What Are The Most Common 4 Rat Species in the UK?
Though they seem harmless, rats are well known for damaging property and carrying diseases.
Understanding the most common rat species in the UK will be helpful in dealing with them and also in knowing when to use a qualified rat removal company.
Whether you have been unlucky enough to come across one or you are worried about the likelihood of an infestation, this guide will help. So, without further ado, let’s explore the common rat types in the UK so you learn how to control and prevent them effectively.
The Norway Rat
The Norway Rat or Brown Rat species is rather common and shows amazing adaptation skills to urban, suburban, and rural environments. They possess heavy bodies coated in greyish-brown hair, which makes them larger than black rats.
Brown rats thrive in fields, sewers, and attics since they are highly flexible. In addition, they are not picky eaters. They will ferociously devour leftovers from trash cans.
Their flexibility makes them among the most common and successful rat species in the United Kingdom. Not to mention, their ability to multiply can turn into an infestation very quickly.
Therefore, calling in a rat removal company is crucial at the first sign of them. A small sighting can quickly grow into a major infestation. Not to mention, their sharp teeth and chewing patterns can seriously damage or even destroy houses and other structures.
In addition to damaging property, brown rats carry diseases such as leptospirosis that can be transmitted to humans. Thus, they can be a health hazard, not only causing harm to your property but to your family as well.
The Black Rat
The Black Rat, also known as a ship rat, is far less common than the brown rat in the UK. The black rat is occasionally known as the ship rat. Though they are endangered now, in the past, they led to the bubonic plague.
The black rat is smaller than the robust brown rat and has a more slender body with a tail usually longer than its head and body taken together.
In the present day and age, when they enter homes, they wreak havoc since they are excellent climbers who nest in high places like rafters or attics.
Black rats, like their brown counterparts, are well-known for chewing through wood, wire, and even pipes in your property.
Not to mention, they can spread diseases, which emphasises the importance of a quick response by a rat removal company in the case of an infestation.
Rats in Urban Areas
Brown rats find metropolitan environments to be highly enticing. From food waste to even pet food left out overnight, the abundance of food supplies provides these rats an ideal habitat.
Rodents are nocturnal animals, and it is more typical to find signs of their presence than to find signs of rodents.
Look for bite marks, droppings, grease stains on skirting boards, and even footprints in dusty places.
Living in a city makes rat-proofing your property absolutely crucial. Thus, ensure the food is maintained safely, waste is disposed of in sealed containers, and your property does not have basic points of access.
Rats’ tiny, slender bodies make them skilled at squeezing through tiny cracks and crevices. Sealing any cracks or holes in your wall or roof is vital. If rats have already established themselves on your property, immediately contact a rat removal firm.
The pest control professionals know how to deal with urban rat infestations, which guarantees quick and safe resolution of the problem.
Rural Rats
Cities, as well as rural areas, attract rats. Particularly in the harvest seasons, farms, barns, and fields provide rats with lots of food and cover.
As the surroundings are more suited for breeding and nesting, rural environments sometimes include higher rat populations than metropolitan ones.
The main species in these regions are brown rats who burrow into the earth or hide in haystacks and agricultural buildings, destroying rural crops, feedstocks, and machinery.
Rats can endanger cattle since they can transmit diseases that affect both people and animals.
Rural areas and their farmers need to be well-prepared so that an infestation does not emerge.
This could include laying traps or applying deterrents, but the best approach to properly handle more severe infestations is to call a rat removal company.
The Importance of Professional Rat Removal Services
Although it could be tempting to handle a rat problem on your own, it is not always the ideal strategy. Rats are intelligent and resourceful, and they are often more difficult to eliminate.
Poison and traps can be useful, but without correct placement or expertise, you can find yourself caught in a never-ending cycle of rat trapping without ever fixing the main problem.
This is where the help of professional rat removal services becomes vitally important.
Professional exterminators have the tools, knowledge and expertise to handle most infestations. Some companies can provide a more holistic approach where they merely trap rats and then safely release them away from your property.
They will first look over your property, noting places of entrance and nesting areas.
After the initial assessment, they will use a customised strategy combining traps and bait to exterminate the rats.
Once the infestation is under control, they will also offer guidance on how to stop more problems, such as sealing off access points and feeding sources.
Employing a professional pest control service also helps you to avoid dealing with the unpleasant aspects of rat removal, namely the cleanup.
All in all, rats can be dangerous to your health since they leave behind droppings, urine, and occasionally carcasses.
Therefore, rat removal services guarantee that all traces of the infestation are effectively eliminated. In return, it will lower the risk of contamination and future infestations.
Conclusion
Whether brown or black, rats are tenacious animals that can complicate life in any place. Their fast breeding rate and skill at locating food and cover in the most unusual locations make them a challenge for both enterprises and homes.
Therefore, do not wait for the issue to get worse if you have noticed indications of rats in your home. Act now and rest easy knowing that professionals will soon make your rat problem disappear for good.
