More Shropshire householders calling on expert over growing rat problem
A big increase in Shropshire's rat population has seen anxious householders taking matters into their own hands.
Last year's warm summer and the current relatively mild winter have been blamed for the rise.
But it's not just rats that people are trying to get rid of. One Shropshire pest controller said he had received calls about mice, squirrels and moles.
But David Harbinson said those trying to deal with infestations on their own could be doing more harm than good, making the pests ill rather than killing them.
Mr Harbinson, who works at Shropshire Pest Control, said: "I would say that due to the nice weather we had over the summer, we have have been about 15 to 20 per cent busier compared to last year and that was busier than the year before.
"It seems in the last two years we have seen an increase in rats and mice in the area and we also get a lot of calls about squirrels, especially in the Telford area.
"People think it's a rat but once we investigate it further it turns out to be a squirrel."
He added: "I would also say that another reason for the increase in rats is down to the fortnightly bin collections. During the summer months rats will live in farmers' fields, but once it starts getting colder they will look for shelter. This is when they end up in people's sheds, lofts or homes."
But he warned against buying rat poison.
He said: "We use stronger stuff that contains the chemical bitrix, which is not harmful to humans.
"What people buy in hardware stores can just make the rodent ill rather than destroying it.
"As well as that we put the poison in places that makes it harder for wildlife to come into contact with it. We would put the poison in a box that's not big enough for a cat or dog to get to."
Mr Harbinson said he had been in the business for six years and had seen an increase in the number of people using his company rise in the past two years.
"We do get calls all year round but it is very seasonal, for example we get a lot of calls about flies and bed bugs in the summer.
"We get a lot of calls about moles in the autumn and spring.
"But we have had a lot of calls about squirrels as there seems to be an invasion in the county."
