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Norway Rat

Colour: Brown and grey
Size: 30cm

Norway rats can be extremely destructive as they can chew through almost anything, including steel and concrete. Once inside, they can destroy your food stores and pose risks to your wiring and insulation. Rats may also bite humans and they carry disease, parasites, and bacteria. Move quickly to when dealing with an infestation of Norway rats as they can breed quickly.

Norway Rat Habitat

Normally Norway rats live near or at ground level. It nests and burrows in the ground, under buildings, in rubbish and rubble and under lumber and litter of various types. Dumps and sewers are major habitats.

Norway Rat Life Cycle

The brown rat can breed throughout the year if conditions are suitable, with a female producing up to five litters a year. The gestation period is only 21 days, and litters can number up to 14, although seven is common. They reach sexual maturity in about five weeks. Under ideal conditions (for the rat), this means that the population of females could increase by a factor of three and a half (half a litter of 7) in 8 weeks (5 weeks for sexual maturity and 3 weeks of gestation), corresponding to a population growing by a factor of 10 in just 15 weeks. As a result, the population can grow from 2 to 15 000 in a year. The maximum life span is three years, although most barely manage one.

Norway Rat Prevention

It is best to keep food in metal or glass containers with tight fitting lids. Clean inside the house and around the garden – less clutter means less places to hide. Put outdoor garbage bags in metal garbage cans with securely fitted lids to stop them feeding from contents. Clean up pet food and bird seed debris, and store pet food in robust containers with fitted lids – preferably above ground level. Keep gardens free from debris and keep clutter to a minimum. If you have a compost heap don’t include organic food waste, as this will attract them. Do not feed birds, the fallen seed attracts rodents of all kinds.

Rat Service Prep Guide

There are many things that should be done to prepare for a norway rat treatment. For the full list of ways to make your rat treatment successful, view our Rat Service Preparation Guide.

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