If viewed from a scientific angle, rats are simply creatures that belong to the Rattus genus of the family Muridae. Rats are also characterized to be the most dominant rodent species in the animal world. It has been hypothesized that the 2 ordinary types of rats, which are the brown and the ship rats, originated from Asia. These 2 types of rats have now proliferated all over the planet.

Black Rats

Roof rats (known as Rattus Rattus) are also called black rats & ship rats. They are commonly black, have a slender built, 16-21 cm long & weigh about 80-300 gram. Their nose & muzzle are pointed, and their tail is longer than the head & body. They are called roof rats because they are climbers. Their paws enable them to climb & make nests in higher parts of homes, attics, rafters & crossbeams of buildings.

Norway Rat

The brown rat, which is also known as the Norway rat, house rat, gray rat, barn rat, & wharf rat, is one of the best-known & is the larger of the two. Rattus norvegicus is their scientific name. They are mostly grayish-brown, with a lighter colored stomach. A brown rat in full size is 18 to 26 cm long and weighs between 400 & 600 gm. They have a tail shorter than its body and their nose & muzzle are blunt. They prefer moist conditions & nest in deep burrows.

At around three to four months of age, these rats start to breed. They breed up to 13 times each year and produce 1 to 22 in a litter. Black rats & brown rats eat about the same things. Their diet mainly consists of meats, seeds, nuts, grains, vegetables, fruits, cereals & invertebrates. They eat about a third of their weight in food every 24 hours.

They damage structures, contaminate food & carry deadly diseases. Some of the illnesses potentially deadly to man that spread through rats are Weil’s disease, plague, salmonella food poisoning & toxoplasmosis.

Are you wondering about the importance of administering pest control measures in your home? Even if it might not have crossed your mind right now, someday in the future you may put your house up for sale. Prospective buyers would undeniably avoid any property that has marks of pest infestation; they sense that a property infested with pests is a terrible investment. For instance, even you yourself would not be happy if the house you are planning to purchase is overran with termites. Furthermore, banks can be very strict in approving loan applications, especially if you will use your residence as collateral; you may find your application refused if the bank representatives found pest infestations in your house when they come over for visual assessment. You could treat the money you pay for an expert pest control company to assess the cost and accomplish pest eradication in your home as an investment for the future resale value of your household.

Find out the most effective methods of eradicating ants and other pests from your homes or offices. Also published at Basic Details About The Two Most Common Kinds Of Rats.