PRESS RELEASE

Joe Martin, a professional pest controller from PGM & Son Pest Control Limited, was called to an arable farm following reports of an extensive rodent infestation that had been causing considerable damage to farm buildings.

Here, BASF explore how Joe used the award-winning cholecalciferol rodenticide, Selontra to tackle the infestation.  

SPEED READ: 

• Hundreds of rodents on site
• 3.2kg of Selontra used
• Complete control in six site visits.

The challenge 

A local arable farm contacted PGM & Son Pest Control regarding an infestation of hundreds of rats across the site, causing extensive damage to farm buildings. 

Upon Joe’s assessment, he discovered significant evidence of high levels of rodent activity including smear marks, runs and tracks, damage to buildings and droppings both inside and outside. 

“During my first walkthrough of the site, it was apparent there was a high level of rodent activity. The client reported regular sightings of rats across the farm and had tried controlling the infestation themselves before calling us.”

The site which was primarily used for crop growth, was also home to a range of animals including chickens, cats and dogs and a large population of birds of prey, so food sources were readily available, as was plenty of harbourage, making it a breeding ground for rats.

The result 

After a thorough survey of the site, Joe devised a plan to tackle the infestation using a combination of tamper-resistant bait boxes across the site, and man-made bait stations using natural resources found across the farm for familiarity, placing blocks of Selontra at all bait sites. 

Initially, uptake of the bait appeared slow due to other food sources such as animal feed located at the farm.

Working with the client, Joe advised the removal of access to competitor food sources from the site in order to encourage the rats to feed on Selontra.

Within the first two weeks of placing the bait, once access to other food sources had been reduced, Joe noted 100 per cent uptake of bait from all stations.  

“Following the initial two-week period, I visited the site a further three more times at seven day intervals, to replenish the bait. At my sixth visit no more bait was being taken at this point, so I removed all bait and equipment from the site, and initiated measures to clean up and proof the site to decrease the likelihood of a new infestation.

“Selontra is a fantastic product to use. Working alongside the client to reduce access to any other food sources, we were able to fully control the infestation using the one product in as little as 6 site visits, resulting in a happy client and reduced call outs for the business.

“Every day is a different challenge. I thoroughly enjoy helping people and it feels great being able to solve their problems and rid them of unwanted pests.”

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