How Can Rats Damage Your Home?

If you’re anything like Winston Smith from the novel 1984 then rats will be your living nightmare. For most people, however, they are less an intense source of psychological anguish as they are a nuisance. Whether you find rats cute or monstrous there’s no denying that they can wreak havoc in the home, if left untreated.

One of the biggest problems that rats cause is that they chew through practically anything. They can easily chew through wires and this can cause serious problems, even resulting in fires. Did you know that rats can even chew through concrete? A large rat infestation can lead to your home developing structural damage.

Rats are very unsightly, whether you think they’re cute or not seeing a rat or two scurrying under the table is not a pleasant site. It’s not all about the way they look, rats have weak bladders and so will urinate and defecate around the home and this can even lead to the spread of disease.

Even when you start to remove a rat infestation, by using rat poison or other lethal methods, this can lead to further problems. Obviously, a decomposing body in your wall cavity will begin to produce foul smells attracting maggots and flies into living areas.

However, lethal methods such as poison and rat glue traps are the most effective means of reducing rat infestation as living rats multiply at a very fast rate and can even return to your property when humanely removed.