Roof Rats vs. Norway Rats in Miami
Miami's two rat species have different habits, entry routes, and nesting preferences — which means different treatment strategies.
Roof rats (Rattus rattus) are Miami's most common residential rat. They are agile climbers that access structures via overhanging tree limbs, utility lines, and roofline gaps — nesting in attics, soffits, and wall voids. You'll hear them running overhead at night. They are slender, dark, with a tail longer than their body.
Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) are ground-dwellers that burrow beneath slabs, in crawl spaces, and near dumpsters and garbage areas. More common in commercial and restaurant settings than residential attics. They are stockier and brown with a shorter tail.
Why Poison Alone Fails
Rodenticide bait leaves two problems unsolved: (1) Rats die inside walls and attics, decomposing for weeks with odor and fly activity. (2) No exclusion means new rats enter as poisoned ones die. Effective rat control requires snap traps (allowing body retrieval) plus exclusion (permanently closing entry points).
Our Rat Extermination Process
Full interior and exterior inspection to identify species, nesting areas, entry points, and activity level. Roof rats: attic, soffit gaps, tree contact. Norway rats: foundation gaps, drains, below-grade penetrations.
Snap traps placed along active runways in the attic and at identified entry areas. Traps are checked and cleared on follow-up visits to retrieve all carcasses cleanly — no decomposition in walls.
All identified entry points ½ inch or larger are sealed using appropriate materials: galvanized hardware cloth, copper mesh, metal flashing, and weather-resistant sealant. No-gaps exclusion is the permanent solution. See Rodent Exclusion →
Nesting material, droppings, and contaminated insulation in the attic are removed and the area sanitized as needed, particularly where hantavirus risk or secondary pest infestation (fleas, mites from rats) is present.