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Rat Droppings – How to Identify and Clean Rat Poop

Every time you find something strange in the corners of your cupboard or on your flooring, your heart sinks. We know the feeling.

Keep your cool, though. Recognising and resolving the issue of finding rat droppings early on can save you a lot of trouble along the road.

It’s essential to understand the reality of the situation. Knowing how to handle it effectively is crucial, particularly as rat infestations in the UK continue to escalate.

Let’s dive into what signs to watch out for and how to tackle the rodent cleanup safely.

What Do Rat Droppings Look Like?

Rat excrement can occasionally be confused with other forms of insect faeces. 

Identifying them will help you understand what kind of rodent you are dealing with and how to handle the situation.

Rat faeces are about 9–14mm in length and spindle-shaped, tapering at the ends. Imagine a little dark grain of rice. Generally speaking, they are larger than mouse droppings, which can be half the size.

Fresh rat excrement is dark and lustrous, but as it ages, it turns grey and crumbly. This hue shift will enable you to confirm the rats’ recent presence.

Rats usually leave 40 to 50 droppings every day. Multiple droppings, especially in one area, indicate that you have a rodent problem.

Common locations for rat droppings are kitchens, basements, attics, and beneath appliances like stoves and refrigerators. Rats basically won’t be far off anywhere where there is food or warmth.

Understanding how to separate rat excrement from that of other pests will help you decide on appropriate control strategies. 

Smaller droppings, for example, could indicate that you are dealing with mice, which calls for alternative methods of eradication.

The Dangers of Rat Droppings

Rat droppings not only smell bad but can seriously compromise the health of your family and yourself. 

This is why rat control is so important, particularly in cities where a rapid increase in rat population is probable.

Rats can transmit leptospirosis, a bacterial illness with flu-like symptoms. It can be contracted by touching rat urine. Having this disease can cause renal damage and liver failure.

Rats may spread salmonella through their excrement, contaminating both surfaces and food. Food or dishes that have come into touch with rat droppings could lead to serious stomach issues.

Hantavirus can be contracted from breathing dust contaminated with rat droppings. Under extreme conditions, hantavirus can kill a person and create respiratory difficulties.

Any droppings you come across should be handled carefully, even dry ones.

How to Clean Rat Droppings Safely

Once you find rat droppings, you have to clean them. It’s more than just grabbing a brush and sweeping it up. 

You need to protect both your home and yourself from potential health risks. Here is how you can safely handle the situation.

Gather Your Supplies

You will need the proper tools before you begin:

  • Gloves. Never use bare hands to clean rat droppings.
  • Mask. Wearing an N95 respirator helps you protect yourself from breathing in any dust or airborne particles.
  • A strong household disinfectant. To kill any germs or viruses, use a disinfectant or a mix of bleach and water (one part bleach to ten parts water).

Ventilate the Area

Open windows and doors to guarantee good ventilation in the room. Steer clear of powerful airflows that can spread droppings’ particles around your house.

Soak the Droppings

Safe removal mostly depends on reducing the dust particles of the droppings. Completely soak the droppings by spraying a disinfecting solution. Let it sit for a minimum of five minutes to guarantee its effectiveness.

Clean Up

Pick up the droppings using a paper towel once they have been soaked. Don’t sweep or hoover the rat droppings, as this can cause dangerous particles to fly.

Disinfect Again

Once the droppings have been removed, Sanitise the area again with the disinfectant solution. If the droppings were discovered in a kitchen or near food, make sure all surrounding surfaces are cleaned.

Dispose of Waste Safely

After you’ve finished cleaning and sealing the droppings along with your used cleaning gear into a plastic bag, make sure to dispose of them in an outdoor trash bin.

Furthermore, even though gloves offer a layer of protection, always ensure you thoroughly clean your hands using soap and water when you’re done.

When to Call a Professional for Rat Control

Finding and cleaning rat droppings is just the tip of the iceberg.

It may be time to bring in an experienced firm if you find a large amount of droppings, hear scratching in your walls, or see gnawed food packaging. 

Rat control specialists can evaluate the degree of the infestation and provide solutions that are catered to your circumstances.

These services include finding and securing any possible entry points. Rats can squeeze through openings as small as 15mm. Keeping rats out of your home depends on finding and closing these access points.

Even though you can catch a stray rat with DIY traps, pest control experts can place bait and traps in strategic locations for the best effect.

To guarantee that rats don’t return, concentrate on fortifying your home. Pest control involves more than just getting rid of the rats you have now. It’s also about preventing their return.

Preventing Future Infestations

Once you have dealt with the droppings and any live rats, simple access to food, water, and cover attracts rats. Reducing the appeal of your house can help keep the pests out.

You can do that by storing food in sealed containers and never leaving leftovers or crumbs out overnight.

Rats especially like to hide among stacks of paper, cardboard, or other trash. Maintaining a neat home will help limit the available hiding places.

Check your house for any cracks or gaps, especially around windows, doors, and pipes. If present, make sure to fill them with caulk or steel wool.

Lastly, frequently cleaning your house helps eliminate any possible food sources, particularly in areas used for food storage or preparation.

Conclusion

By noticing signs of a rodent invasion early and taking decisive action, you can keep your home and family safe.

While a couple of droppings can spark the start of a DIY clean-up mission, remember that a full-blown infestation could call for some expert backup.

Either way, don’t fret, and rat-proof your house for a peaceful, worryless sleep. It is definitely worth the cost.

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