RAT FACTS
Where do rats live?
In homes/buildings they will live in roof spaces, wall cavities, cellars and under floorboards. In gardens, they will burrow into compost heaps, grassy banks or under sheds.

What do rats eat?
Their favourite foods are cereal products, although they will eat almost anything that humans eat. Most of the damage they do is by gnawing and ripping open packets. They will also contaminate food with urine, droppings and hairs.

Why must rats be controlled?
· Rats can transmit diseases to humans including Salmonellosis (food poisoning) and Weils disease.
· They cause damage to buildings and other structures due to gnawing and burrowing.
· Given a 100% survival rate, pyramid breeding from a pair of rats can result in excess of 3,500 off-spring in one year.

What are the signs of infestation?
· Sightings of live rats.
· Noises - may be heard when the rat is running under floorboards, inside the roof space or climbing up and down the cavity wall.
· Droppings - common rat droppings can be 12mm long, taper at both ends and are usually black in colour.
· Gnawing - rats gnaw regularly, even on non-food material such as electrical

wiring and rubber pipes, in order to wear down their front teeth.
· Runs - rats follow the same routes when travelling and leave trails through the grass and low vegetation.
· Smears - dark grey marks left on surfaces by repeated contact with rat fur.
· Burrows - entrance holes 70 - 120 mm in diameter in grassy banks, under tree roots, at the edge of paving or drain cover surrounds.
· Nests - sometimes found indoors, in lofts or under floorboards.

TRAPPING TIPS
· Rats are extremely shy and suspicious, therefore trapping a rat requires a little human ingenuity.

· Foreign objects in their natural environment, whether they be in the forest or the city, they will avoid for up to a week. It is thought that smell, (not sight as rats have very poor vision) is their biggest concern with new objects in their environment.

· In most cases if a rat or rats are proving difficult to catch, it is preferable to set several traps within a small area, thus creating a false sense that the trap is a part of the natural environment. By leaving the Nooski safety tunnel in their natural environment permanently, they will become comfortable with the trap. Rats acclimatising to the addition of the trigger housing once set, should not take long.

· If a rat is proving difficult to catch, try to remove it's food source and set the trap with the same food e.g. if a rat is into grass seed in the garage, then put it out of reach and set the trap with seed. Don't put teaser bait round the trap as there is no evidence in tests that this increases your catch. Rats will simply eat the teaser bait and not enter the trap.

· Although a rat will eat practically anything, they prefer meat, fish & cereal. If the food is disagreeable, they develop food shyness. If acceptable, they eat their fill at one sitting and return time after time. Chocolate, bananas, peanut butter, cheese, dog biscuits, grain, milk powder and fish meal, all work successfully in the Nooski Trap System. A recent study in the UK also indicated that rats have developed a taste for curry and other strongly flavoured foods.

· It is recommended not to touch the trap once set for at least a week. If you have no luck, try different bait, but don't move the trap.

· It is recommended to replace the Nooski ring every four weeks, although will still be effective for up to eight weeks and more.

· Try to set the trap at right angles against a wall, as rats typically travel along walls as opposed to crossing open rooms. This also applies to the outside of buildings.

Chocolate, bananas, peanut butter, cheese, dog biscuits, grain, milk powder and fish meal, all work successfully in the Nooski Trap System.

A recent study in the UK also indicated that rats have developed a taste for curry and other strongly flavoured foods.

A few tips to
help you get
rid of your unwanted
guests

© COLIN BRUCE DESIGN 2008