[Annual Rodent Control Issue] Year of the Rat

According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2008 is the Year of the Rat, so the staff of PCT magazine thought it would be appropriate to honor this much-maligned mammal that has played such a key role in the growth and development of the pest management industry over the years.

Did you know the rat is the first of the 12 signs of the Chinese Zodiac? The corresponding sign in western culture is Sagittarius. Those born in the Year of the Rat (2008, 1996, 1984, 1972, 1960, 1948, 1936, 1924, 1912) include such well-known figures as Al Gore, Sean Penn, Eminem, Scarlett Johansson, Lauren Bacall, LeBron James, Lee Iacocca, Charlie Daniels, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Cameron Diaz and Fred Grandy (aka “Gopher” of Love Boat fame). Those born under this sign are believed to have a number of specific personality traits and are described as charming, passionate, charismatic, quick-witted, practical, honest and hardworking. By the same token, they can be cunning, power driven, critical, bossy, calculating, obstinate and controlling. Sound like anyone you know?

Needless to say, those born in the Year of the Rat make better bosses than employees. Creative by nature and fair in their dealings with others, the best career choices for those born in the Year of the Rat are writers, actors, lawyers, politicians, detectives, psychologists, musicians, stand-up comedians and last but not least entrepreneurs — meaning there must be a fair number of them running pest control businesses throughout the United States. How appropriate!

• A rat produces between 20 and 50 droppings a day.
• Rats spend approximately 2 percent of their daily activities gnawing on various natural and man-made objects.
• Rats will eat just about anything, including decaying material.
• A rat can swim for three days before it drowns.
• Rats can exert biting pressure up to 7,000 pounds per square inch and can bite repeatedly up to six bites per second.
• Rats can squeeze through a space as small as a half dollar.
• Conservative estimates say as many as 14,000 people are bitten by rats each year in the U.S.
• While the plague often is thought to be a historical disease, about 10 to 15 people in the U.S. contract this rodent-borne disease each year.
• Wild and domestic rodents have been reported to harbor and spread as many as 200 human pathogens.
• The peak foraging and feeding periods for rats occur at dusk and prior to dawn.
• The “average” home range of an established Norway rat in urban areas is 25 to 100 feet from its nest.
• In captivity, rats may live for three or more years, but wild rats in urban areas normally live for only five to 12 months.
• Rats are wary of new objects or sudden changes in their environment. This behavior is known as “neophobia.”

Sources: PPMA, Mallis Handbook of Pest Control and Rodent Control: A Practical Guide for Pest Management Professionals