[Times art: Jeff Goertzen]

Compiled from Times wires, files
© St. Petersburg Times,
published November 24, 2001

The first thing you need to know about a squirrel or rat invasion is this: By the time you hear the telltale scratching of tiny rodent feet in your attic, the enemy has already landed and begun making itself at home.

The second thing you need to know is this: Squirrels and rats are quite willing to share your home.

"Squirrel infestation is like psoriasis," says Washington writer and publisher Bill Adler, author of Outwitting Squirrels (Chicago Review Press, $11.95). "It's one of those problems that everybody has but nobody talks about." Adler's book focuses primarily on problems with squirrels in the back yard, where they are merely an annoyance rather than a threat to security and well-being.

A note of comfort: Contrary to popular belief, you don't have to worry about rabies. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, squirrels and other small rodents are almost never found to have rabies. If you are bitten, it would be wise to seek treatment, but you are unlikely to need a rabies shot.

Fruit rats may host fleas that can carry the bubonic plague. They can carry leptospirosis, murine typhus, typhoid and salmonellosis. Their urine, droppings and fur contaminate food.

Both pests are equal-opportunity opportunists, invading neighborhoods rich and poor, urban and suburban, without a hint of class consciousness.

Rodents that get into your home have the propensity to chew on wiring. They do this not because they are innately malicious, but to hone their incisors, which, like those of other rodents, grow perpetually.

This is where infestations can go from annoyance to hazard.

Some animal-control experts suggest the invaders are responsible for more house fires than official records might indicate.

There are plenty of legal ways, short of using a gun, to combat squirrels in your home -- repellent sprays, ammonia-drenched cloths, sound-emitting devices -- and nearly all of them have one thing in common: They don't work.

What does work, experts agree, is the three-part approach of trapping squirrels, relocating them and sealing off the point of entry.

If you're nimble and determined enough, you can do the trapping yourself. Traps designed for catching squirrels can be purchased at most hardware and home-improvement stores or borrowed from some animal-control agencies. The traps -- wire cages with locking doors that snap shut when the bait is disturbed -- are simple to set up, and they do work. Peanut butter will lure squirrels inside.

Experts recommend that you not try to handle the caged animal -- particularly one that might be a mother ferociously determined to protect her young. They suggest calling in the professionals. Your local animal-control agency will either send specialists to your home or recommend a private trapping service.

Professional trappers will remove squirrels from your home and relocate them far enough away to make their return unlikely. Generally, there are fees for removal; any repairs cost more. And unless you take preventive action to exclude them, other squirrels will no doubt take their place. Many services offer limited guarantees against re-infestation.

Roof, or citrus, rats like to eat citrus fruit and can enter homes through any openings that are larger than half an inch, often going in through soffits, utility lines, vents and pipes. They like to live in trees and are nocturnal.

Evidence of rat infestations include bites in fruit, with holes the size of a quarter or larger; rub marks that leave dark, greasy stains on walls; droppings about half an inch long; urine; and gnaw marks on wood.

The best way to control the rodents is to eliminate ways for them to get into homes. Once they are inside, homeowners should get rid of them by setting traps.

For rat infestations, search the exteriors of buildings for holes through which they can enter. Once rats are inside a building, set snap traps. Peanut butter or bits of citrus can be used as bait. Place the food end against a wall so that when the trap snaps, the rat will have a hard time escaping backward.

Garbage cans should have tightly fitted lids. Pet food should be stored in rat-proof containers. Remove stacks of boxes and trash, and pick ripe fruit and vegetables and remove any that have fallen.

Keep rats out of fruit trees with rat guards placed around the trees. The guards can be made from sheet metal 18 to 24 inches wide. Add an inch to the circumference to prevent harm to the tree.

-- Information from the Washington Post and Pinellas County Extension was used in this report.

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