Pest Control .co.uk

This is not an article on the weight problems affecting rats in Bradford, but rather the problem which has led to an expansion in its population of rats.  Yorkshire Water baits many of its manhole covers with bags filled with poison, both to keep rat populations down and to monitor the extent of the population.  Recently, they have noticed that there an increased number of these bags have been taken by rats, and most of them close to takeaways.

Rat Food by the Shovel Load

They believe that this fact, that there are more rats around takeaways in Bradford, is due to fat that is being poured down the drain by these establishments.  When this is done, the fat tends to congeal in the sewers, not only creating potential blockages but also providing a nice little meal for the rat population.  Instead, the proper way to dispose of fat is to wait until it hardens, then scrape it out and put it in a bin.  This of course goes for domestic as well as commercial fat.

In fact every year, Yorkshire Water are called out to get rid of about twenty thousand blockages in the sewers, and about half of those are caused by the disposal of fat, grease and oil down drains.  That works out to nearly thirty blockages a day just caused by the improper disposal fatty materials.

Rats do not only inhabit the underground though, in fact they are more common above ground.  An increase in litter is therefore also being blamed for the growing rat population.  In general, we can say that rats, and just about all pests, are attracted by unhygienic conditions, whether they are in a public space or private residence.  Without these conditions, rats could not survive, let alone thrive.  With these conditions, on the other hand, there is little that can be done to combat a pest infestation.  Yes, they can be killed, and even eradicated from a small area such as a home, but if the conditions continue to be ripe, then they will always come back.  Yorkshire Water is therefore promoting the proper disposal of fatty waste, and for people not to litter.

As everybody knows, rats are a nasty vermin and nobody wants them in their home.  If you do suspect that you have a rat problem, which you can tell from the chewing of furniture, of wires or just about anything else, as well as the presence of rat droppings or tracks left in dust, then you should contact a professional pest controller immediately to come and deal with it.  Rats are extremely unhygienic and can carry some pretty horrible diseases. You don’t want to get too close to them either, they carry a nasty bite.

If we don’t want them in our houses, then we should also be concerned about their presence in our environment as a whole.  So if you want to do your part in keeping the rat population down in your area, refrain from pouring excess fat down the drain and when you are outside always put rubbish in a bin.

Tags: Bradford, fat, kitchen waste, pest control, rats, sewers, water company

Written by Paul Simmons

Paul has been working in the pest control field for 6 years and enjoys writing about contemporary events relating to pest problems and solutions in the UK