Rats don’t care about your property value or your sanity. They’ll chew through walls, contaminate food, and reproduce faster than you can set traps. The good news is they’re predictable, and predictable things are easier to eliminate.
1. Rat Trap
Forget the cheese. Peanut butter works better because rats love anything that smells sweet, and it won’t fall off the trigger plate. Use a snap trap and tie dental floss or thread to the bait. Rats are fast. They can snatch bait and bolt before the trap springs. The thread tangles them up long enough for the bar to come down.
Place traps along walls where you’ve seen droppings. Rats hug baseboards when they move.
2. Rat Poison
Rat poison works, but it’s messier than traps. Rats eat it, crawl into your walls, and die there. You’ll smell them for a week or two.
If you’ve got kids or pets, skip poison entirely. Even "pet-safe" versions aren’t worth the risk. A dog eating a poisoned rat can get sick. A toddler finding bait blocks under the sink is worse.
If you’re going to use it anyway, put it in tamper-resistant bait stations and place them where only rats can reach (attics, crawl spaces, behind appliances).
3. Seal Them Off
Rats squeeze through holes the size of a quarter. Check every wall, floor, and cabinet for gaps. Look behind the fridge, under sinks, around pipes, and in the garage. If you find a hole, stuff it with steel wool or wire mesh (the kind with sharp edges), then seal over it with caulk or expanding foam. Rats can chew through wood and drywall, but they won’t chew through metal.
Clean up food crumbs immediately and take out garbage daily. Rats don’t show up for no reason. If there’s nothing to eat, they’ll move on.