Rodent control in Grain Stores- Part 2 of 3

Monday 22nd March 2021

The old solution-

For farmers, the pest problems they face can seem simple.

I have a pest eating the crops growing in my fields. I do some spraying. The pest disappears (well… sometimes)

Rats can be inconveniently persistent when it comes to responding to treatment.

So, you call in the pest controller. He doesn’t cost much and can put some poison down. Unfortunately, that won’t solve the problem entirely. Rats being neophobic (not liking new things) if you offer them new food when they are already eating your wheat, it is likely they will be completely uninterested. Juvenile rats and the weaker male rats that are sent to the edge of the colony (I like to call them the skulkers) will be the ones taking this bait, but the core of the problem will remain.

As my father used to say, “if they get inside, you have lost the battle.” Wise chap.

To stop the battle becoming a war we need another solution.

The new solution-

So…. What is the solution? Keep them outside! I told you, you wouldn’t like it.

The availability of proofing equipment for buildings has improved massively. Take the following table as an example

There are so many ways to keep rats out now. The old ways of just putting poison down and hoping for the best doesn’t really cut it anymore. You have to be a bit craftier. Think like a rat as the old saying goes.