It isn’t necessarily the case that only filthy homes encourage the likes of mice and rats to cause infestation to a home. In fact, any area of a property or the surrounding land or garden is susceptible if it provides food, warmth and shelter.

Dealing with Rats

Rats need to be controlled as they can transmit disease to humans including Weil’s disease and Salmonella poisoning. In a house, they will take up residence under floorboards, in lofts, in wall cavities and in cellars. Although we mostly associate them with living in sewers, they can also survive in your garden, living in and beneath sheds and by burrowing into compost heaps.

Preventative Measures

Basic housekeeping and cleanliness is your best defence against rat infestation. Ensure that your backyard or garden is well maintained with any overgrown areas cut back to restrict rats’ potential nesting sites. Also, remember that if you enjoy putting food out to attract the likes of birds, hedgehogs or squirrels, you’re also encouraging the likes of rats and mice, too.

So, while not suggesting you stop providing food for other wildlife, make sure you don’t put food out to excess. Also, make sure that your household rubbish is disposed of properly and in a secure manner. It’s important that your house is kept in good repair to reduce the opportunity for rats to get inside from an external vantage point. Also, avoiding an Overgrown Garden will help to restrict areas where rodents can find shelter.

Getting Rid of Rats

If your home or gardens become infested with rats, contact your local authority’s environmental health department. They will send out a pest control officer to survey the scene, put down poison in appropriate locations, and make follow-up visits to ensure that the problem has been rectified.

Dealing with Mice

Mice are also fond of similar locations to rats when it comes to looking for food, warmth and shelter. Not all local authorities will offer a free service to get rid of mice infestation, so it may be down to you as the householder to deal with the problem yourself. You should do this quickly as mice can severely damage cables and insulation.

Mouse poison and mouse traps offer the best solution and your local garden centre or hardware store will be able to offer you advice. So too will your environmental health department, even if they do not offer a service to remove them. However, if you have young children and/or pets, it’s important you seek proper advice before using any rodent poison or pesticides.

Dealing with Bees and Wasps

While most of us will have some fear of bees and wasps, the important thing to remember is that, for the most part, both of these play an important role in the ecological balance of gardens. Therefore, if you come across a wasps or bees nest in your garden, providing it is not too close to where humans would come into contact with it, you should leave it alone.

However, in certain situations where a nest is in close proximity to where people come and go, or if it has actually been built somewhere on the property itself, it may be necessary to have it removed. You can do this yourself providing you know what you’re doing and take adequate precautions and wear protective clothing. But it might be preferable to seek out the services of a pest control company. Alternatively, your local authority may offer you this service, although it’s more likely they’d charge you for it.

Problems with Neighbours

If you suspect that your neighbours might be responsible for attracting creatures that can cause infestation, you should try to have a polite word with them. For example, if their house is badly maintained, they don’t take enough care in how they dispose of their rubbish or their gardens are overgrown, all of these things might encourage the likes of rats and mice to the area in which you live, even if your house isn’t the direct cause of the problem. If your neighbours fail to take remedial action and the problem persists, then you have every right to report this to your local authority.

Other Problems

There are many other problems that can result in infestation. Pigeons, foxes, fleas, ants, cockroaches, squirrels and even bed bugs are just some of the issues that you could be faced with. If you have any problems that you’re not sure how to tackle, your local environmental health department alongside the likes of garden centres and hardware stores should be sufficient to provide you with all the advice you need.