Each requires different tactics for eradication. Not only do they spread disease by contaminating food, they create an offensive odor in large populations. Indeed, even dishes crossed by cockroaches may give off an offensive order unless they are washed thoroughly before food warms them. One method of doing this is to enter a dark room quietly, turn on a bright light and see where they run. Treat hiding places with pesticides such as diazinon, dursban or baygon, paying particular attention to the undersides of tables and chairs, behind mirrors, inside drawers, on closet and bookcase shelves, inside the motor compartment of the refrigerator, around sinks and the dishwasher, and under loose floorcoverings.
MICE look for a steady source of food supply.
They, as well as parasites which live on them, contaminate food with droppings, urine and hair. Blocking or screening these openings and using a mousetrap with tasty morsels of peanut butter, bacon, gumdrops or cookies usually is sufficient to rid a house of them. RATS pose a larger problem, especially in areas where poor sanitation and accumulation of garbage provide ideal conditions for them to breed. Ranging from six inches to a foot long, they nest in basements, attics, sewers, subflooring, open garbage cans and piles of trash. Active mainly at night, rats contaminate food with disease germs and filth that can cause acute food poisoning.