Puerto Vallarta: The Occasional Bug

Getting Rid of Unwanted Pests

We’ve heard from friends who have questions about what to do about rodents. Although we haven’t seen any rats in all our years in Puerto Vallarta, we’ve seen mice in unsuspecting places. We have a cat, so we haven’t really had issues with these types of pests. Our cat scares them away, apparently, because we’ve never been presented with a head or a tail, let alone a whole bodied creature.

We discourage the use to poison. Quite often the poisoned and dying rodent is discovered by a pet, and results can be tragic. Or, the pet comes across the toxic trap and becomes the unintended victim.

We have gathered some safer remedies for our readers in Puerto Vallarta. For those of you troubled by varmints, we hope we can help solve your problem.

A very logical solution that applies to rodents, ants, flies, etc, is keeping food in metal containers; plastic can be easily chewed through. Daily shopping in Puerto Vallarta helps avoid leftover food and it provides entertainment, as well. Don’t leave garbage in the house; get it out on the street on your assigned day. If you shop only for what you will eat in a day, there will lots of space in your refrigerator to protect food.

Traps with a sticky substance that keeps the rodent from getting away are available in Puerto Vallarta’s ferreterías (hardware stores) but then you’re left with the task of dispatching the unattractive and, by now most likely, frantic thing. There are also traditional traps but they have a similar dilemma. If the mouse is not completely gonzo, you face dealing with his imminent demise.

Peppermint deflects rats and mice; they don’t like the scent. Tea bags have been suggested; peppermint oil dribbled onto a tissue or left in a wee container is more effective. Mothballs have the same result.

We’ve tried ultrasonic devices for mosquitoes and not sure if we had luck with them since we applied so many remedies simultaneously (as one tends to do) but they’re also obtainable for rodents.

Clean floors regularly with Fabuloso, bleach and/or vinegar. Fresh ginger may also be a deterrent but we suspect it might attract other unwanteds.

Ultimately, we say get a cat, or a dog. Cats take care of just about everything they find trespassing upon their personal realm. This is, of course, only a great solution if you live in Puerto Vallarta year round, or plan to travel with your accommodating friend.

Que es cómo es.

Thanks to our Guest Blogger Adam Garcia for this great article!  (Opinions expressed are his own…)

About Vacation Villas of Mexico Founder, Vanessa Cole

The founder of the company, Vanessa Cole, lived in Puerto Vallarta for 10 years and in Cancun for 2 years. She has worked in Luxury Vacation Villa Rentals since 2001.

Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Vanessa earned a degree from the University of Texas in Austin, majoring in International Business and Latin American Studies.  Fluent in Spanish, she has worked and traveled all over Mexico and South America.

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