Animal Welfare Professionals

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed! 

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed! 

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed! 

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed! 

I don't have experience with sonic devices, but experience tells me that any deterrent has only limited efficacy. This will not "solve" your rodent problem.

Look at the whole picture. Rodents exist en masse in the environment, so you will never eliminate them. Not ever. They are coming inside your partner shelter for a reason, which is food, shelter, maybe water. So here are some options, in order of priority:

1. Exclusion. The only 100% effective option would be to have a completely sealed building that rodents can't get into. This is probably not possible for you, but you can get most or part of the way there by assessing entry points and sealing them with steel wool, wire mesh, putty, foam, etc. This is all holes 1/2 inch in diameter. This is MUCH easier said than done, I understand, but this is what works. You can hire companies to do this.
   
   
2. Reduce attractants.
   a. Reduce food (spilled kibble, any food in a container that can be chewed through, mess in the break room, etc)
   b. Reduce shelter (clutter than gives rodents secure places to hide and nest, ceiling highways, potted plants)
   c. Reduce bedding (all paper. They love paper.)
   
   
3. Add deterrents: your sonic devices, certain smells, predators, etc. These are annoying to rodents, encouraging them to go elsewhere, but will not outweigh the invitation of a warm bed and buffet on their own.
   
   
4. Killing: I'm personally opposed to this, but it's a normal part of integrated pest management to use snap traps. If you use traps in the absence of other measures, you might as well be draining the ocean with a bucket (just look at the reproduction rate of mice). But if you are doing a good job with 1, 2, and 3 then adding traps will help kill the small number of rodents who do come in. Unfortunately, if you trap the mice and just put them outside the building they'll probably come right back in, and relocating them to a new location is inhumane.

For more info you could research humane wildlife solutions (all the same principles) and integrated pest management. My recommendation for your one-time funding would be to bring in a quality company that will do an audit of your building, do some or all of the sealing work, and give you a plan to follow. Then you will have to stay on that plan forever. I have worked in rat- and mouse-infested shelter buildings and it takes a whole-village effort to keep the rodent populations low, but it is possible and makes for a much nicer and more hygienic environment. Best of luck!

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed! 

We do all of the prevention measures for rodents. We found it best to use a pest service plan. They have bait stations  in and around the facility and outbuilding (non animal care spots). We have a lot of wildlife in and around the shelter/community. As far as I understand the bait they use in the bait stations should not cause secondary poisoning if rodent gets consumed by another animal for food. The service comes once a quarter and gives us a discount.

I don't have experience with sonic devices, but experience tells me that any deterrent has only limited efficacy. This will not "solve" your rodent problem.

Look at the whole picture. Rodents exist en masse in the environment, so you will never eliminate them. Not ever. They are coming inside your partner shelter for a reason, which is food, shelter, maybe water. So here are some options, in order of priority:

1. Exclusion. The only 100% effective option would be to have a completely sealed building that rodents can't get into. This is probably not possible for you, but you can get most or part of the way there by assessing entry points and sealing them with steel wool, wire mesh, putty, foam, etc. This is all holes 1/2 inch in diameter. This is MUCH easier said than done, I understand, but this is what works. You can hire companies to do this.
   
   
2. Reduce attractants.
   a. Reduce food (spilled kibble, any food in a container that can be chewed through, mess in the break room, etc)
   b. Reduce shelter (clutter than gives rodents secure places to hide and nest, ceiling highways, potted plants)
   c. Reduce bedding (all paper. They love paper.)
   
   
3. Add deterrents: your sonic devices, certain smells, predators, etc. These are annoying to rodents, encouraging them to go elsewhere, but will not outweigh the invitation of a warm bed and buffet on their own.
   
   
4. Killing: I'm personally opposed to this, but it's a normal part of integrated pest management to use snap traps. If you use traps in the absence of other measures, you might as well be draining the ocean with a bucket (just look at the reproduction rate of mice). But if you are doing a good job with 1, 2, and 3 then adding traps will help kill the small number of rodents who do come in. Unfortunately, if you trap the mice and just put them outside the building they'll probably come right back in, and relocating them to a new location is inhumane.

For more info you could research humane wildlife solutions (all the same principles) and integrated pest management. My recommendation for your one-time funding would be to bring in a quality company that will do an audit of your building, do some or all of the sealing work, and give you a plan to follow. Then you will have to stay on that plan forever. I have worked in rat- and mouse-infested shelter buildings and it takes a whole-village effort to keep the rodent populations low, but it is possible and makes for a much nicer and more hygienic environment. Best of luck!

Does anyone have any experience with supersonic/hypersonic pest control methods? 

I have to find a pest control method (mice and rats, specifically) for a rural partner shelter. Due to the funding source, it has to be a one-time purchase, not an ongoing service.   These devices say they work and won't bother the dogs but I have my doubts on both efficacy and irritation.

If they don't work, does anyone have any other ideas?  Can't use cats due to the location and other factors.  Maybe I'm just dreaming hoping these sonic devices will work but fingers crossed!