Rat Trapping and Removal in Louisville
Sometimes you just need the rats out. You heard one in the kitchen wall last night, the dog won't leave the basement door alone, or there's a rat in the garage you'd like gone before the kids get home. Trapping is the quickest way to bring numbers down, and it's how most rat jobs start.
Trapping alone rarely ends it, though. Louisville rats come in from somewhere, and if that hole stays open, new ones walk in. Plan on pairing the trapping with rat proofing once things quiet down.
Where traps go and why
Rats hug walls. They run along the edge of the basement floor, along the top of the foundation, behind the furnace and under the deck boards. Traps work best set right on those runways, at a right angle to the wall, with the trigger toward the wall. A tech reads the grease marks and droppings to pick spots. In a lot of older Louisville basements that means behind the water heater, along the stone or block wall under the kitchen, and next to the floor drain.
In garages they go behind the chest freezer, under the workbench and along the wall that faces the alley. Outside, they go in locked boxes so a cat, a squirrel or a curious kid can't get hurt.
- Snap traps sized for rats, not the little mouse traps
- Covered trap boxes outside and anywhere pets can reach
- Pre-baiting with traps unset for a night or two, since rats shy away from new things
- Regular checks so nothing sits in a trap for days
The urgent calls
Some calls can't wait for a convenient week: a rat loose in the living area, one stuck in a window well, one in the toilet (it happens), or a tenant who just found droppings in a rental kitchen. Tell us that on the call. We can't promise a time, since scheduling comes from the provider, but we'll pass along that it's urgent so they can tell you honestly when they can get there.
Until then, close the door to that room, put a towel along the bottom gap and keep pets out. Don't try to corner a rat with a broom. A cornered rat will bite.
Pickup and follow-up
Trapped rats get bagged and removed, and traps get reset or moved. Most companies come back on a schedule for the first couple of weeks, then spread visits out as catches drop. When nothing has been caught for a while and no fresh droppings show up, it's time to seal. If you find a smell before that, it may be a rat that died somewhere out of reach. That's covered on dead rat removal.
If the activity is mostly outside, around a shed, a deck or the alley, see rats in the yard. If they're under the house, see crawl space and basement rats.
Common questions
Can I just set traps myself?
You can. Use rat-sized snap traps, set them along walls where you see droppings, and keep them away from pets and children. If you're still catching rats after a couple of weeks, they're getting in somewhere and you need the holes found.
Do you use glue boards?
We don't do the work, the provider does. Many companies avoid glue boards for rats. Ask what they plan to use if it matters to you.
Who takes the dead rats away?
Usually the technician removes what's in the traps on each visit. Ask on the first visit how they handle it between checks.
Serving Old Louisville, The Highlands, Germantown, Crescent Hill and Clifton, St. Matthews, Jeffersontown, Middletown, Prospect, Shively, Okolona, Pleasure Ridge Park and Valley Station.