18 september 2023
They gnaw on our walls, are in our garbage and give many people the creeps: rats. The rodent is on the rise and causes so much rat nuisance that pest controller Peter Hollander can hardly handle the work anymore. He sits down with Biologist Auke-Florian Hiemstra, who explains that the cause of the rat problem lies largely with ourselves.
Cities around the world are under siege by a pestilence. We were shocked by the images from major American cities, but the four-legged friends are also conquering the Dutch city and countryside. “Sightings are increasing, but that does not necessarily mean that there are more rats,” says Auke-Florian.
Rat is not the problem
“We have bird counts and even molehill counts, but no rat counts yet,” the biologist continues. He thinks we should look at the rat in a different way. “The rat is of course very associated with the plague, but the rat is not the problem. The rat is a symptom of us treating the city incorrectly. We leave our food lying around and then we get angry at the person who comes to clean it up.”
Zaanse Mayonnaise
Whether it’s our own fault or not. Pest controller Peter ‘The terminator’ Hollander has his hands full with the creature, which often outsmarts him. “They are very smart. They walk around my clamps and can also knock them off.” To lure the rats into a trap, Hollander is always looking for new lures. He has now found a good remedy. “Zaanse mayonnaise is my best attractant,” says Hollander.
So Zaanse mayo works, but does that mean that just a block of cheese no longer works? “No, that dries out. Mayonnaise remains nice and greasy, it smells good and they walk well on it,” concludes the pest controller.
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Watch the entire conversation about rat nuisance here.
2023-09-19 10:30:00
#Zaanse #mayonnaise #remedy #rat #nuisance #Op1
