Factors include everything from open compost piles and bird feeders to displacement by development
Sandor Gyarmati / Delta Optimist
APRIL 12, 2019 08:05 AM
rats
Residents can undertake a number of measures to prevent rats from seeking shelter inside their homes.
The sight or sound of them scurrying about, especially inside homes, is enough to send a shiver down most people’s spines.
Wherever you have people, there are always going to be rats, sometimes lots of them, and here in Delta there seems to be more lately.
That’s what South Delta-based Go Green Pest Control owner Randy Bilesky has observed over the past few years, saying factors such as climate change and rodents being displaced due to development are resulting in a sharp increase in his call volumes.
“From my perspective, it’s getting worse every year. Hotter, drier summers are good for the rodents, for the rats, and the biggest thing I’ve found is a lot of land has been cleared and all the raptors have taken off. You see a lot of them at the dump area now, while rats are heading into Ladner and Tsawwassen, into the city,” said Bilesky.
He said he did about 250 rat jobs in the area last year.
“Rats are nocturnal, so they are typically going into the house or underneath at nighttime and that’s when people hear that scurrying, that scratching noise. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Norway rat or roof rat, they all like being in the roof because it’s got insulation, it’s warm and it’s secure.”
“If your car sits in the same place for days, it’s a perfect place for them to go and be undisturbed,” he said. “A truck that we had in recently even had a live rat in it.”
The problem has reportedly been so pronounced in the City of Vancouver that the Vancouver Rat Project was initiated.
Bilesky has a lengthy checklist of what homeowners can do to discourage rats, which can not only climb but have an uncanny ability of squeezing into small spaces, from making their way inside. He suggests pruning trees or shrubs near the side of homes as branches can act as an escalator for rats that love attics and crawlspaces.
bilesky
Go Green Pest Control owner Randy Bilesky said he did about 250 rat jobs in the area last year. – photo by Sandor Gyarmati
Also, the disease-carrying rodents can scale brick chimneys, while gaps between soffits and rooflines can be an open invitation as well.
On the ground level, galvanized mesh, as long as it’s the proper size, can be effective around the foundation. Leaving piles of wood, especially right next to a house, and having bird feeders can also attract the unwanted pests.
A few of the other recommendations when it comes to rats include storing compost kitchen waste only in sturdy, closed bins and not putting meat scraps or bones in the bins, storing outdoor garbage in tightly-closed containers, making sure that bird feeders are away from buildings and seeds don’t spill on the ground, and repairing any leaky plumbing.
https://gogreenpestcontrol.ca/conditions-are-r…s-in-south-delta/
gogreenpestcontrol.ca insectandrodentexterminators.com Delta Ladner Tsawwassen B.C. Randy Bilesky BsF CPA RPF
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/conditions-ripe-rats-south-delta-randy-bilesky/?published=t