How Do Rats Get in the Attic?

Attic in lower Michigan

As a homeowner (or renter) in Michigan, it can be pretty alarming to realize you have a rat occupancy issue. They are dangerous, prone to aggressive attack when disturbed, and carry with them disease. Not only that, but they are infamous for their chewing ability and will not discriminate against expensive appliance wiring, or precious family photos.

How Can I Tell if I Have Rats?

Rats are secretive and try to stay out of your line of sight. They sneak in through holes in your roof or ceiling and can easily get in through chimneys or along vents. Some solid indicators you have a rat infestation are:

  • Scratching and squeaking. Especially at night, as these home invaders are nocturnal, preferring to do their scavenging and destruction while everyone else is asleep.
  • Strong urine scent. Rat urine is particularly strong and will usually be accompanied by the visual of their droppings in various areas.
  • Chew marks. Rats, like all rodents, have teeth that never stop growing. Because of this, rats will chew up anything to keep their teeth short. From boxes to clothing, to hard plastics like pipes, and even metals of all kinds, rats will chew through whatever they want to. Whether that’s to get at a potential food source, or for nesting material.
  • Rat Nests. Shy by nature (but aggressive when confronted), you’ll most likely find rat nests in the corners of your attic, and in spaces usually left undisturbed like crawl spaces (or even in the walls).

The Most Common Types of Attic Rats

  • Black Rat. They are dark gray or blackish in color, and typically slender, growing to be 13-15” long including their tail. Other names for this rat are “roof rat” or “ship rat”, named appropriately for their prolific climbing ability and preference for high spaces – like your attic.
  • Norway Rat. Bigger than their cousins, these rats are more robust and will grow to be 16” long including tails. Typically grayish-brown or reddish-brown, these patient zeros like to nest in your crawl spaces.

Why Call Griffin Pest Solutions

No matter the species, rats are a big problem. They carry with them disease and will attack and bite if they are disturbed or feel threatened. Even what may seem to be a minor scratch could warrant a hospital trip for you or a vet trip for your animals. The team of rodent exterminators at Griffin Pest Solutions has been dedicated to serving our community since our founding in 1929.

Sustainably minded, we have been pioneers in eco-friendly pest control and as such have earned our GreenPro certification from the National Pest Management Association. Utilizing Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in tandem with being a part of the Rentokil family, we aim to be as globally responsible as we are across the state of Michigan. Trust Griffin Pest Solutions and let us help you protect your home.

Avoiding a Rodent Road Trip

rat damage on a car's internal wiring

In the spring or summer, rodents may not pay your vehicle any mind. But when the weather dips close to freezing here in Michigan, your car suddenly turns into a very appealing source of shelter and other valuable resources. The last thing you want is for a rat, mouse or squirrel to call shotgun on your ride to work or errands. You need to know what to look for, and that includes the signs of damage that rodents can leave once they’re inside your vehicle. At Griffin Pest Solutions, we specialize in rodent control for homes and businesses in Michigan, and if you have pests in your car, it won’t be long until that’s exactly what you’ll need. So stay one step ahead of these critters if you watch for the three signs of rodents in your car, and what you can do to keep them out.

Rodent Damage in Your Car

If rats, mice, or other rodents get into your car, they tend to damage the inside of your vehicle in three key areas. It may look like the following:

Chewing

Rodents have constantly growing incisors, and because of that, they chew to sharpen and grind down their teeth. When they’re inside your vehicle, they’ll chew on anything they have access to. This may look like plastic paneling, or it could be something as important as the wires and power steering lines that make up your car’s inner structure. It’s very possible that they can bite clean through something important without you realizing it. That’s why this is easily the most dangerous form of damage a rat or mouse can do to your vehicle.

Nesting

If a rat or mouse wants to hide inside your car, it’s usually to build a nest out of the way of bad weather. Once they establish that they’ve found a supposedly safe place, they’ll set about gathering material to make into a nest. This could be harvested from your carpet insulation, the interior upholstery of your seats, or any other soft materials that may be left in your car. They can nest in any location in your car’s chassis, but the most common places are usually the warmest. This means the heater blower motors, engine compartments, trunks, and under the center console.

Leaving Waste

It’s no surprise that rats and mice are fond of defecating wherever they go, and if they get in your vehicle, it won’t be long before they defecate there too. Not only will that make being in your car far more unpleasant – it can also be dangerous for yourself and those you drive around. Because rodents spread diseases through their droppings, like hantavirus and salmonellosis, and being in contact with their leavings can easily make someone ill. That’s why it’s so important not to provide them with access to your car.

