Oh Rats!

By Nathan Head

As an exterminator I have learned a thing or two about rats. One, people hate them; two, they want them gone. In writing this article I wanted to convey my personal experience as someone who has been dealing with these guys for a long time. My first time running into a rat was when I was a kid. I can remember walking down the stairs into my basement to deliver a load of dirty clothes to the hamper next to the washer. As I walked along the floor and over the towels that were ready to be loaded into the washer I remember the sinking feeling I had when my bare foot stepped on something fuzzy and warm and made a screech. “MOM! I stepped on something!” I screamed. It was my mom who first introduced me to pest control when she explained to me that it was a rat. To this day I still can remember almost everything about that encounter from the smell of the basement to the time of day it happened. I am almost sure that you can relate if you have any experience close to mine. I have felt the stress, fear and hatred towards rats from the clients. Now it’s my profession to deal with these unwanted house guests.

Here are some simple thoughts about rats that I would like to share with you.

With rats its nothing personal.
They are not trying to ruin your life or make you look bad, they are opportunists and will move in where they can.
With rats, one is enough.
Due to their high rate of breeding, dealing with an infestation early may save you lots $$$ in the long run.
With rats you don’t have to be rich or poor to have them.
It’s not a rich or poor related issue, it’s a location to rats issue. If they are in your neighborhood then you may have to deal with them.
With rats it’s a food and shelter issue.

Thank you for reading.

— Your friend in the Pest Control world