# Anyone else hate pest control?



## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

I have to repress the urge to contact pest control sites and tell them that I'd take any orphaned rats they find. My heart goes out to all the rats killed and orphaned


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

I have a similar sentiment....my aunt used to set rat traps and my uncle live feeds his snake


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## Minigeko (Sep 18, 2013)

Well it's interesting. I hate insects so I would call pest control for that, but if I had mice or rats I'd take care of it on my own. I do hate their advertisements about all the damage rats do and how disgusting they are.

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## Xerneas (Aug 6, 2013)

Well, I'd just like to point something out...

Most people don't really call pest control for just 1-4 rats/mice, it's a SWARM of them. Like dozens. Possibly hundreds. Unless you are deathly phobic most people will get rid of a few mice or ask someone they live with to do it.

When I see a mouse or a rat in my home I calmly lure it in a bucket and take it outside, or use a humane trap. With any insects I do the exact same thing, even to more extreme extents - a spider seemed to have babies or something and now I see LOTS of baby jumping spiders in my home, and I try my best to get as many as I can and put 'em back out. 

But I have seen the damage mice/rat infestations can cause. NO I do not hate rats or mice, obviously I wouldn't be on this forum if I did, I love my sweet ratties very much, but the wild rats aren't living in a cage eating Oxbow and sleeping in a pink hammock. They're making YOUR home their cage and modifying it how they see fit... They aren't litter trained, they don't eat from a food bowl, they're living on instincts. They eat your food, use your floor as their bathroom, and destroy a lot of things. My old home had a slight rat infestation and we had several large holes ripped in the walls and carpets, a MASSIVE potty mess to clean up, several bags of other pet food ripped open, and yes we called an exterminator. Do I regret that? No. 

We paid a lot of money to get our home fixed and unfortunately I'm not going to spend time babying several dozen rats who could very well injure me by going through the frustration of traps and buckets when they wrecked my home. Especially since they'll probably just return.

I know a lot of us feel terrible because we are rodent fanatics but on the other hand we wouldn't have a second thought about calling pest control for cockroaches and termites. I am also aware of the scams pest control puts up that lead to people's stereotypes about rats, especially pet rats, but let's be honest... rats aren't viewed as very important by the general society. They are considered a pest, and when you have a lot of them in your home they are difficult to get rid of because they're so intelligent and hide in difficult to reach places.

Plenty of aspects of pest control make me upset but getting rid of a REAL rat infestation isn't just some traps, I'm sorry to say... I do wish people could man up and learn how to deal with one or two mice but large colonies do make a mess. They are so smart that if one of your traps fail or they manage to get out of one they'll never return to it and then you have to go through struggles to find one they'll fall for. Not as easy as people might think.

I'm aware that the real topic on this thread is about orphaned rats etc, but I just wanted to mention that wild rats aren't the same sweet pet rats, it's a hot mess getting a real infestation out of your home. The majority of them don't trust humans and they won't come running with a click of your tongue for a treat... Extremely smart, wild animals.


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## xolectic (Oct 2, 2013)

No, wild rats spread diseases. I love my dogs, but if I saw aggressive wild dogs running around, I would shoot them. It's the same with rats. I do admire wild rats for their resilience and adaptability, though.


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