Roof Rat Health

The black rat is black to light brown in colour with a lighter underside.

Roof rat health.

Diseases caused by rats rat droppings rat urine and rat saliva. This is a deadly disease transmitted by infected rodents through urine droppings or saliva. Leptospirosis is typically transmitted through the urine of rats. Like the norway rat they are omnivorous and will feed on most anything if necessary.

Roof rats get ferocious and tend to bite or scratch when threatened or cornered. Black rat ship rat roof rat and house rat. From rat bites and scratches to saliva and urine rats can cause many diseases. Diseases including rat bite fever can be transmitted through a roof rat bite or scratch.

They are black in color with gray abdomens. Health risks from rat disease many people are aware that rats spread disease. The black rat rattus rattus also known as the roof rat ship rat or house rat is a common long tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus rattus in the subfamily murinae. Click here to learn more about the health threats posed by rodents like the roof rat.

I am not a doctor or an expert on zoonotic diseases so i m just repeating some other information that i ve found on the web about rat diseases as collected from the centers for disease control and other sources. Bacteria from their waste can pollute drinking water and food leading to illnesses like salmonellosis. Black rats are very similar in appearance to brown rats but they are slimmer with relatively larger ears and a longer tail. Roof rats are nocturnal and prefer to live and nest above ground in shrubs trees and dense vegitation.

Roof rats are a health hazard being one of the oldest transmitters of diseases. It likely originated in the indian subcontinent but is now found worldwide. One of the most serious concerns with roof rats is contamination. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome hps.

These rats heads and bodies are approximately 4 inches long with their tails being just as long if not longer. The roof rat can be found in warmer climates along the coast. These pests will move into pantries and kitchens to feed on fruits nuts grains and almost anything edible. Black in colour with a lighter coloured ventral belly.

It is a generalist omnivore and a serious pest to farmers because. Symptoms of rat bite fever include vomiting headache fever and muscle and joint pain. Humans can contract the disease when they breathe in aerosolized virus. The food habits of roof rats resemble those of tree squirrels since they both like a wide variety of fruit and nuts.

When a person is infected with this rat borne disease there can be a wide range of symptoms including severe headache high fever vomiting yellow skin and eyes diarrhea rash and abdominal and muscle pain. Hps was first recognized in 1993 and although rare hps is potentially deadly. Roof rats usually require water daily though their local diet may.