November 12, 2018
Just knowing that rodents of all kinds and even ants running around our homes is cause for concern and enough to make our skin crawl. Of course most rodents are out and about at night, so while we sleep…they creep. The most disturbing fact of all is these incessant creatures are contaminating our food, our counter tops and our entire environment. For example, domestic rodents like mice and rats contaminate food by defecation on or near the food. Some of the diseases that rodents convey to humans are plague, murine typhus, infections jaundice, food poisoning, rat-bite fever, and rabies.
These diseases can be transmitted to humans through the rodent’s urine and droppings. The #1 source for food contamination in the world is rats and mice! They can also introduce disease-carrying parasites such as fleas, lice, and ticks into your home.
The USDA has said billions of dollars of damage occurs each year through contamination of food from mice, and that doesn’t even include residential homes! In some cases mice enter the kitchen drawers and make their way over your utensils. This insidious infestation and contamination can go unnoticed and cause you or your family sickness once the silverware is used.
Ants on the other hand are social insects, who prefer coming out during the daytime! So know this…when you spot one ant… that often means that there are many more to follow. Ants are not simply unsightly – they can also bring dangerous contaminates to food. The presence of ants and the potential for food contamination from their presence is a serious issue that must be addressed when considering your health and the health of your family.
Getting to know these invaders a little better will help us to eradicate them. Did you know there are more ants than human beings on the planet? That is a lot of ants to deal with! There are many issues to take into consideration when it comes to dealing with an ant infestation: What do they eat? Most household ants will prefer sweets, but enjoy proteins and fat too. Remember when you spilled sugar on the counter and not long after there were ants eating it? Where do they live? Ants live in many places around our homes, from rotting wood, to electrical outlets to just a crack in the floor.
Educate yourself more about rats too! They can be found living in attics, rafters, eaves and on up inside roofs and attics. They wait for the house or restaurant (or wherever) to go quiet at night and then go about their contamination business. Rats and mice will take advantage of many food sources around the home, such as garbage cans, open food containers, pet food bowls, and they will even cannibalize their own dead. Again, homeowners should try to eliminate or minimize the abundance of rodent food sources as well as contacting a pest control professional for eradication.
If you have an ant and / or rodent infestation, be sure to take action and treat the problem immediately. Your smartest move is to contact a licensed pest control professional like NYC Pest Control to aid you in preventing future infestations and begin the decontamination process too.
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