Keep your premises pest free
Rats and cockroaches carry diseases that can lead to serious illnesses because they live in dirt and spread germs when they manage to get into a workplace or home.
Following the article regarding the increasing numbers of rats and cockroaches found in the Krugersdorp Central Business District, the NEWS went to find out how one can decrease the numbers of these pests.
Eileen Slabber, managing director at Ecofirst Pest Prevention and Hygiene Services, which forms part of the Ecowize Group, says that buildings easily can become a breeding site for rats and mice if the premises are not kept clean.
“It is important to rodent-proof a premises by laying concrete, as some species of rats can burrow underground to enter a structure. There should be no gaps left in boundary walls or under doors either, as rats can enter through holes of 1cm in size, and mice through holes of 0,5cm in size.”
She mentions that restaurants, grocery stores and other food suppliers especially need to be vigilant about having self-closing bathroom doors, as rats can climb through toilets to enter the work premises, bringing along a host of infectious diseases.
Rats and cockroaches carry diseases that can lead to serious illnesses because the pests live in dirt and spread germs when they manage to get into a workplace or home.
“Researchers have found that cockroaches can cause asthma as the excrement and debris from these pests are small enough to be inhaled, causing an allergic reaction. They also give off a feint, oily musk scent and when in groups, this scent creates a distinctive and sometimes overpowering odour.”
Eileen says that cockroaches are known to eat human eyelashes when they are sleeping.
“Rats and mice are also disease carriers. Some of these diseases include bubonic plague, rat-bite fever, food poisoning and hantaviruses, which present themselves in flu-like symptoms, renal failure and severe respiratory distress. Bubonic plague occurs when victims are bitten by the plague-infected fleas that rats carry,” says Eileen.
“Rats also urinate whilst eating food, and therefore leave disease-infested droppings behind.”
To decrease the numbers of these pets, Eileen says that one rather should use a registered pest control company as they are recognised by the Department of Agriculture.
“They know the pest species, the type of pesticides needed to treat the problem, as well as how to use the pesticides. Furthermore, they are fully equipped with relevant protective gear, such as protective clothing and face masks.”
She mentions that if a business or homeowner makes use of non-toxic bait, such as a snap trap, it is important to place it in a tamper-proof bait box to prevent humans from coming into contact with it.
“Consumers can make use of multi-feed toxic bait, which won’t cause secondary poising. This means that an animal that eats the poisoned rat will not die.”
