The threat presented by rodents to commercial facilities continues to rise. Rodent droppings and urine can trigger allergies and asthma; contaminate food, food preparation surfaces, and equipment; and spread harmful bacteria including E. coli and salmonella. Rodents can also chew through wood, drywall, electrical wiring increasing the risk for fires, as well as packaging and finished goods.
What Causes Rodent Problems In 2020?:
Why does the rodent threat continue to persist? We all know nothing has been normal in 2020 and that includes rodents. As lockdown orders were issued for businesses earlier this year noticeable changes to rodent behavior were evident. Rodents were more likely to travel ‘freely’ inside a structure when not threatened by regular human activity.
Internationally recognized urban rodentologist Dr. Robert Corrigan was quoted in several national media outlets saying rodents, particularly rats in major urban areas like New York City, Boston, Chicago, and New Orleans, went into “survival mode.”
The reason? When restaurants, schools, and non-essential businesses closed, the garbage and food waste that was usually deposited in alleyway dumpsters, garbage cans, or left in trash bags was gone, and the rats were left with nothing.
The result was increased and aggressive foraging activity as rodents went in search of their next meal. This put commercial facilities, including apartment and condominium complexes, square in the sights of rodents looking to get inside.
Fast-forward several months and commercial facilities in Missouri, Kansas, and Illinois are coming back online but not at the volume they operated at a year ago. Many employers are shifting to work at home models and restaurants are operating at reduced capacities and hours.
What Does This Mean For Your Business?:
This means some of the ‘naturally’ occurring rodent food sources are returning but is it enough to keep rats and mice from looking inside your property for food and shelter?
Property managers and business owners would be wise to hedge their bets and prepare their facilities for a surge in rodent populations this fall. The temporary closures resulted in businesses pausing rodent and pest management programs, and combined with no human interference, it allowed rodents to breed undeterred.
Protecting Your Business With Rodent Exclusion:
In the Midwest, the most frequently encountered rodents in commercial facilities are the Norway rat and house mouse. Both species are well-known to a wide array of commercial outlets, but food processing, distribution, and storage facilities will be featured targets.
While mice may be more prevalent in rural settings, they can be a problem in office buildings and apartment complexes. Norway rats are often linked to tightly spaced urban industrial areas but grain elevators along rail lines are also at risk. The point is rodents can be a threat no matter where your facility is located.
The most effective course of action is working with your pest management service provider, like Rottler Pest Solutions, to design and implement an effective rodent exclusion program. If rodents can’t get inside your facility, you have checked off an important box in the fight against them.
