LAFAYETTE (KRON) — In the East Bay, the wet weather is causing a rodent problem for some neighbors.
In Lafayette, KRON’s Philippe Djegal spoke with an exterminator who has been spending the past few weeks rat-proofing a lot of homes.
As the rats are being drowned out of their homes in the hills, they are seeking shelter in people’s homes. It’s a nasty problem that most people don’t want to have to deal with.
So, they call Gilbert Jaimez.
“If you have a shelter for the rats, every neighborhood is susceptible,” Jaimez said.
Orinda, Moraga and Lafayette neighborhoods are where Gilbert Jaimez has been spending a lot of time lately.
“Every time there’s rain, there’s more, more calls,” Jaimez said.
So much so that Gilbert, a rodent and termite specialist for Coulson-Moseley Pest Control, has sought out reinforcements.
“We’ve hired two guys in the last month just to help me with the rat proofing,” Jaimez said.
The owner of one home in Lafaeyette recently gave Gilbert a call after discovering rat droppings in the basement.
“When it starts to rain, all the rats that are living out here in the mountains are basically getting flooded,” Jaimez said.
Gilbert said even though the homeowner has a nice home, it simply hasn’t been rat-proofed.
“When a rat wants to get in your attic, they’re gonna find these areas, which I call eaves. The place is watertight, but it’s not rattight,” Jaimez said.
Working his way around the house, Gilbert identifies problem areas and seals them shut.
“It looks tight, but if you look at my hand, it goes straight in there, so when they built this house, they weren’t thinking about rats,” Jaimez said.
In the past, we’ve seen the results of the traps Gilbert has set, but he says using poison and setting traps are just short-term solutions.
“The poison, all they’re going to do is die in your attic and your walls and stink the place up,” Jaimez said. “You want to find a professional to crawl your sub area, get in your attic, get on your roof, and find every hole that’s a quarter inch or bigger and seal it up.”
Gilbert said this problem may last long after the rains pass, so, he said, if you suspect rodents are in your home, get in touch with a specialist immediately.