Why Cats May Not Be The Best Rodent Control Solution In Annandale, VA
Cats are great. They are an endless source of entertainment, companionship, and love. These are benefits you can’t have too much of in this day and age. It also doesn’t hurt that your feline friend can also help with rodent control in your Annandale, VA home.
They’re great at detecting them and can even hunt them down. In fact, some organizations today encourage the adoption of feral cats for this very purpose. But does that make them the best available option for rodent control? We’ll discuss three major reasons why they may not be:
- They are not always motivated to hunt
This is particularly the case when it comes to dealing with rats, which can grow to be considerably large. Cats will largely go for smaller rodents, like mice and baby rats. They generally avoid and are sometimes afraid of larger ones.
According to the authors, certain conditions must be met for a cat to take on a large rat.
“The cat must be hungry, there cannot be a less-risky food source available and (the cat) must be able to surprise the rat,” co-author Michael Deutsch explains. Furthermore, Deutsch adds, mature rats may be too big for a cat. Younger, smaller rats are easier to hunt. Read more at The Star…
Well-fed, domesticated cats may show little if any interest in hunting rodent. And you don’t want to starve your feline buddy as an incentive to hunt.
- Rodent reproduce pretty fast
Even a cat that’s a super rodent-hunter may not be able to completely eliminate rats and mice from your home. Female mice can produce up to twelve baby mice every three months, so your cat may have a hard time keeping up.
The truth is that there isn’t much that cats can do to keep the population down. Rats and mice tend to breed too quickly for cats to put a dent in their numbers, and they can escape to confined spaces where cats can’t follow. JDM Pest Control…
Rodents are small enough to hide in places your cat cannot reach, and they’ll usually do just that. This makes it even harder for your cat to keep rodent numbers down.
- They could be exposed to diseases hosted by the rodent
Rodents are often carriers of serious diseases, which could be passed on to your cat.
Mice, rats and other rodents will oftentimes carry diseases that can be dangerous to the health of your cat. If your cat hunts and catches a rodent in your home, they are at risk of getting fleas, ticks and other parasites. Rodents can also pass on diseases to your cat such as Hantavirus, or HPS, and Lyme disease. These diseases then have the potential to spread to humans as well. Read more at Natran…
It’s undeniable that cats might prove helpful in keeping vermin away. However, that’s probably not their primary job. Their pest control role comes second to being your pet. If that’s the case, you don’t want to expose your cat, or family, to potentially harmful situations.
Professional rodent control works, and it will spare you, and your pets, a lot of trouble. Call Backyard Bug Patrol for rodent control services in Fairfax County. We provide rodent control bait stations and boxes that your pets and kids cannot access to keep them safe while taking care of your rodent problem.