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When it comes to rodent control in particular, remember that a quick, in-person training session can work better than two hours of video training. It’s good to take 15 minutes with all your technicians, old and new, and go over some basics.
Select different technicians to demonstrate simple but important techniques in different situations. For example, how to bait and set a snap trap or how to determine where to place an exterior rodent bait station (RBS). For the latter:
▶ Place your RBS in the most likely locations rodents will be trying to approach a building,
not merely every 10 to 20 feet around the building.
▶ Place your RBS near low-lying bushes and other objects rodents can hide behind.
▶ Each time you initially install an RBS, take a photo of where it is placed, properly labeled and anchored. File this information. Sometimes a person unintentionally (or intentionally) destroys the station and spills rodenticide. I saw this happen — and the state agency cited the pest control company for pesticide misapplication.
Inspection tips
▶ Before you open an RBS, stand back and look at the surrounding area. There’s a chance that an active burrow is within 30 feet of the station — maybe multiple burrows, too.
▶ Remove old rodent bait and replace with fresh bait. Never throw it on the ground.
▶ Check to see whether ants or slugs have eaten the bait. Slug baits are available to add to the RBS to protect from this issue. With fire ants, the bait could be gone in less than an hour after
you place it.
Musts for dusts
This goes for insect pests as well as rodents, but here are some helpful hints for dusting treatments:
▶ In areas where humidity is a problem, place two marbles in each duster. The marbles keep the dust from clumping.
▶ Color-code your dusters for different products. Make sure a color key is posted prominently for everyone to check against.
▶ Store each duster in a resealable plastic bag so it can be labeled as to contents. Any label you place directly on a duster wears off or falls off. Often, a new technician is issued the previous technician’s vehicle with products. They have no idea what is in the duster, although the color coding should help some.
▶ Avoid the risk of electric shock by using a piece of plastic tubing over your duster’s metal tip. If the plastic tip is a few inches long, it can even be used as a flexible tool to dust in different directions in a void. You can obtain this plastic tubing in pet stores, in the tropical fish department.
▶ When injecting a pressurized tip into a crack, bounce back can be common. The bounce back can hit you in the eye and even leave pitted spots on furniture and appliances. As a precaution, slip a fast food plastic cup lid over the tip of the applicator in the cutout meant for a drinking straw. If any bounce back hits the cover, you will see it immediately.
Rodent control: Expect the unexpected
Your company should know its accounts well enough to know some of the inner workings. For example, I was called in to troubleshoot for an old, shabby-looking warehouse that was under contract for rodent control. There was an active mouse infestation that was hiding somewhere in the dense inventory of wooden pallets.
It turned out this warehouse was storing rare art paintings and artifacts for a very famous museum. When the customer was asked what the inventory was worth, their answer was “priceless.”
The pest control firm was owned by a good friend who had no idea what was in his account. I called him and told him to get his best crew down there immediately to eliminate the mice. What would a claim cost for this account? I’d bet “priceless” had a price tag. — A.F.
