Archive for the ‘Rodents’ Category

I visited a client last week who had a serious Rat problem. The norway rats were burrowing under her foundation. Every time she filled a hole a new burrow appeared. It turns out that her compost pile was about five feet from her house, and she was a very active composter.

This environmentally concious lady had a large family and added to the organic pile daily. However, she turned the pile infrequently and it was resting on bare ground. The rats must have thought they had found Heaven. The rats were actually aerating the pile by burrowing through it.

It is wonderful to be Green and Earth friendly, but you have to do it right. There has to be a bottom on the pile that offers drainage and keeps the rodents out. Loosley placed bricks at the base of the pile work well. Small piles and plastic composting bins need to have quarter inch mesh sealing the underside. You can keep a natural balance in the pile by adding red worms and turning the pile regularly.

Remember, rats will dig under any solid object (your foundation) to hide excess food. A compost pile offers a great deal of excess food.

Nature First Pest Control is your natural Green choice when looking for organic residential and commercial Pest Controls for Ants, Rodents, Wasps, Hornets, Spiders, Grain Beetles, Bats, and more. We need no ‘long term contracts’ to be the elimination experts. Serving, Portland, Beaverton, Tualatin, Tigard, Sherwood, Wilsonville, Lake Oswego, West Linn, Milwaukie, Gresham, Hillsboro, Canby, Oregon City, Forrest Grove, Portland, and all of Washington and Multnomah counties

So, you have visitors in your attic, and it sounds like they are settling in for a long stay. Perhaps they are squirrels and perhaps not. Call Nature First Pest Control to find out exactly what is in your attic. If you have squirrels, they can do a considerable amount of damage to the insulation, wall board and wireing.

In Beaverton, Tualatin, Tigard, and the greater Portland Metro area, there has been an alien invasion of the Eastern Fox squirrel. Nature First Pest Control first noticed a change in the squirrel population in the residential areas about 15 years ago. I had admired the beautiful large grey squirrels here and noted how they seemed to prefer the conifers to the deciduous trees in the Beaverton, Tualatin,Tigard area. Then my technicians at Nature First Pest Control told me that they noticed that the squirrels had changed from silver to a fox brown color and had significantly changed their behavior patterns.

After talking with local wildlife officials and some animal rescue folks, the facts have emerged.

Indeed, the Portland area Native squirrel population has been invaded and in many cases taken over by the Eastern Fox Squirrel. These invaders have not only taken over this territory but have managed to inbreed with the Native Grey Squirrels. This has resulted in a dramatic extermination of the native Grey Squirrel populations.

The Fox squirrels (not the Native Greys) have a nasty habit of girdling whole sections of Maples and Oaks. They kill whole sections of trees to create a mass of dead leaves from which to make nests. I have 3 severely damaged trees in my yard in Beaverton, demonstrating the effects these alien invaders have on our local environment

These invaders also chew holes in your roof valleys and overlap areas to gain entrance to your attic. Call Nature First Pest Control if you hear noises in your attic.

What are they?

We trapped these animals under a house recently. We had trapped nine at final count. Most home owners and a lot of beginning techs misidentify these rodents. You can not just throw some bait around and hope to eliminate these comensual (living with humans) rodents.

They look like mice. They are not adult mice, they are very young Norway Rats. Their mother has just weaned them by abandoning them. At this time in their life they are very vulnerable. They are also very stupid and easy to trap. The average Norway rat lives about a year in the wild, and up to 4 or5 years in captivity. The greatest danger to these young  rats is the adult male rat. The mature males hunt the young just like male bears do in the wild. In fact, rats are very closley related to the bear family. 

Nature First Pest Control

Your natural choice when looking for organic green residential and commercial Pest Controls for Ants, Rodents, Wasps, Hornets, Spiders, Grain Beetles, Bats, and more. We need no ‘long term contracts’ to be the elimination experts. Serving Portland, Beaverton, Tualatin, Tigard, Sherwood, Wilsonville, Lake Oswego, West Linn, Milwaukie, Gresham, Hillsboro, Canby, Oregon City Forrest Grove, Portland, and all of Washington and Multnoma counties.

Telephone

 503-579-3680 

Nature First Pest Control’s founder points out the obvious.

This rat family not only has an unending supply of bird seed. They have so much of it that they have burrowed down below the foundation of the house. Now it is up to us to catch the whole rat family that is tearing up the insulation under the house and also causing quite a stink. These rats were also chewing on the wireing of the house and could have easily caused a house fire.

This family had a couple of small dogs who apparently tangled with ‘Big Momma Rat’. After their encounter, they would stay well away from this area.

Nature First Pest Control

Your natural choice when looking for organic, green residential and commercial Pest Controls for Ants, Rodents, Wasps, Hornets, Spiders, Grain Beetles, Bats, and more. We need no ‘long term contracts’ to be the elimination experts. Serving Portland, Beaverton, Tualatin, Tigard, Sherwood, Wilsonville, Lake Oswego, West Linn, Milwaukie, Gresham, Hillsboro, Canby, Oregon City Forrest Grove, Portland, and all of Washington and Multnoma counties.

Telephone

503-579-3680

Here in the Pacific N.W., I run into a lot of Deer Mouse invasions. The typical scenario is a bird feeder that is close to the house, and the house is near some natural area. There is a lot of misinformation  about this species on the net. In this environment they are year around invaders of structures. They are great climbers and often migrate into attics. They love to chew on phone and Internet cabling and usually leave the power lines alone. This is a good thing. Their signs are distinctive to an experienced professional. It is imperative that the person treating the structure know which species is present.  Deer mice require a different, knowledgeable approach to controlling the infestation.

Call 503-579-3680  (ask for Randy)

Why was this rodent hole left open?  Rodents will come. Look at your foundation vent screens. This opening is more than big enough for Rats. Nature First Pest Control technicians see these openings every day. This is the usual situation in Beaverton,Tualatin,Tigard and the greater Portland Metro area. Look at your foundation vents.

Nature First Pest Pest Control is your natural, organic, Green practices residential and commercial Ant, Rodent, Wasp, Hornet, Grain Beetle, Bats, and more. Pest Control and elimination experts. Serving Portland, Beaverton,Tualatin, Tigard,and the surrounding areas

Nature First Pest Control

Telephone
503-579-3680

If you are hearing noises in your ceiling or upper walls, look for holes like this.

Your natural organic residential and commercial Ant, Rodent, Wasp, Hornet, Grain Beetle, Bats, and more. Pest Control and elimination experts. Serving Portland Oregon and the surrounding areas.

Nature First Pest Control

Telephone
503-579-3680