Keeping Rodents Out

When it comes to keeping rats, mice and other rodents out of your car, the standard isn’t too different from keeping them out of your home. You close off access by keeping the windows and sunroof rolled up, and you remove potential food sources by keeping your car’s interior clear of clutter. Storing your car in the garage reduces the risk, but we understand that’s not an option for everybody. If you have to keep your car in the driveway or on the street, there are other precautions you can take. A solution of peppermint oil, clove, or cayenne can be sprayed in and around your car a few times a week to deter mice and rats. You can also sprinkle cedar shavings or sawdust to create a barrier around your car that rodents won’t want to cross.

These are all measures you can take on your own when dealing with a rodent presence in your vehicle. But if you find evidence of rodents in your home, we do not suggest trying to clear out an infestation on your own. Instead, trust the team of rodent exterminators at Griffin Pest Solutions to treat your home and get rid of the rodents or any other pests you may have. To get started, contact us today!

What to do With Rodent Poo

mouse sticking out of hole in baseboard

Everyone poops, including pests and nuisance wildlife, and all of their individual droppings are unique to their species. You don’t need to know what every kind of animal poop looks like, but if you can distinguish rat and mouse poop in particular you can get an advantage in extermination and control within your home. But react carefully, as rodent droppings may be toxic if handled improperly. So, if you’ve found some mystery droppings piled in the attic or scattered in the backs of your cabinets, react carefully. Clean them properly, and be sure to call a professional pest exterminator like the team at Griffin Pest Solutions.

Mouse and Rat Droppings: An Overview

It shouldn’t surprise you to learn that, since rats are generally larger than mice, rat poop is larger as well. Rat droppings are typically shaped like a grape or coffee bean and sized about 1/2″-3/4″ long. They’re commonly mistaken for squirrel poop, although squirrel poop is rounded at the ends and will lighten over time. Compare this to mouse droppings, which are small and smooth and pointed like a grain of rice. These too are mistaken for another pest’s droppings – specifically the household cockroach. And, like the rat and squirrel, cockroach droppings can be distinguished from mice by their rounded ends.

Mice tend to pick a specific area of the home, separate from their nest, to use as their toilet. This may be in the back of your silverware drawer, under your sink, or behind areas where food is stored. Rats, on the other hand, will leave urine and droppings everywhere they go. You may find them scattered in the garage, crawl space or the basement. Regardless of where you find rodent droppings, your instinct may be to sweep them up as soon as you spot them. But is that the best strategy to take?

What to do With Rodent Poo

Let’s talk about Hantavirus. Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a severe respiratory disease that can start with fatigue and fever and end with the lungs filling with fluid. It has a mortality rate of 38%, but there have been no cases of HPS being transferred in the United States from one person to another. The real risk of Hantavirus comes from rodents – specifically, exposure to their infected droppings. That’s why we advise against sweeping or vacuuming any rat or mice poop that you might find, because if the rodent it came from was infected it will spread HPS into the air around you. If you’re looking to clean, there’s a better way to do it.

First, get your protective gear, specifically rubber gloves, goggles and a dust mask. Spray the waste with bleach or disinfectant until soaked and let it sit for five minutes. Then you can wipe the droppings with a paper towel and dispose of them, as well as your mask and gloves. From that point on you can wash your hands and focus on calling a pest exterminator – because, even though the droppings may be gone, the rodents who made them are still wandering around somewhere.

The Importance of Rodent Control

Rats and mice should not, under any circumstances, be left to live in your home unencumbered. The longer they live in your home, the more damage they can cause. They may burrow into the insulation in your walls and chew on electrical cables, creating a potential fire risk. They may gnaw and tear at personal belongings, as well as spread waste and smaller, parasitic pests like fleas wherever they go. Rodents like to inhabit vulnerable spaces, like the cabinets where you keep your food and the attics and basements where you store personal belongings. They can damage your home and anything inside of it – to put it simply, rodents make a mess. With the right exterminating team, you can remove pests like these and keep them from coming back. And if you’re a homeowner in Michigan, the best pest control team is Griffin Pest Solutions.

