Roof Rat & Mouse Control in McDonough, GA

Rodents in your McDonough home

Roof rats are climbers. They're slim, dark and active only at night, and they get into houses from above. On the older streets around McDonough's courthouse square they have plenty of ways up: old hardwood limbs over the roof, utility lines, and the rough face of an old brick wall, which a rat can climb without help from any tree. Once on top they use the openings an aging building has: mortar gaps at the top of a wall, a vent pipe collar that has cracked, loose flashing at a chimney.

The newer subdivisions around town have their own entries. A rat or mouse can use the gap where a cable or AC line goes through the wall, a crawlspace ground vent with a torn screen, the corners of a garage door, or a construction gap at the roofline. Because rodents climb siding and brick, trimming trees back helps but doesn't solve it; the openings themselves have to be shut.

Night noise or morning noise

The time of day is the quickest way to tell who's in the house. Rats and mice are active at night, so scratching and scurrying after dark points to them. Squirrels are early-morning and late-afternoon animals. Droppings settle it: rat droppings are larger and spindle-shaped, mouse droppings are small like rice grains, and both turn up along walls, on attic boards and in the back of cabinets.

Up the brick and in at the top

On the older buildings near the square, rats don't need a tree. A weathered brick wall gives them plenty of grip, and the top of the wall, where it meets the roof or a parapet, is often the weakest spot on the building. Old mortar, rotted trim and lifted flashing all leave gaps a rat can slip through. That's why the inspection on an older McDonough home starts at the roofline and works down, instead of starting at the ground.

Crawlspaces, ground vents and mice

Many central Georgia homes are built over crawlspaces, and that's true of plenty of houses around McDonough, old and new. A crawlspace is dry, sheltered and close to the kitchen plumbing, which is why mice love it. They get in through a damaged ground vent screen, gaps around pipes, or a door or access panel that doesn't close tightly. From there they move up into wall cavities and cabinets.

Typhus, droppings and contamination

Rats and mice leave urine and droppings wherever they travel: in insulation, along ductwork, and in pantry food. In the Southeast, roof rats are associated with murine (flea-borne) typhus, spread by the fleas they carry. They also chew wiring, stored boxes and insulation. Part of a proper job is cleaning up the worst-soiled areas, not just catching the animals.

Why bait alone fails

Bait does nothing about the gap the rodents came through, so new ones keep arriving. It also tends to backfire: a poisoned rat often dies inside a wall or under a floor where nobody can reach it, and the smell lasts for weeks. Sealing is the part that solves the problem; trapping clears out the ones already inside.

The order of the work

A McDonough rodent job goes in a set order. First, the pro finds every opening, from the roofline down to the crawlspace. Then each one is closed with metal: hardware cloth, steel wool backed with sealant, metal flashing and vent guards. Traps go in to catch the rodents left inside, and they're checked until activity stops. How long it takes depends on how many rodents there are; the technician should be able to give you an estimate up front.