Where do rats and mice get in?
Most people ask this after they see the first one. The answer is usually a small gap nobody noticed: the space around the drain pipe under the sink, the air conditioning opening, the gap under the light well door, or a bathroom floor drain with no cover. A house mouse can squeeze through a hole roughly the width of a pencil. A large rat needs a bit more room, but not much.
In Egypt we mainly deal with three kinds. The small house mouse lives inside the kitchen and cupboards. The large sewer rat (the brown or Norway rat) comes up from drains, canals and farmland, and it digs and swims. The roof rat travels along rooftops, trees and cables, and it’s usually the one you hear above a false ceiling. Each uses a different route, which is why the inspection decides where the bait goes.
Why poison alone doesn’t solve the problem
Poison kills the rodent that eats it. But if the place has easy food and an open gap, another one moves in to take its place. That’s why people often say their rats have become used to the poison.
Large rats are also suspicious of anything new on their path. They may walk past bait for several days without touching it. If you put poison in a corner, wait two days and decide it doesn’t work, you probably didn’t give the rat a chance.
So our rodent control follows a set order. We seal the entry points first. Then we place bait in locked boxes along the route the rodent uses, and traps wherever we don’t want one to die. Then we come back and check. If the bait hasn’t been touched we change its position or type, and if it’s all gone we know there’s still activity.
Things that make it harder without you realising
The most common mistake is scattering loose poison pellets on the floor. A rodent may carry them off and store them elsewhere, and a child or cat might find them first. Some people seal a hole with cement or foam while the rodent is still inside, so it chews a new exit somewhere harder to reach, or dies inside the wall.
If you use glue traps, put them along the wall on the rodent’s path, not in the middle of the room, because rodents run close to walls. And don’t put bait next to open food, because the rodent will choose the easier meal.
Ground floors, villas and restaurants
Ground floor flats and basements are where we’re called most, because they sit close to inspection chambers and drains. Villas in 6th of October, Sheikh Zayed and the Fifth Settlement are a different story: a garden with plants and irrigation water, plus a power room or storeroom nobody opens. Rodents nest in the quiet spot and come into the house at night.
Restaurants and warehouses carry more risk, because one rat in the kitchen can spoil stock and cause trouble at an inspection. Here we place bait boxes around the outside of the building and traps inside, and leave you a sheet showing where every box is.
Watch out for digging work too. When the local authority replaces sewer pipes or a building goes up next door, rodents leave their old spot and look for a new one. Many people see their first rat a week or two after work like this.
When to call us
If you see droppings or hear movement, don’t wait until you see the animal itself. Rodents breed fast, and the one you spot in daylight usually has more hiding behind it.
Send us a photo of the droppings or the chewed spot on WhatsApp. From the photo the technician can usually tell a mouse from a rat, then book an inspection with you, and anywhere in Egypt we can come the same day. For a villa or restaurant, we give you the price after the inspection and before we start.
After the treatment: what to do
- Keep food and bread in sealed containers, and don't leave cat or bird food out overnight.
- Don't move or open the bait boxes. If one gets moved by accident, call us.
- Keep the floor drain covered and the light well window closed, and take the rubbish out every day instead of leaving it in the kitchen overnight.
- If you notice a bad smell a few days later, call us and we'll help you find the spot instead of you taking things apart on your own.
The price is set after the inspection
The cost of rodent control depends on the size of the property, how many entry points need sealing, whether there is a garden, storeroom or roof, and how many bait boxes and follow-up visits the case needs. We confirm the price after the inspection. We confirm the exact price before we start, and the inspection comes with no obligation.
After treatment you receive a guarantee certificate stating the period and the service, and if the problem returns within that period we come back at no extra cost.