Griffin Pest Solutions for Rats and Mice

Since 1929, Griffin Pest Solutions has provided consistent and comprehensive pest control solutions for homes and businesses in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. We focus on extermination as well as exclusion, so when we eliminate pests, we keep them out for good. So, while it’s true that everyone poops, not everyone should poop – especially not in your home. If you’re ready to stop playing janitor and get back to being comfortable in your own home, contact Griffin Pest Solutions today!

How Long Do Rats Live?

Pet rats can live for four years, but a rat in the wild generally only survives between 1 to 3, and many won’t make it past their first. Overall rat longevity varies by species and is highly affected by the availability of food and water and the prevalence of predators.

Rats are social creatures and prodigious breeders. Even if they live out a fast and hard life, they can leave behind a legacy of several litters. Understanding and interrupting the life cycle of invasive rats can help keep them from becoming a larger problem in your home or business. Here’s what you should know:

Rat Life Cycle

Rats come into the world blind, hairless and helpless, but they don’t stay that way for long. Litters average from 6 to 10 pups who adapt and mature quickly. The pup’s eyes open after 12 days and within three weeks they will be fully grown and weaned. This means a whole batch of young, eager and hungry rats set loose on the world in a very short time.

Rats reach sexual maturity after three months and will breed for about a year. The gestation period for a pregnant female is 21 days, then the cycle begins all over.

On average, a female rat will be able to produce five litters during her lifetime. Multiply that by ten pups/litter and you quickly realize that a single rat can be responsible for 50 new rats within the span of a year. This doesn’t take into account the offspring those new rats will produce once they reach their sexual maturity in three months, either. Any way you slice it, that’s a whole lot of rats.

Life of an Adult Rat

Adult rats spend most of their life foraging and mating. This makes them formidable pests. They are nocturnal animals who seek new food sources by night. Their heightened sense of smell and ability to squeeze into small areas has allowed them to integrate all too comfortably in urban areas where they eat nearly anything.

Rats are social animals who live and travel in packs. This means if you see signs of one rat, you’re probably seeing signs of many rats. Packs are formed when a male and female pair branch off into an uninhabited space. It doesn’t take long for more rats to appear on the scene after they nest. Male rats move on to new partners quickly after they’ve mated and don’t contribute to the upbringing of newborns (bunch of deadbeats).

Though rats can live up to three years in the wild, the University of Michigan estimates that 91% to 97% of wild rats die after one year. The most common causes of death are predators, disease and harsh conditions. Adult males are especially susceptible to cancer and kidney disease.

How Can I Tell If I Have Rats?

The two most common types of rats in Michigan are the Norway rat or brown rat and the Roof rat or black rat. They are noisy and messy invaders. Signs that there may be rats living near you include:

  • Feces. Rats can produce up to 40 dark rice shaped droppings in a night. Look for them in basements and crawl spaces, especially along walls and corners.
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  • Oily rub marks and smudges. Rats have very poor eyesight and establish regular travel routes via touch to move around spaces safely. As they utilize these routes, the dirt and grease from their bodies eventually leave marks along surfaces as they rub up against. Check for these marks along walls in your basement.
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  • Bite marks. Rats need to constantly chew to keep their teeth from overgrowing. They’ll constantly gnaw on walls, floorboards, mesh, wiring… and pretty much anything else that’s soft enough to get a purchase on. This behavior is actually what makes rats dangerous, as they can start electrical fires if they chew through wiring until it sparks.
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  • Scratching and squeaking sounds. Rats climb and chew within walls. Their teeth make a grinding sound, and they squeak to communicate among themselves. Rats tend to hide in the day and resume activity at night, so you’ll probably hear them late.
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  • Nests. Rats build nests in lofts, attics or basements using foraged materials like insulation or cardboard. Check for these nests in secluded, cramped, and hidden places like beneath workbenches or shelving, corners, or even in ventilation systems

If you observe any of these signs, it’s time for a plan to remove the infestation before your rat population grows. Rats and mice in your home pose many risks.

How Do I Keep Rats from Living in My Home?

Rats are dirty animals that carry worms, ticks and diseases. They contaminate any food source they get into. Keeping rats out of your home or business means sealing your perimeter against invasion and preventing access to food sources. Here are a few preventive steps you can take:

  • Seal cracks and holes in your home’s exterior.
  • Cover chimneys, vents, and fans with mesh.
  • Seal windows and door frames.
  • Repair broken screens.
  • Secure trash and compost.
  • Clear leaf and brush piles in your yard.

