Can You Catch Rats In Cages?

Rats in your property can bring numerous health and property hazards. They need to go – and fast. The problem is, you want to do this as humanely as possible. For most people, this means using live traps instead of kill traps, allowing you to relocate them. In theory, this sounds like a great idea. It seems like something anyone can do and that would produce great results. You get to save the rat’s life without having to keep it on your property. In practice, though, is it as good as it seems? Is it a good option? Before you move forward with it, know whether this will work for you and whether it is as good as it seems.



The Good
The good is that there is no dead rodent. You capture the rodent and can relocate it anywhere you want. There is no worry of cleaning up a dead rodent or having to kill one if you are against that. You can relocate it anywhere at all. Whether your backyard or somewhere else, you can find a nice place for it to live. If you do choose your yard, you should make sure that any entry points on your property are gone. Seal them up before you let the rodent loose.

It is a clean, simple process. Cage traps keep the rodent away from you, ensuring that you do not have to touch it at all. Since they do come with risks to your health, including diseases, you will want to keep a distance from them. Opening the cage is easy to do. Slide open the door, or use whatever other method for the specific cage you choose, and let the rodent run free. It will, typically, jump out and start scurrying away immediately.

The Bad
You might not think there is a bad side to this, but there is. The big problem with relocating rodents is that, typically, they do not survive in their new locations. You might think that you are doing the rodent a favor by relocating instead of killing, but it may end up suffering instead as it fails to survive. This is not always true, but there is a high risk of it.

If you plan to use cage traps for your rodent problem, you should know the bad that comes with it. It is a risk you take when you want to humanely remove the animal. In the end, though, it might not be as humane as instantly killing the rodent.

Go back to the Rat Control home page.