Rat Control in Germantown, Louisville

Germantown has the largest collection of shotgun houses in Louisville. German immigrants settled it in the 1870s, and most of the shotguns went up in the 1890s. The houses are narrow and long, close together, many with additions on the back and alleys running behind the lots.

The neighborhood sits along the South Fork of Beargrass Creek. The creek flooded so often it once earned the area the nickname Frogtown, and it now runs in a deep concrete channel. Rats like that channel.

Shotgun houses and rats

A shotgun house has a lot of foundation for its size, and most have been added onto at the back. The seam where the addition meets the original house is a common rat entry. So is the space under the front porch, the crawl space or shallow basement, and old pipe holes under the kitchen. Our guide on rats in older Louisville homes goes through the usual spots.

Because the houses are so close, rats move easily from yard to yard. If you trap and seal while the house next door stays open, you may keep seeing them. Talking to neighbors helps.

The creek, the alleys and the bars

Between the creek channel, the alleys and the bars and restaurants that have opened around Germantown and Schnitzelburg, there's food and cover close by. Watch for burrows under sheds and along the alley fence, keep the cart lid shut, and pick up after the dog. Yard and alley rats and rat proofing cover the rest.

Around Germantown: Goss Avenue · Schnitzelburg · Paristown · South Fork of Beargrass Creek (ZIP 40204, 40217)

Also serving Old Louisville, The Highlands, Crescent Hill and Clifton, St. Matthews, Jeffersontown, Middletown, Prospect, Shively, Okolona, Pleasure Ridge Park and Valley Station.