The pandemic has brought us many things, not all of them good. One report suggests that it has brought a wave of rats flooding into our cities, and that means bad news for businesses.
Of course, it’s not just rats that pose a threat to businesses. There are stored product insects, cockroaches, and wasps, to name a few. What are the signs that you’re facing a commercial pest infestation?
Let’s explore that question together.
1. Piles of Poop
Poop is one of the easiest signs of a pest problem to spot. Identifying that poop is not much fun, but tells you what you’re dealing with.
Rat droppings are about half an inch long, dark brown, and are a little like thin jelly beans. Mouse droppings are smaller, more similar to rice in size and shape.
Cockroach poop looks like spilled coffee grounds. The bigger roaches leave cylindrical droppings with flattened ends.
2. Signs of Damage
Rodents leave telltale signs of gnawing wherever they go. This can be on wood, books, and even electrical wiring. This can lead to fires determined to be of ‘unknown origin’.
Rats and mice can also eat a lot when they get the chance. If you have stored food items in your business, you need regular visits from a pest control service. They can get in through the tiniest cracks and will wreak havoc without a control plan in place.
3. Unidentified Sounds
It’s creepy for your employees to hear the sounds of scuttling, squeaking, and scratching. They are often more noticeable at the end of the day or at night. Ask your cleaning crew and night security and they’ll tell you what they’ve heard.
Termites make a distinctive tapping sound in the walls. That means that they’re in the process of eating the fabric of your building.
4. Nasty Smells
Pests do lots of things that leave unpleasant smells. They urinate, defecate, and die in awkward places. They also move food around, leaving it to rot in walls and other hidden cavities.
Cockroaches also leave a musty smell behind. They communicate by smells – and those smells can send a clear message to us that it’s time to call a commercial pest control company. Read more about this here.
5. Body Parts Left Behind
As they go, some pests leave little pieces of themselves behind. This could be wings, legs, even skins.
Cockroaches shed their skins 5-8 times during their life.
Identify and Tackle That Pest Infestation
Loss of stock, reputation, spread of disease – there are too many downsides to a commerical pest infestation to list in full. It’s important to be alert for these five signs, but more is needed for effective business pest control.
Every business should have a commercial pest control strategy and work with a pest control service to keep pests at bay. If not, they will find a way, and it will have serious ramifications.
