Rat Control in Little Havana

Little Havana runs west from downtown along Calle Ocho, SW 8th Street. Along it you'll find restaurants, cafeterías, small markets, the Tower Theater and Máximo Gómez Park, better known as Domino Park. On the blocks behind them it's older houses, duplexes and small apartment buildings. That mix brings both kinds of calls: roof rats in houses, and rats and mice around the businesses.

The housing here is older and packed close together. Most buildings have had decades of repairs, and gaps at the roofline, around windows and under doors are common. When one building has rats, the one next door usually hears about it soon.

Restaurant Rows and the Houses Behind Them

Grease bins, dumpsters and back doors along Calle Ocho draw rats, and the alleys and side yards give them a path to the houses on the next block. Business owners usually go with a standing program with exterior stations. See commercial rodent control. If you live a block off the main street, watch for burrows by the slab and droppings in the garage. That may be Norway rat work.

Duplexes and Small Apartment Buildings

In a building with shared walls, mice and rats move between units. Sealing one apartment helps a little. Sealing the building helps a lot more. If you rent, tell the owner what you're seeing. If you own the building, ask the provider to look at the whole property, including the trash area and the roof.

Around Little Havana: Calle Ocho (SW 8th St.) · Máximo Gómez Park (Domino Park) · Tower Theater · Little Havana Walk of Fame · Plaza de la Cubanidad · Bay of Pigs Monument

Also serving Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Miami Shores, Hialeah, Doral, Kendall, Pinecrest, Homestead.