The Best Way To Get Rid Of Rats Around Your Columbia Home

While rats are nocturnal and tend to hide out of sight of people, there are other very crucial ways to determine if these pests are invading your home.

One of the biggest signs includes finding piles of tiny droppings in places like kitchen drawers, garbage bins, and other cabinetry, especially if there's food involved. You might also notice nibble marks on electrical wires, molding, and walls, all of which rats do in order to keep their teeth from overgrowing or to access more resources. There may even be larger holes because rats often try to access the inside of walls in order to build their nests.

Lastly, you might notice nesting materials in places like your attic, inside of closets, and basements, which means that rats are making themselves at home.

Though rats might seem small and harmless, they are actually a very serious health hazard inside your home. Rats are notorious as hosts of parasites like fleas, mites, and ticks, which is a common way for these issues to spread. Parasite issues can lead to Lyme disease, anemia, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, murine typhus, tapeworm, and heartworm. They are a particular problem in homes with pets, but they can also be an issue for people. Then there's the droppings, urine, and saliva that rats themselves leave behind, which can lead to asthma attacks and allergies. These byproducts can also be the source of pathogens that lead to leptospirosis, hantavirus, tularemia, salmonella, and lymphocytic choriomeningitis.

Rats are a particularly difficult pest problem to have inside of your home because of how stealthily they can gain access to your property in the first place. To start, rats are particularly skilled climbers, meaning that if you have any trees, hedges, or shrubs that come into contact with your home, they can scale them to enter attics and windows on taller floors. Some species of rats are also known to use sewer systems and plumbing units as a means of entering homes so they can access a home without your knowledge. Then there's the fact that rats can slip through quarter-sized holes in your foundation and any gaps that exist around doors and windows. Rats can also simply walk through garage doors you've left open.

Unfortunately, rat infestations are not the kind that disappear on their own, which is why the most efficient way to get rid of them is with professional local pest control.

At Warrior Pest, we provide homeowners impactful and long-lasting solutions to rat problems. Our services begin with a comprehensive property assessment to understand how rats interact with your home and where they're nesting. From there, we combine interior and exterior exclusion services like filling entry points and setting bait stations in order to eliminate rats and keep them from returning.

By enrolling in one of our ongoing preventative residential or commercial pest control plans for Maryland residents, you won't have to worry about rats again.