Rats have an amplified olfactory system that can detect food smells through walls. They are very agile and can climb onto roofs and slip under doors and into cracks ¼” wide. Don’t underestimate a determined rat’s ability to breach your perimeter.

 

Hopefully with the right combination of rat control and prevention, you can reduce the average lifespan of rats in your home or business to zero. If you have rats inside already, it may be time to call in the professionals.

Call or contact us for a trained pest control technician to handle the dirty job of removing rats from your property and keeping them from coming back.

What Do Rats Eat?

Rats are not picky eaters, but they are smart. In the wild they eat fruits, nuts, grains, and insects. In urban settings, they’ll chow down on human food, pet food, and garbage, and spend their time hoarding as much food as they can while constantly seeking out new sources.

Though rats have near-unlimited appetites, they’re ironically careful around new foods. Because they lack the muscle structure to vomit, they’ll sample small amounts of new foods to be sure they won’t experience nausea after eating them. This means curious rats in your home or business will want to sample as much as possible before digging into your pantry. Here’s what you should know about what the rats around your home will want to eat, and how you can keep them from getting it.

What Can Rats Eat?

Rats are omnivores, meaning they eat both plant and animal-based foods. The type of foods they prefer can depend on the species of rat. The two most common rats in Michigan are the Norway Rat and the Black Rat.

The larger Norway rats prefer foods high in fat, protein, and sugar content. The smaller black rats (sometimes called roof rats) tend to be more interested in fruits and nuts. In the wild, both species are opportunistic and will eat fallen fruit, insects, and rotting animals.

If you are creating a bait station to trap rats, foods like bacon, peanut butter, chocolate, and dried fruit tend to work best. It’s important to bait the area around the trap and not just the trap. Rats are careful animals and will sample the food, let it gestate, and return to the source if they liked it.

What Can’t Rats Eat?

There are a few foods that rats don’t like or are toxic to them. These include:

  • Citrus fruits
  • Green bananas
  • Green potatoes
  • Rhubarb
  • Blue Cheese

Male rats are especially vulnerable to these and can experience kidney failure as a result.

Rats may not digest the wood, plaster, or electrical wiring in your home, but they certainly will chew on it. Rat’s teeth are constantly growing, sometimes 4 to 5 inches per year. This means that rats need to continually gnaw at whatever is on-hand to keep their bothersome biters from getting too long. In fact, rats gnaw so constantly that the bite marks they leave behind are one of the telltale signs of infestation. The worse your rat problem, the more evidence of gnawing damage you’ll find over time. Rats will even gnaw on electrical cables, which can make this behavior quite dangerous!

How Do Rats Find Food?

Rats are nocturnal scavengers who forage under cover of night and social creatures that travel in tight family packs.

Rats locate food through their exceptional sense of smell. They are genetically wired to pick up different smells via their olfactory epithelium. They also have a secondary organ that specializes in pheromone and chemical smells called the vomeronasal organ (VNO). The VNO is key to their communication, courtship, and parenting. The net result is that rats have a very sensitive sense of smell that allows them to locate food sources quickly. Their heightened pheromone sensitivity and smell senses mean they can even tell other rats what food is available and where to find it.

Rats outside your home or business can smell foods inside very easily through tiny cracks or even walls. Once they smell it, rats are very adept at literally following their noses to tiny access points where they can sneak inside.

How Do I Keep Rats Out of My Food?

Rat crawling through a crack to get into a house

Rats are unhealthy creatures that you don’t want in your home, let alone your food. According to the centers for disease control, rats and mice spread over 35 types of disease through their urine, feces, saliva, and bites.

An adult rat can crawl under a door or through a crack ¼” wide. Keeping rats out of your home or business means keeping all potential entrances sealed. This is especially important in late summer and fall when they seek new food sources and nesting grounds.

Keep rats out of your space by:

  • Sealing all cracks in your foundation and siding.
  • Weather stripping around doors and windows.
  • Moving firewood at least 20 feet from your home.
  • Trimming tree branches near your home.
  • Securing trash and compost.

A certified pest control technician can assess your property, point out high risk areas, and even do the work to secure you against rat infestation.

What Do I Do if I have Rats?

Killing rats is a tricky job. There are many different over-the-counter traps and poisons you can try, but rats are cunning and good at evading them. Disposing of dead rats isn’t a fun job either.

