Apr 21, 2012 – Tired of the Same Old Bait?
QUESTION:
Two years ago I was called to control a severe rat infestation in a 7000 square feet hardware store. I strategically placed EZ-Klean boxes baited with Fastrac bait and within three weeks the rodents were under control. The establishment has another infestation but the problem is tougher. The rodents enter the bait boxes but refuse to feed on the Fastrac bait. What can I do? (I don't want to lose my contract)
ANSWER:
Perhaps something has changed between that previous rodent problem and the current one. The previous rats showed their willingness to eat the bait you provided, and if you feel that you achieved great success at that time there could be a couple of things going on now. It might be rats that survived the previous baiting program and are now bait shy, and the new problem might just be descendants of these leftovers from before. If we take the position that this is a problem of all new rats then either they just don't like the taste of the bait you are offering or, and more likely, there are better things to eat in this store. Hardware stores typically sell seeds, pet foods, and other delicious opportunities for rodents, and if this is the case these rats could be ignoring your bait because they already are full.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
Two years ago I was called to control a severe rat infestation in a 7000 square feet hardware store. I strategically placed EZ-Klean boxes baited with Fastrac bait and within three weeks the rodents were under control. The establishment has another infestation but the problem is tougher. The rodents enter the bait boxes but refuse to feed on the Fastrac bait. What can I do? (I don't want to lose my contract)
ANSWER:
Perhaps something has changed between that previous rodent problem and the current one. The previous rats showed their willingness to eat the bait you provided, and if you feel that you achieved great success at that time there could be a couple of things going on now. It might be rats that survived the previous baiting program and are now bait shy, and the new problem might just be descendants of these leftovers from before. If we take the position that this is a problem of all new rats then either they just don't like the taste of the bait you are offering or, and more likely, there are better things to eat in this store. Hardware stores typically sell seeds, pet foods, and other delicious opportunities for rodents, and if this is the case these rats could be ignoring your bait because they already are full.
Another question is on exclusion. Did you concentrate on exclusion on the previous infestation to do whatever was possible to keep future rats out? This would be a problem if the only effort was to kill the rats within the store, but to leave the entry opportunities in place for the next batch of rats to come along and investigate this structure. Hopefully you can perform a careful inspection of the exterior, identify all of the entry points for rats, and work with the customer to get these permanently closed. Even if you cannot close them all you can at least reduce the entry opportunities and allow your focus on the inside to be on those entry points that still exist.
Have you inspected the interior to identify the alternative foods available to the rats? Are you noticing damaged packages that show the rats are eating materials within the store? Are there water resources available inside that can be eliminated? It is a fact of life that rats do need to eat, so if they are not eating your bait then something else is available, and perhaps it can be isolated and taken away from the rodents. You might try changing the bait to a different product name, different formulation, etc., just to help overcome any bait shyness that might exist. You can put bait enhancers and attractants with the bait to encourage feeding.
It also would be good policy to try trapping the rats rather than killing them with bait indoors, and a barrage of MANY snap traps should be placed around the likely pathways of these rodents. Since they seem to be entering your stations you could use a station that accepts the snap traps, and this will certainly cull the herd of any bait-shy rats. If you set traps they should be inspected within the next day or two so you can quickly remove dead rodents before they start to draw flies or to stink, and to reset traps that did not catch the rat.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
