Fall has begun, and as the days get shorter and colder, pests will look for shelter from the elements. Rat colonies are a huge problem for homeowners during the cold seasons, where large numbers of these dirty rodents can swarm and infest a home. Rats often break into sheds, basements, or attics for a place to nest. They can even live within your walls, chewing through insulation and creating drafts in your home and wasting your heat; and chewed wires can become fire hazards. How do these furry little monsters make their way into your home? Most rats can fit through holes about the size of a nickel or even smaller, but they will chew the edges to make it even bigger. Rats carry a vast number of diseases, and can cause your family to become very sick if they stick around.