There has been a steady increase in the number of disease carrying vermin in Waltham forest over the last 5 years. Rats are becoming pests more and more each and everyday, it would seem. Tenants throughout the Waltham forest have been noticing and reporting the rats more and more. One resident said “We have had a rat problem in our area for the last 18 months. Where I live the rubbish collections keep changing and residents don’t know when to put there bins out, so are often putting them out all the time.”
This is an increasing story across Waltham forest. Because of government cut backs and councils getting less and less money every year, refuse collections and street cleaners seem to be on the decrease all the time. And while they seem to be decreasing, our rubbish seems to increase. Although more and more people are recycling nowadays, the amount of rubbish that we throw away is still about the same.
Any amount of rubbish left on the streets, or in our gardens, is only going to help the population of rats increase. Rats are predominantly a nocturnal animal, but with the increase in numbers of small coffee shops and fast food establishments, unfortunately comes the increase of food waste, day and night, so rats are being seen during the day foraging for food more and more.
A recent survey of pest control companies has revealed that the amount of call outs to residential properties has more than trebled in the last 5 years.
This is also not good for businesses. The amount of business call outs is also up, even though most of them have regular pest control checks. Environmental health officers have also been busy, issuing more court orders for poor hygiene and pest related problems than ever before, with the number of business being forced to close due to rat problems being dealt with correctly or at all also up.
If you are having problems with rats, there are things you can do yourself before calling the council or a pest control company:
1. Make sure you know when your rubbish collection day is and if possible, do not put the rubbish out until the morning of collection.
2. If you have lots of rubbish and have to put it out before collection, put the rubbish into metal bins, as rats can’t chew through metal, and don’t over fill the bin so that the lid won’t close fully.
3. Try to fix any leaking taps and overflow pipes that may be leaking water as rats also need water to survive.
The less food that there is available to rats, the less likely they are to stay around.
If the rats have found their way into your home, call pest control and don’t try to deal with the problem yourself as rats are very clever creatures that will avoid most shop available poisons and traps. Pest control companies will also advise you on how best to protect your home from future problems.
