Have scheduled meeting with insurance adjuster Tues morning. Was told that comprehensive would cover it ($50 Ded) READ ARTICLE::::

Sunday, December 21, 2008
By Tim Woods
Tribune-Herald staff writer
Try not to say “cheese” too loudly when snapping this year’s holiday pictures, lest you get some uninvited party-crashers.
Local pest and rodent control companies are largely in agreement that the number of mouse and rat infestations in Waco homes has spiked this year, and the problem is not limited to any one part of town.
“We’re seeing it all over. I can’t pick out just one area,” said Fred Huffman, owner of GGA Pest Management Services.
Huffman said the quantity of mouse and rat infestations this year “is probably the biggest I’ve seen in 21 years in the business. I’ve never seen as much activity.”

Steve Roznos, of Roz-tech Pest Management, agrees with Huffman. “Every year, there’s one dominant thing,” he said, “and this year mice and rats have been real dominant.”
Weather plays a role in the magnitude of rodent infestations, according to several local rodent control companies. The dry weather, along with cooling temperatures of late, is forcing mice and rats to look for more food and warmer temperatures inside people’s homes, Roznos said.
“They’re really active right now because of the cold weather, and they’re just trying to find some warmth,” he said.
According to Huffman, this time of year sees the outdoor food supply for mice and rats dry up, and the critters begin looking wherever they can for food and warmth.
Huffman said there are many different ways rodent control experts can deal with the problem, including rat baits, snap traps and glue boards, but he said there are steps homeowners can take to help prevent infestation.
It’s important not to keep pet food where it is accessible to mice and rats, but there are other preventative measures to be taken.
“The biggest thing that anyone has to do is exclusion, trying to find areas of the house where rodents are entering and closing up those holes,” Huffman said.
Common entryways for mice and rats include places where pipes enter a house and torn screens over vent holes, according to Huffman.
Gary Struth, of Oliver Goldsmith Company, said that when inspecting a home for entry points, “You need to think like a rat, which basically means you walk around the structure, look at it and think, ‘Where would I get in?’”
Openings as small as a half-inch can be large enough for mice and rats to enter, he said.
Struth has not noticed a great spike in this year’s mouse and rat infestations, but he’s noticed something as disturbing. “We’re seeing some of the biggest rats we’ve ever seen,” he said, adding that rats 17 inches long from nose to the end of the tail are not uncommon this year.
Many people are afraid of mice and rats, but not many realize the damage the varmints can cause, as well as the health dangers they pose, local experts say.
Roznos said electrical wires, air-conditioning units and insulation are frequently damaged by rodents, while Struth pointed out the many health hazards caused by rodents.
“Rats, they contaminate a lot more food than they eat,” Struth said. “They cause a lot of health problems because of contamination.”
Trichinosis, salmonella, tapeworms, rat bite fever and infectious jaundice were among some of the more common rodent-caused health problems Struth named.
David Litke, program administrator for the environmental health division of the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District, said the district is always on the lookout for incidences of such diseases.
“They’re right, rodents do carry several diseases, but in our Central Texas area, we haven’t seen any increase in reported cases of those diseases,” Litke said.
twoods@wacotrib.com
757-5721