or water bowls out overnight.
• Rats can even live off pet feces, so pick up droppings daily.
• Don’t scatter food for birds or squirrels. Place bird food in a feeder, not on the ground.
• Clean up nuts and fruit from trees.
• Vegetable gardens also can be a food source. Never let overripe vegetables remain in place.
• Garbage should be placed in a thick plastic or metal garbage can with a tight lid. If storing trash and food waste inside the home, do so in rodent-proof containers, and frequently clean the containers with soap and water.
• Keep compost bins 100 feet or more from the house.
• Eliminate water: keep all drains covered and secure. Get rid of any standing water in the yard. Fix any defective pipes or drains.
• And keep lids on toilets – rodents have been known to drink water, and even urine, from toilets, and can enter structures by swimming pipes and emerging from toilets!

Mice hoard food in inaccessible areas, so removal of known supplies may not reduce mouse infestations immediately.

Rodent Proofing: Seal any openings larger than 1/4 inch to exclude both rats and mice. Openings where utilities enter buildings should be sealed tightly with metal or concrete. Wood, plaster and caulk will not keep rats out. Equip floor drains and sewer pipes with tight-fitting grates that have openings less than 1/4 inch in diameter. Doors, windows and screens should fit tightly. It may be necessary to cover edges with sheet metal to prevent gnawing. Ideally, all places where food is stored, processed or used should be rodent-proof.

• Rats eat everything!
• Rats climb, jump, and swim. If a squirrel can climb it, a rat can climb it.
• Rats chew through plastic, wood, soft metals, electrical wires (sometimes causing fires) and even cinder block, brick, and concrete sewer pipe.
• Rats squeeze into tiny spaces and nest where it is dark and warm.

Rats evolved with humans, and we will always have them. But we can move toward peaceful coexistence by being smart about how we manage the space around our homes.  We need many neighbors to take individual actions to reduce rat food sources and rat nesting areas around their homes. 

Rodent trapping and baiting.  Contact a licensed professional exterminator in your area for consultation on your specific property and the best options that may be available to you.  

How do I know if I have rats?

You are much more likely to find signs of rats than to see the rats themselves—because rats are usually active at night. If you see rats outside during the day, you have a major rat infestation nearby. If you find rats inside your house, they are no doubt feeding inside your house.
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Signs of rats

• Seeing them: when rats are present, they can be observed in trees, on wires and fences, or running along pathways in vegetation. Mice are more often observed inside a structure than outside.
• Droppings: fecal pellets larger than rice grains are most often seen around nesting sites, runways, or feeding areas.
• Burrow holes: look for fist sized holes in your yard. You might find these under the cover of thick vegetation or piles of junk in your yard. Or near your house. Stuff the hole loosely with wadded up newspaper to find out if the burrows are being used.
• Noise: rats can be heard at night running within the walls, ceilings or attics, also make scraping, gnawing, or squealing sounds.
• Damage: rodents like to chew and gnaw on objects, so look for teeth marks on fruit or branches, and inspect for chewed wood, cloth, plastic, and paper.
• Smudges: black greasy marks on exposed runways or walls are made when a rat rubs its dirty hair against a surface.
• Runways: rodents repeatedly use the same pathway between their nests and food sources. Rat runways are easier to detect than mouse paths and show up outdoors in ivy and other ground covers as smooth, well packed paths free of vegetation.
• Tracks: watch for footprints in dust or mud. In dry weather, dust an area inside or outside with flour, then look for rodent tracks soon after.

Reducing my rat population

Your yard may be your paradise, with a carefully tended vegetable garden, composting system, chickens, and pets. Unfortunately, rats may treat it as their paradise, too.

These practices can help keep rodents out of your home, yard, and neighborhood: 

Eliminate possible outdoor food sources. Keep pet food stored outside in thick plastic or metal containers with tight lids, and don't leave pet food and water bowls out overnight. Keep outside cooking areas and grills clean. Pick up and dispose of pet droppings. Keep bird feeders away from the house, and use squirrel guards to limit access to the feeder by squirrels and other rodents. 

For kitchen food waste, use one of these rat proof options:

• Compost your kitchen scraps in a self contained tumbler or worm bin.
• Make your current compost pile rodent proof. You need a very TIGHTLY constructed compost bin to exclude rodents. Eliminate all cracks ½ inch and larger for rats, and ¼ inch and larger for mice. Wow! That’s tight.
• For the skilled composter, make your open compost piles cook fast and hot. Rodents will stay away from hot compost piles even if they contain kitchen scraps. This involves judicious layering of materials, regular turning, and moisture management. Let’s be honest—most of us don’t have the time, energy, or back strength to sustain this level of compost management.
• Put your kitchen waste in the garbage. This option will be painful for loyal composters. And yet there is no shame in going this route. Many households are using this option until they get their rat situation under control.

Eliminate nesting sites (harborage). Elevate hay, woodpiles, and garbage cans at least a foot off the ground. Move wood piles as far from the house as possible. Dispose of old vehicles, furniture, and tires. Keep grass and shrubbery near your home trimmed. 

Feed the chickens, not the rats. As with pet food, store chicken feed in secure containers and regularly clean up food on the ground. Put out only enough feed that will be eaten in 15 minutes. Or, consider investing in a secure feeding system, such as a treadle feeder. If you use straw as bedding, clean and aerate it regularly. 

Seal up holes inside and outside your home, garage, and outbuildings to prevent entry. Mice can squeeze through a nickel-size hole, and rats can fit through spaces the size of a half dollar. Look for gaps under and inside kitchen cabinets; under and behind the refrigerator and stove; inside closets; near the fireplace; around doors and windows; around pipes and vents under sinks and to the washer, dryer, water heater, and furnace; and in the attic and basement or crawl space. Use lath screen, cement, or metal sheeting to seal off large holes, and fill small holes with steel wool. 

Rodent Facts

• Young mice can enter through openings slightly larger than ¼ inch in diameter and juvenile rats can enter openings as small as ½ inch in diameter.
• The house mouse, roof rat, and Norway rat can reproduce year-round when adequate food, water, and harborage are available.
• Rats can reproduce up to 6 times a year with litters averaging from 4 to 8 pups each.
• Each night, rats can travel from 100 to 300 feet from the nest in search of food.
• Roof rats are extremely agile and can swing beneath rafters, jump as far as 4 feet from branches to rooftops, and climb pipes and wires.
• Roof rats often enter and nest in the upper portions of buildings.
• Rats and mice are nocturnal with most activity taking place between sunset and sunrise.

The best way to prevent a rodent infestation and contact with rodents is to remove the food sources, water, and items that provide shelter for rodents.

Additional Resources

As a way to help individuals, community groups, businesses and neighborhood associations assist in educating about rat and rodent control and prevention we have created some easy to use tools. We have materials to use with your social media accounts, text for newsletters or emails and posters and brochures.

Our goal is to make it as easy as possible for community members to educate each other about rat prevention and control.

No permission is needed to use these but we would love to hear where and how you use them to track our educational outreach efforts. Email Matt Laird, [assistantplanner@cottagegrove.org] to let the City know how the rat control and prevention messages are getting out in our community.

Link to Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) information on rodents.

Link to Lane County OSU Extension Service.