Rats & Mice pest control in London

Signs that point to one species rather than the other

The two are treated differently, so it is worth describing what you found rather than just saying “rodents”. None of this confirms a species on its own — a professional identification does.

• Droppings: brown rat droppings are large and tapered, roughly the size of a date stone or larger. House mouse droppings are far smaller, dark and rice-grain shaped, and there are usually many more of them.
• Distribution: mice leave droppings scattered widely, including on worktops and inside cupboards. Rat droppings are more often grouped along a run.
• Damage height: mice gnaw at low level and inside cupboards. Rats gnaw more heavily and can damage pipework, cabling and door bottoms.
• Access: a house mouse can pass through a gap around the width of a pencil; a rat needs a larger gap but will enlarge one. Rats are also associated with drainage defects.
• Behaviour: mice feed at many points in small amounts, so a single bait or trap position is rarely enough. Rats are more cautious of new objects on their route.

What UK rodenticide rules mean for you as the customer

Professional rodenticide use in Great Britain is controlled through the UK rodenticide stewardship regime. HSE states that the use of anticoagulant rodenticides by professional users must follow the requirements of one of the UK stewardship regimes, and that restrictions cover the types of treatment programme that can be used — for example, no permanent baiting. Under the stewardship regime, professional users buying these products must be able to show proof of training from a CRRU UK approved course completed within the previous five years. Two practical consequences:

• Bait left in place indefinitely as a standing precaution is not an appropriate professional programme. Ask what the plan is for removing bait and closing the job.
• Ask which certification the attending technician holds and when it was issued. It is a reasonable question and a certificated contractor will answer it.
• Expect proofing and hygiene work to be part of the recommendation, not chemical treatment alone. A rodenticide programme that ends without the entry route closed leaves the property open to reinfestation.

Proofing points worth checking in a London property

• Gaps where service pipes, cables and waste pipes pass through external walls, and under kitchen units.
• Air bricks and vents that are cracked, missing or have been enlarged.
• Defective or disused drain runs, gully surrounds and inspection chamber covers — a common rat route in older housing stock.
• Door bottoms, thresholds and garage doors, particularly on basement and lower-ground flats.
• Shared bin stores, cellar voids and riser cupboards in converted or purpose-built blocks, which need the freeholder or managing agent involved.