Rehousing Rodents

If you are reading this, chances are you have a rodent problem. This can be financially devastating. Also, if you’re like me and don’t want to hurt them, then this can be emotionally rough too. This article aims to educate and will cover some non-traditional ideas to help eradicate rodents from your house, WITHOUT killing them. First things first however:

DID YOU KNOW?

Rodent teeth are strong enough to bite through steel and metal!

When I was ten years old, my parents got me and my sibling gerbils for our birthday. It didn’t take more than a week (max) for them to chew through the metal bars of their cage. So, we upgraded them to a steel bar cage. That one took a little longer, but they still managed to chew through it, as well. Rats can chew through metal and steel even faster than gerbils, because they are bigger and have stronger jaws. However, all rodents are capable of this destructive behavior, even tiny little mice!

HOW TO CAPTURE A ROGUE RODENT

If you want to catch and release the little fuzzies that are causing your rodent problem, use a glass terrarium. A ladder of some sort on the outside will allow the rodents to climb into the cage, but keep it as barren as possible on the inside, to keep them from climbing back out.

Rodents are decent jumpers, so make sure the cage is tall, but not so tall that falling into it will harm the rodents, (add unbleached paper bedding to soften the fall). Put some dog food or rodent food at the bottom of the cage (and a small bowl of water if you want) and they will do most of the rest of the work for you.

The ladder can be a piece of wood that reaches the edge of the cage down to the floor at an angle. You can also use a metal mesh like ramp or cardboard ramp. It should be noted however, that they may chew the wood or cardboard and if the mesh is too wide they could injure their legs in it, so be cautious of that. Mainly, you want a solid ramp that will hold up to their weight.

Once you catch your critters, you have a choice to make, relocate them into the wild or take them to a vet to get checked out and enjoy your new pets!*

FUN FACT

Rodents are extremely trainable.

As long as your new friends aren’t carrying any diseases and you choose to keep them, you can train them to do tricks and show off to your friends!

RELOCATING THE INTRUDERS

If you wish to go the relocation route, contact Fish and Wildlife or a trusted vet to find out the safest way to do so. Adding an invasive species to the ecosystem where they don’t belong is harmful to our planet and can have major consequences. So please, be kind to the animals and be kind to the Earth.

REPAIRING THE RODENT’S DESTRUCTION

If you notice any damage done to your home from these critters, check out some of our other articles for advice on how to fix things like, drywall, pipes, soffit, wires and more! If fixing it yourself is unappealing, consider the easy route, call us today at HandyMania and we will take care of the repairs for you! We are pet and homeowner friendly!

*Please note: Rodents can carry dangerous and sometimes deadly diseases that can cross-over to humans and other pets. If you feel unsafe or unable to remove the rodents yourself, call a no-kill exterminator, (if your goal is to keep them, a vet visit is a MUST.)

Photo Credit: Yunu Dinata on Unsplash