Opportunistic survivors, rats and mice have adapted to life in the human world, inhabiting our homes and feeding on our food and refuse. Adept climbers, strong swimmers and powerful jumpers, these nocturnal mammals have extremely flexible bodies. Mice can squeeze through a hole the size of a dime; rats, through quarter-size openings. Incessant gnawers, rodents can chew through practically anything except sheet metal, including drywall, wood, concrete and heavy plastic. They have even started attic fires by gnawing through electric wires.
Rodents contaminate food supplies with their urine and feces. They spread dangerous diseases and parasites, including Salmonella, rat-bite fever, infectious jaundice, murine typhus, Lyme disease, bubonic plague, tape worms, ticks and mites, Their pulverized feces cause deadly Hantavirus and trigger allergies and asthma. Rodents pose a dangerous health threat and evidence of their presence is a health code violation that can shut down your business, send customers fleeing, and earn you a hefty fine.
Rats And Mice Breed Prolifically
Light-brown to gray, mice weigh less than an ounce and are 2 to 3 inches long with furred tails. Rats are darker in color, 5 to 10 inches long not including their long, scaly tails and can weigh up to a pound. Both mice and rats live in polygamous groups. During their year-long lifespan, females may have 5 litters of 6 to 12 pups. Offspring reach maturity and start breeding at 3 months, allowing rodent populations to expand rapidly.
The Most Common Rodent Species In New York And New Jersey
Living indoors, the gray House Mouse is a constant nibbler, rarely venturing more than 10 feet from its nest. It transmits Salmonella.
The White-footed Mouse, or wood mouse, lives in marshes and wooded areas and is light-brown with a white belly and feet. It may invade summer cottages or garages when foraging. It transmits Hantavirus and carries Lyme disease-bearing ticks.
The most common urban rodent is the Norway Rat, or sewer rat. Gray to brown with a light belly, large colonies live in interconnecting burrows but may also nest on the lower floors of buildings, in sewers and garbage dumps. A transmitter of dangerous diseases, including Hantavirus and toxoplasmosis, it is considered a public health menace.
Found in port areas, the Roof Rat, or ship rat, is black with a lighter belly and exceptionally long tail. A sub-tropic species transported here by ships, this tree-dweller has adapted to live on the upper floors of buildings. It spreads bubonic plague.
Titan Environmental Works To “Lock Out” Rats And Mice
Sealing places where rodents are gaining entry is the most-effective way to eliminate a rodent infestation. Titan Environmental uses Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques in concert with rodenticides to eliminate rodents. When repairing holes, our technicians inject rodenticide into walls to deter reinfestation. We set traps and may use rodenticide bait blocks, if needed. In residential settings, only tamper-proof bait stations are used to ensure the safety of children and pets.