UNWANTED GUESTS: Rattus Norvegicus and Mus Musculus

My cousin was recently bitten by a rat. It's an occupational hazard, no fault of his. I mean how many mouse-traps can one set? Musa owns a chicken feed manufacturing plant. He sells and distributes it in Ngong area. The problem with this is that chicken aren't the only ones that eat it.
Rats and mice just luuuuurve chicken feed. As a chicken breeder, you have to be careful since, being omnivorous, rats can eat your chicken's food as well as the chicken. There is no limit.

If you were a dog or cat that wondered into the supermarket you would probably hover around the meat area or pet food section. A kuku would hover at the section with cereals (maize, beans, ndengu, etc). As a rat, however, the whole supermarket is your food section, because rats nibble practically everything, from cereals to plastics to clothes. My husband says they recently repaired a faulty organ pipe, because rats had chewed right through the aluminium.

If you haven't experienced a vermin invasion in your home then thank God for His grace and mercy, because all it takes is a little negligence in food storage or waste disposal to attract them. First, you notice their droppings, then you hear the scuffling and scurrying in the pantry; and after 21 days, they've multiplied. One female can produce upto 8 litters a year; each litter with 7 - 14 babies!

Rats are omnivores, but mice are herbivores. So we don't expect any bites from the latter, but they are still cheeky. I mean, take a look at Tom & Jerry. Yes, mice may be a little cuter than rats, but they will just as easily chew up your designer sequinned dress just because. And that ain't cute.

Mice and rats live to eat (not the other way round), yet they destroy a lot more than they actually eat. This makes them destruction machines. But that should be the least of your worries. So what if they eat through your thesis, or your plumbing, or electrical cables, or your chickens, so what? It's what they can do to you that worries. Living in unsanitary conditions, mice and rats pick up and spread their faeces and urine via their paws and fur, onto your food, just by walking over it, eating or touching it. Inhaling or consuming substance contaminated with rat urine or droppings could lead to bacterial or viral diseases such as Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, Leptospirosis, Salmonellosis and the one we all know, the Bubonic Plague. Some complications from these diseases include renal and liver failure or even cardiovascular problems.

Assuming you have a vermin infestation in your house; the rats are so many and so bold that they crawl up to your guests and have a sip of their tea; then it's time to get a cat. This is by far the most effective method to deal with rats. And what's better that a cat? Two cats!!! It's environmentally safe and totally handsfree. This is the ONLY method I would use. Others resort to rat poison, but that is incredibly dangerous since the rat, having touched, eaten or walked on the poisonous bait and survived, will contaminate your food stuff and put your health at more risk. Also, with crawling children and toddlers in the house, their toys could also get traces of the rat poison. It may be safer to use it away from your home, just make sure there is no water nearby, because that helps them clear it from their system fast. A rat trap is a safe, common method, but rather slow and tedious when trying to clear up a whole generation.

Basically, prevention is the best measure you could take. Store your food well and have the main dumpster cleared more regularly. And in the event that you get bitten by one, seek medical treatment. Musa, naona unacheza sasa. Shauri yako!

Images: Cover, Little mouse and thumbnail mouse