Chuhay ka ilaj: how to get rid of rats and mice at home

Hearing scratching in the ceiling at night, or finding droppings behind the stove? You probably have chuhay (rats or mice). The good news is that most of what keeps them out is in your hands.

Chuhay hain ya nahi? The signs

• Droppings: small dark pellets along walls, in cupboards or behind appliances.
• Gnaw marks: chewed corners on doors, plastic pipes, food packets or wires.
• Grease marks: dark smudges along the walls they run beside every night.
• Noise at night: scratching or running in the false ceiling, roof or walls.

Rats and mice almost always travel along walls, not across open floor. Wherever you see signs, the route runs along the nearest wall.

Chuhay kahan se aate hain? Where they get in

A mouse fits through a gap the width of a pencil, a rat through a gap the size of a coin. Check:

• Gaps around pipes under the kitchen sink and behind the washing machine.
• Drains and gutter lines without a cover.
• The gap under the main door and the gate.
• Holes where AC pipes and cables come through the wall.
• Open roof vents and the edges of a false ceiling.

Fill small gaps with steel wool pushed in tight, then seal over it with cement or filler. Rats chew through foam and plastic, but not steel wool and cement. Fit a mesh cover on open drains.

What draws them in

Chuhay come for food, water and shelter. Take those away and your home stops being worth the trip.

• Keep flour, rice, daal and pet food in closed metal or thick plastic containers.
• Don’t leave food or dirty dishes out overnight.
• Use a bin with a tight lid, and take the rubbish out every night.
• Fix dripping taps and leaks under sinks.
• Clear clutter in store rooms, under stairs and on the roof, where they like to nest.

Traps that work in a home

Snap traps are the most reliable choice for a home. Set them along the walls where you have seen droppings, with the bait end touching the wall. A little peanut butter or roti with ghee works well. Use several traps, not one, and check them every morning.

Glue traps catch mice, but check them often so nothing is left suffering.

Avoid loose poison inside the home. Children and pets can reach it, and a rat that eats it often dies inside a wall or ceiling, where you cannot reach it and the smell lasts for days. If poison bait is needed, it belongs in a locked bait station, outside, placed by a trained technician.

Chuhay baar baar aa rahe hain? When to call us

Call us if:

• You catch one, and more keep coming.
• You hear them in the ceiling or walls, where you can’t reach.
• They have chewed wires, or you find droppings near food.

We find their routes and the gaps they use, set locked bait stations outside and traps inside, and come back twice to check activity and seal entry points. Most homes are clear within two to three weeks.