Most of us don't want rats or mice around. There are three different animals that behave in similar ways and have repulsive reputations. They are roof rats, Norway rats and mice.

Roof rats like to climb pipes, walls, water heaters and shelves. They also climb trees. A roof rat's adult size is around 12 ounces. In DeKalb County, roof rats tend to be more of a problem than other rodents. Norway rats like lower areas, such as ditches, garbage piles, crawlspaces and floors. They are larger than roof rats, about 16 ounces. Mice weigh four ounces or less and seem to go everywhere inside a house. Mice do not grow up to be rats; they belong to a different family of rodents. All of these pests can contaminate our food and our pets' food with their waste and might make us or our pets sick.

Rats and mice are drawn to our homes for obvious reasons that can be minimized: warmth, food, water and protection. If entryways from the outside into our homes are sealed, the rats will have to satisfy their needs outside. We can discourage them from lingering around our property by keeping clean yards, cleaning up spilled birdseed and eliminating leftover pet food and pet waste. If rodent activity is noticed in storage sheds, gardens, ditches or other areas, the rodents should be eliminated before they migrate to our houses.

In addition to vermin proofing our home, cleaning the yard and eliminating their food sources, any remaining rodents can be trapped or poisoned. None of us wants to harm our "friendly" visitors like birds, nor our pets, so be cautious about the means of rat removal and follow all warnings on packages of poisons and traps.

There are two common misconceptions about eliminating rats and mice. One is that rats that are inside will go outdoors to die after eating rat poison. But, nobody can predict where any rats will go! The other popular piece of misinformation is that an expensive magic box will emit a noise that repels rats, mice and other vermin. If there were such a thing, there would be much less need for exterminating companies and health department assistance.

DeKalb residents may request help from the DeKalb County Board of Health's Division of Environmental Health by calling (404) 508-7900. Board of Health technicians can visit individual homes to inspect for rodent entryways, check for evidence of rodent activity, provide information and, if appropriate, put out poison. Businesses must address rodent problems themselves.

For information about other Board of Health programs and services, call (404) 294-3700 or visit www.dekalbhealth.net.

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