If you’re in Michigan and want guidance at any level, call or contact Griffin Pest Solutions today. Our certified staff are rat control experts. We can eliminate on-site invaders and rat-proof your home or business against future infestations to be certain your would-be rodent restaurant stays closed for good.

The Late Summer Rat Problem

Outside rats move inside when temperatures fall

We don’t like it any more than you do, but it’s time to face facts: summer is ending. Fall will be here before we know it, whether we’re ready or not. If you pay attention, you’ll notice the whole world preparing. Squirrels are busy gathering food, ants are reproducing, and bees are swarming.

Unfortunately, some of these fall preparations might be a problem for you. Rodents like mice and rats are gearing up for fall and winter like everything else. The first item on any rat’s fall preparation list is finding a warm place to stay. If you’re not careful, that place could be your home. The only way to keep rats out this late summer is to beat them at their own preparation game. Here’s what those rascally rodents are up to and how to counter them at every turn:

Looking for Food

Rodents have an incredibly keen sense of smell. Rats can interpret all kinds of information from different scents. This sense of smell helps guide rodents toward accessible food supplies. Rats can smell food through walls, even if it’s dry and stored. They can even smell how easily they’ll be able to access it. Rats literally follow their noses to sources of food, letting scents guide them to vulnerable access points.

Rats are looking for consistent sources of food they can access easily. They want to be able to sneak into boxes of food to chow down without anyone noticing. Make that as hard as possible. Store all your dry goods in airtight plastic containers. Clean up your dining and kitchen areas after every meal. Take your garbage out every night. If you can make your food hard for rats to get at, they’ll be much less interested in trying.

Rats start building nests in late summer and fall

Building Nests

Rodents aren’t picky about nesting material. They build small, tightly-packed clumps of various debris, which they rest and eat in. Rats build their nests of paper, insulation, stray fabric, and other trash. They gather these materials by dragging them into dark corners. Often, rats will rip paper or other objects to shreds to use as nesting material. Rodents also rear their young inside these nests, where they can stay safe and hidden.

Rats build their nests in dark, secluded, and warm areas. They want to be able to rest and forage for food without fear of being spotted. Consequently, if there’s a rat nest in your home, it’s probably in your basement, attic, or crawl space. Look for nests in corners or beneath furniture. Rats often build nests into damaged insulation, walls, or other nooks and crannies. Prevent rats from building nests by taking care to keep your basement clean and tidy.

Teething

Rat and mouse teeth never stop growing, so the rodents never stop teething. Rats and mice have to gnaw on something constantly to keep their teeth sharp and healthy. They’re not particularly picky about what they chew on. As long as it’s soft enough to bite down on safely, rats are all over it. Teething is a big reason why rats can be dangerous inside homes. When rats bite down on wiring, they could start dangerous electrical fires.

Rats gnaw on soft materials that they can access while they’re sneaking around. Usually, they’re chewing on boxes, storage materials, fabrics, or wiring. The best way to keep rats from damaging your stuff by chewing on it is to elevate it. Keep vulnerable stored materials in an elevated place where rats can’t reach it. Replace your cardboard boxes with hard plastic ones. Conceal and protect electrical wiring whenever possible, and consider affixing it to the wall.

Rats sneak into homes to find shelter in late summer and fall

Looking for Shelter

Rats have extremely keen perceptive senses developed over centuries of hard-won survival. One of the main reasons why they have these developed senses is so they can prepare for environmental changes early. When they start sensing a season’s change, they start looking for warm shelter right away. Rats use several senses to start searching for shelter. Their whiskers help them locate drafts and warm breezes, which they can follow into structures.

Rats use their heightened senses to find all kinds of access points. Once they find these access points, they can twist and squeeze their way in through surprisingly tiny openings. Rodents frequently squeeze through openings in door and window frames, utility lines, and small foundation cracks. Many rodents can climb surprisingly well to access openings, but most get in via access points close to the ground. Finding and blocking off these access points is the most important thing you can do to prevent rodent infestations.

Rodents are very, very good at preparing for cold weather. One of their most dastardly techniques is sneaking their way inside before we know to look for them. If they’re safely ensconced in your home before the temperatures even drop, they won’t have to worry about your fall defenses!

If rodents start this early, we have to start preventing them this year, too. Follow these tips starting now to keep rodents from infesting your home this fall. It’s not too early to start thinking about winter! If you do end up with rodents now or later, however, remember that you can always give Griffin a call. No matter how prepared your rodents are, we’ll prove we’re even more prepared.