12 Mar 2012
Every Spring our native woodpeckers begin their courtship song.
Unfortunately, this song involves rapid pecking or drumming against wood or other resonating objects. This may include your home.
To conform with the Federal Migratory Bird Act, harassing or discouraging these birds is all that can be done to keep them off your home.
EHS has developed a method non-harming repellant to keep them off for the season.
02 Dec 2011
Police and fire officials say a Ventura woman was arrested for allegedly spraying a 12-year-old girl in the face with a can of insecticide.
Police told the Ventura County Star that 52-year-old Jeanette Rohde was arrested Tuesday for investigation of child endangerment and assault with a caustic chemical.
Officers say Rohde went to the victim's house and argued with the girl and her mother. She left but police say she returned and when the girl answered the door, she squirted her in the face with a can of ant and insect spray.
George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist
21 Oct 2011
Squirrels Do 17% of the Damage to Fiber Optic Network
Fred Lawler, senior vice president of global field services at Level 3, said that "squirrel chews" account for a whopping 17 percent of the company's damage repairs this year, across 57,000 miles of intercity and 27,000 miles of metropolitan fiber.
Lawler noted, "Of all the animals in the whole world, almost all of our animal damage comes from this furry little nut eater. Squirrel chews account for a whopping 17% of our damages so far this year! But let me add that it is down from 28% just last year and it continues to decrease since we added cable guards to our plant. Honestly, I don’t understand what the big attraction is or why they feel compelled to gnaw through cables. Our guys in the field have given this some thought and jokingly suspect the cable manufacturers of using peanut oil in the sheathing. If you have any new ideas on how we can combat these wayward rodents, I’d love to hear from you. We are always looking for ways to improve."
George Williams
General Manager - Staff Entomologist
07 Oct 2011
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In today’s tough economic and housing climate there are residential houses that are vacant for extended periods of time. Months long is not uncommon and in some cases it may be a year or more. It is worse when it is a foreclosure when the occupants leave with no notice and leave many possessions behind. In some cases they leave behind food items, grass seed, bird food, pet food, etc. A total buffet for pests!
The problem with houses like this is that pests often find the house and can get out of hand in a short period of time. Mice are a perfect pest for these situations. They are prolific breeders so in 3 months the number of mice in a home can quadruple! The environment is perfect for them, the house is vacant, quiet, dark, and there is always food and nesting material left behind.
The attached picture shows you exactly this scenario. Mice got so out of control in this vacant house that they created heavy runways (travel routes) into voids. The picture shows a gnaw hole created into a floor void from the basement level. You can see the “greasy” rub marks that are created when mice frequent the same paths. These rub marks are from the lanolin (oil) on their fur. In this case the buyers home inspector pointed out that there was a high level of mouse activity and they should contact a professional. EHS performed an initial treatment and excluded the mice out at the foundation level. We then did a 30 day follow up and have a 6 month follow up on the books. The treatment program with 1 year warranty was enough to satisfy the bank plus buyer and the home was sold. See, professional pest control is good for the economy!
Alex Johnson
Service Specialist
Environmental Health Services, Inc.
05 Oct 2011
The call came into the EHS office that the customer hears a squeaking and scratching noise mostly in at nighttime. We suspect either mice or possibly squirrels so we set up a free inspection to determine the pest activity if any, and proposal for service if needed.
I get there and inspect the outside of the house then inside and find no evidence of a pest. The customer is insistent that he is hearing the noise and he really heard it just before I got there. He thinks it is coming from the attic.
So I go up in the attic and I find nothing. I tell the customer that I am going to stay quiet for a bit to find out if I can hear the squeaking. It’s July, I am in an attic sitting perfectly still for 15 minutes, the outside temperature reads 92 degrees, this means the attic is at least 120 degrees! After 15 min I am a good 2-3lbs lighter and I tell the customer I can’t see or hear anything so I am coming down. As I close the door to the attic the customer yells that he is hearing it again. I run to where he is and listen.
Is that the sound you hear? “YEP that’s it”, he replies. The sound you are hearing is coming from your VHS player!!! The customer apologized profusely. I suggested he go out and buy a DVD player!
Mike McGoldrick
Service Supervisor
Environmental Health Services, Inc.
25 Mar 2011
Near South Side Bakery Closed After Inspectors Find Rats, Unsafe Food
A Near South Side bakery was shut down after city inspectors found something customers aren’t too fond of - rats and food stored at unsafe temperatures.
Mayor Daley’s Dumpster Task Force shut down St. Anna’s Bakery, 2158 S. Archer Ave., Thursday due to a rat infestation and unsafe food holding temperatures, according to a release from the city’s Dept. of Streets & Sanitation.
Inspectors visited the bakery in response to a complaint about rodent activity and found more than 70 rate droppings throughout the kitchen. Inspectors also found St. Anna’s had problems with the temperatures in their walk-in cooler.
Food temperatures ranged from 50 to 60 degrees and more than 400 pounds of food had to be thrown away, the release said.
St. Anna’s was closed for the critical violations of inadequate pest control and for failure to protect foods from contamination. The bakery must correct their rodent problems, revamp their housekeeping and pest control programs and repair their cooler before they can request and pass a detailed re-inspection.
Source = Chicago Sun Times
George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist
15 Mar 2011
07 Feb 2011
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We are experts at inspecting & finding things that people would ordinarily ignore or miss. That is the nature of what we do. In this particular case just about anyone would be able to see what is going on. Burrows in the snow are a pretty obvious sign of a pest issue. The burrows you are looking at are rat burrows. They are fresh & active as you can see the tracks & paw prints in the snow as well as the mud staining around the burrow entrance.
Rats can easily burrow through frozen soil & freezing cold snow with no problem at all. Rats are experts at adapting to the conditions in their environment. Typically rat burrows are well hidden because they do not want to be seen by predators but when it is winter they have no choice. It certainly makes exterior inspections easier for me!
18 Jan 2011
THE THINKER!
The attention to detail? The deep & intense concentration? Notice the resemblance?
We at EHS always pride ourselves on state of the art training that is why we are widely considered an industry leader in this area. Here you see EHS Service Supervisor Mike “Spike” McGoldrick (the one with the gray hair & glasses) taking an online training program on safety. It is almost like he is trying to get inside the computer!
I just could not resist using this picture for our blog and poking fun of Spike! It does show you our fun & team friendly atmosphere plus ongoing training protocols. I can’t wait to take a picture of Spike when he is trying to figure out how to use his new smartphone!
05 Jan 2011
Cockroach dookie? OK, it is not the most technical term but it sure does get the point across! We all know that having roaches where we eat & live is socially unacceptable but...
Exactly how unhealthy is it? This video is graphic proof that the bacterial levels associated with cockroaches is extremely high! Look at the bacteria count after just 24 hours time with a simple swab of “dookie.”
What if this is a commercial food handling facility like a restaurant or food manufacturer? You have an obligation to protect the public in addition to your brand. Even a few cockroaches can cause a serious issue.
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