Rodent Control in San Diego

Roof rats are the most common, especially in older neighborhoods, near canyons, and around fruit trees and ivy. They are slender climbers with large ears and long tails that enter at the roofline and nest in attics. Norway rats are stockier ground burrowers found near sewers and waterways but are far less common in homes here.

Roof rats come from the top down. They climb trees, fences, and wires onto the roof and squeeze through gaps at the eaves, roof junctions, attic and dryer vents, and around pipes and conduit. A rat can fit through an opening the size of a quarter, which is why finding and sealing every gap matters more than where you place a trap.

Exclusion is permanently sealing the gaps rodents use to enter, using rodent-proof materials at the roofline, vents, and utility penetrations. Trapping removes the current rats, but without exclusion new ones move in from the neighborhood within weeks. Combining removal with exclusion is the difference between a temporary lull and a solved problem.

Our core method is trapping and exclusion, which avoids loose bait around children, pets, and wildlife and prevents rodents from dying and decomposing inside walls. When bait is appropriate, it is secured in tamper-resistant stations out of reach. The goal is to remove rodents while keeping your family and pets safe.

Most homes see activity stop within one to two weeks of trapping and sealing, with follow-up visits to confirm. Larger homes or heavier infestations take longer. We give you a clear plan and do not consider the job finished until the activity has stopped and the entry points are sealed.

Yes. House mice are common in San Diego and need an even tighter seal, since a mouse fits through a gap the size of a dime. We trap, seal, and address the food and clutter that sustain them, using the same removal-plus-exclusion approach we use for roof rats.

We address droppings and contaminated insulation as part of a full rodent solution and advise on sanitation to remove odor trails that attract new rodents. Rodent waste can carry health risks, so we include the cleanup scope in your written estimate rather than leaving it to you.

Keep the roof sealed, trim tree and shrub branches back several feet from the roofline, control ivy and dense ground cover, pick up fallen fruit, and secure food and pet food. Exclusion is the durable fix, and recurring service adds monitoring so a new entry point is caught before it becomes an infestation.

Roof rats are drawn by harborage and landscaping as much as food. Palms, ivy, fruit trees, and shrubs touching the roof give them shelter and a highway in, regardless of how clean the interior is. That is why our approach focuses on sealing the structure and addressing the exterior conditions, not just sanitation.

The removal and exclusion are a project with a clear endpoint. Many San Diego homeowners then keep a recurring plan for monitoring, because we live in dense neighborhoods with constant rodent pressure from canyons, fruit trees, and neighboring yards. Ongoing monitoring catches a new gap or activity early, before it becomes another infestation.