Rats have plagued our existence for centuries. As long as there have been cities, there have been rats living in them. They have made themselves at home alongside us and adapt extremely well to living among people, in both rural and urban environments, because they are cunning and clever, and this means that it usually takes a lot of time and effort to rid a property of rats.

Most species of wildlife living in urban areas experience fluctuations in their population over the years but unfortunately, rat populations only appear to increase, and they never seem to reach carrying capacity. This makes them a constant problem for homeowners and wildlife control experts, and they are not always easy to locate and remove.

Rats Are Experts at Entering Buildings and Hiding in Dark Corners and Crevices

According to Corey Lewis, Skedaddle’s Director of Technical Operations, his team often has to look in every nook and cranny to find rats and identify their entry points. Fortunately, Skedaddle technicians are equipped with all kinds of cool gadgets to help them in their quest to rid buildings of rodents and one of the latest additions to the Skedaddle arsenal are thermal imaging cameras, and they have been extremely useful.

Corey and his team had a case where rats were a constant problem in a building, but hard as they searched, the team could not find the entry point. Thermal images revealed openings in the insulation of the rear exterior wall of the building and the technicians then knew that that was where they had to concentrate their search. But even when they returned to that part of the building knowing that there had to be an entry point somewhere, they still struggled to find it.

Fortunately, this team is dedicated to their job and refused to give up. There was no way that they were going to let rats beat them. Eventually, the entry point was located under the rear concrete patio step that had to be pried away from the building with a pickaxe. These are the lengths that our technicians often have to go to in order to identify and remove rats from a property. This case clearly shows how resourceful and elusive rats can be, but it also demonstrates why you need to call in a professional animal control team to help you solve your rodent problems. This is not a job for amateurs and rat removal requires extensive knowledge of these animals, their behavioral patterns and the risks associated with rat control and removal.

Specialized Equipment Aids Rat Removal but Can’t Replace Experienced Technicians

It is often extremely difficult to find animal entry points in a building, but a professional Skedaddle team knows how rats behave and where to look for them, but they also have the right equipment. Thermal imaging can play a crucial role in identifying rodent entry points and nesting sites. A thermal imaging camera needs no light to produce a clear image and this makes it ideal for spotting animals that operate at night and rely on the cover of darkness to remain undetected by the human eye. Any warm-blooded animal can be picked up by a thermal imaging camera even in complete darkness.

Thermal imaging cameras rely on body heat and thermal contrasts, rather than light and visible contrast, to create an image and this means they can see through walls and be used both night and day to identify wildlife living in your home. Those rats and mice sleeping quietly in the dark corners of your basement, under your floorboards or in the insulation of your attic during the day are no longer safe from the prying eyes of our expertly trained and well-equipped technicians.

But even with all the latest and greatest gadgets, nothing beats the experience of a well-trained technician. Once you realize how much training a qualified wildlife technician has received in order to be able to do their job properly, you will understand why it is so important to call in a professional to help with any wildlife removal scenario. As Corey explains, “the Skedaddle training program is extremely detail-oriented and rigorous. We train our technicians on everything from wildlife biology to seasonal behavioral patterns and housing construction.”

Property owners do not have the experience and knowledge to effectively deal with rodents and that is why most do it yourself rat removal fails dismally. “But even worse,” warns Corey, “you can expose yourself to all kinds of risks such as disease, cross-contamination, unnecessary structural damage to your property, or even a serious fall from your ladder or rooftop.” Rodents live in garbage dumps, sewers, and other unsavory places and this means that they spread bacteria and carry a multitude of unpleasant diseases, including salmonella, e. Coli and dysentery. None of which you want to expose yourself to. It really is just not worth putting your health and safety at risk to try and rid your property of rats yourself when you can simply call in an expert who is trained and equipped to do the job.

No Challenge is Too Big for Skedaddle

“No matter what animal, or what time of year, or what type of building, we can figure it out! From skunks under concrete pads and bat colonies in elevators shafts of high-rise buildings to squirrels nesting in chimneys, raccoons running around in drop ceilings, and even mice infesting restaurants, our technicians are up for the job.” That is Corey’s promise to Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control’s clients. The reason he can make that promise is because, as the largest wildlife control company in Canada, nobody has more experience solving people’s wildlife problems, than Skedaddle.

But even the best technicians can get the run around from a cunning rat every now and then, and rodent entry points are often found in the hardest to reach places that are difficult or dangerous to access. A mouse can fit through a gap that you can push a pencil through and is able to wriggle through a 1⁄4 inch hole. That’s the kind of entry point that Skedaddle technicians are trained to locate and repair. If you have a rodent invasion, you need to get a professional Property Assessment done by a qualified wildlife technician as soon as possible. A Skedaddle technician will not only identify all the active entry points but just as importantly, they will locate possible re-entry points around the rest of the building.

“Prevention is the key to everything when dealing with opportunistic wildlife,” says Corey,and with all their years of experience in the business, who better to advise you on rodent removal than Skedaddle Humane Animal Control. Skedaddle wildlife technicians are highly trained and well equipped to deal with all your wildlife control needs. From skunks under the porch and raccoons in the attic to rats in the basement and mice in the cupboards, Skedaddle will assess your property from top to bottom and draw up an appropriate wildlife control plan that will give you peace of mind and keep your property wildlife free from many years.