Rat Trapping Tools and Tricks

Have you ever seen that face people make when they smell something bad? That's the same look you get when you mention the subject of rat trapping. Anyone who has ever trapped rats instantly has visions of creeping through piles of insulation and removing putrid dead rats from snap traps. That's enough to make anyone put it off another day. But, if you've got rat problems, you know you've got no choice. Getting rid of rats becomes priority number one.

Normally when you think of trapping rats you will think of the standard Victor wooden snap trap. As a matter of fact, if you hire an animal removal company to remove your rats, usually you will see them setting loads of these same traps. These wooden snap traps not only do an adequate job of killing traps, they are the least expensive trap choice. Unlike the older version all metal snap traps, the newer Victor traps have a large yellow trigger pad which can actually be adjusted for sensitivity. Placing as large a number of traps as possible at one time is a favored strategy for knocking down a rat infestation. The idea is to kill a large amount of the rodents at once before they become trap shy and also to interrupt their breeding cycle. Rats breed fast! Due to it's low cost, the snap trap is best suited to this type of trapping strategy.

Nowadays there is a new take on the snap trap, such as the Tomcat, which are made of plastic and have a completely different method of arming the trap. These traps are easier to set than the wooden snap traps and simpler to remove dead rats from the trap. The drawback is their price is higher than the venerable wooden trap which can make a person think twice if doing a mass trapping as previously mentioned. It can be a viable alternative though and might be more attractive to some homeowners especially if they are attempting to catch one or two rodents at a time.

Next are the electronic rat zappers. This is the Cadillac of rat trapping. These zappers are a breeze to set, just drop some pet food or other bait inside and flip the switch on the trap. Not only is baiting easy, but removing dead rats is as easy as tilting the zapper over a container and allowing the rat to slide out into a container. There is no blood and gore and removal is simplicity itself. The downside is the price. Rat zappers can run from the mid thirties to the mid sixty dollar range. You could buy an awful lot of wooden snap traps with that kind of money. But it is undeniable that they are effective and very easy to use.

Since some people cannot stand the idea of killing anything, it is time to mention the live trap. Live traps such as the Havahart, will for sure catch rats. The drawback is you must transport the live rat a goodly distance from your house to release them or they will instinctively head back home. Also, please don't release them near other people's homes and cause them a new rat problem. Unfortunately, if dealing with a real rat infestation, live trapping is generally not feasible as it would cost quite a bit to purchase a large number of live traps to catch them quickly and reduce the population sufficiently. It might be an acceptable method if trying to remove one or two rats from the home though.

Finally, some people like to use glue boards. Glue boards will catch rats, but you'd best be prepared to remove a squirming, dying, and even screaming live rat stuck to a thick layer of glue. It is for those with strong stomachs and no qualms about dealing with suffering rodents. This is probably one of the least humane methods of trapping rats and also carries a higher risk of an injured rodent dragging himself off to die somewhere hard to find. Some will disagree with me, but my take is just don't use them.

Study the strengths and weaknesses of the various rat trapping devices and decide what would be best for your trapping project. It isn't fun getting rid of rats, but knowing what your options are will be vital to laying out a plan to eliminate these furry pests.