A rodent commonly known as the African crested rat has always been understood to be poisonous, but until recently, the reasoning was unknown. It turns out this rat is much more intelligent than it is credited for; it slathers poison from tree bark onto its specially designed hairs to protect itself from predators.
The African crested rat has hairs on certain areas of its body which predators are inclined to attack first, based on coloring. These areas are ones in which the rat lathers up with the poison from the bark!
These tactics are sure to work; if the predator is not killed, it is harmed enough that it will be sure to remember the incident an steer clear of future encounters!
BBC.com published an article this morning about the growing rat population in cities. The article focuses on the city of Bradford in the UK, but the information is relevant for homes and cities everywhere. Researches have learned that cities with bad rat problems are caused by two major factors: litter on streets and fatty food disposal. Rats love food; fatty, greasy food in particularly. After people cook on the stove, they usually leave the pan in the sink still with grease and fat in it and then wash it down the drain with some residue from the prepared food. The fat will harden and be left in the sewers, which is a nice treat for rats. Pouring fat down the drain also cause drains and sewers to clog, which is not good either. Rat are a very unpleasant rodent to have in and around your house. JP McHale is a rat exterminator in New York and would love to help with your problem. Contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, live chat, twitter, or facebook.
Over the weekend one of our techs was called out for a rat inspection. He thought it would be like any other job and could solve the problem easily. Little did he know, when he found the rat after looking for a while he realized it was a much bigger problem than he expected. The rat was the size of a cat! He said he had never seen anything like it before because the rat was huge! If you have any interesting pests stories we’d love to hear form you!
Yesterday, one of our techs were called in to treat a rat problem a customer had. Our customer was waring flip flops, walking around when all of the sudden a rat came sprinting by. Unaware of what was happening, the customer accidentally steps on the rats tail. The rat then immediately bit him! When ever you are dealing with a rodent or even pests, make sure you are protected and wear the proper gear so you do not get bitten or harmed.
Waybright Elementary School in Mass. has recently reopened after a rat sighting caused the school to close for a day. During school, a student saw a rat running down a stairwell. This isn’t the first time the school has had a problem with rats. In December, a construction project disrupted where some rats where living, causing them to go into the school. The school called a pest management professional, sealed off entranceway and set traps. Until they were sure the problem went away, they asked students to not leave food in classrooms and stopped serving hot lunches. They thought the problem was gone until the lone rat was spotted.
There were no signs of more rats being in the school. They didn’t find any feces or rats in traps that would indicate more than the lone rat. During the incident in the winter, there was evidence of burrowing by the rats. However, the building was swept and no burrowing was located this time around. The school reassured everybody that every precaution was taking place to prevent further incidents. They also said this is not an event isolated to just the school. Homes around the area have been having similar problems. The school has spent upwards of $30,000 already clear the rats out of the school, and expects to spend more money in the future.
If you have seen a rat or mouse in your home please contact us for a free inspection. Winter is the most common time to see a rodent in your home.
Verdi Square, the domain for drug dealers and the homeless all the way back since the late 80s, has another problem on its hands. Rats are infesting the area in the Upper West Side of New York. The problem has gotten so bad that even the Parks Department has a need for more help to clean up the area. The area has gotten to the point where it is being cleaned at around 3 times a day. What has caused this infestation? The area is filthy according to residents, with trash all over the place. Also, the renovation of a subway in 2000 has led to increase traffic in the area. With increased traffic comes more trash. Also, subway systems are notorious for an infestation of rats.
What measures are being done to clean the newly dubbed “Vermin Square”? Products to control rats are being littered all over the area. However, the rats are bigger than they were in the 80s, so after the initial stage, the dosage was upped. Trash crews are working hard to clean up the trash around the Verdi Square. Also, rat-proof garbage bags are now being used as potential solutions. Even with these possible solutions, the rats continue to dig holes around the Statue of Giuseppe Verdi. Rats are determined to find a way to stick around, and time will tell if “Vermin Square” can return to Verdi Square.
We came across this funny prank on Pest Management Professional Magazine editor’s blog “Keeping it Simple” by Pete Grasso. Please keep in mind all of this is a prank, and methods these actors use are not real.
How would you like it if you could kill rodents and get paid for it?
The Bangladesh government paid a farmer because he had killed over 83,000 rats. His prize: a 14-inch color TV. Bangladesh is known for importing tons of food, and rats are responsible for destroying 1.5 to 2 million tons annually.
As you can tell rodents are a very big issue in Bangladesh.
A rodent commonly known as the African crested rat has always been understood to be poisonous, but until recently, the reasoning was unknown. It turns out this rat is much more intelligent than it is credited for; it slathers poison from tree bark onto its specially designed hairs to protect itself from predators.
How would you like it if you could kill rodents and get paid for it?
