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Nobody likes to discover rodents on their property. Whether it’s a long-tailed rat or a tiny, eager mouse, they probably don’t match your idea of ideal house guests, and so you’ll want to get rid of them as swiftly as possible.  A question that many household owners with pets ask is – will my dog attack the rodent? Can dogs keep mice away from my home?

These questions have an array of different connotations, which we’ll do our best to address in this article.

First of all, will dogs attack and kill rodents?

Many pet owners are posing the question in the hope that they have a ready-made and natural solution to their rodent problem. After all, many dogs are somewhat predatory, so will that extend to the rats in your kitchen?

And the answer is, it depends on the dog. Some types of dogs come off of many centuries of selective breeding, precisely with pest prevention in mind. So if you have a dog like a Dachshund, you’re likely also looking at a dog that will attack rats. Because of their body shape, Dachshunds are ideal for attacking a rodent’s burrows and have been trained to shoot to kill, as it were. It’s a similar story with the various breeds of Terriers, such as the Jack Russel or the American Staffordshire. Indeed, there even is a breed of Terrier out there known as the Rat Terrier. We’re sure you can guess why.

But while some dogs will attack and kill the rat, others will simply cower in fear. Many breeds of dogs are scared by nature and are unlikely to make an effective predator.

In general, dogs are more likely to chase after the rodent out of curiosity but quite unlikely to attack or kill it. That’s because they’re not giving chase with extermination in mind, but rather just want to see what all the commotion is about. This brings us to an even better question.

Is it safe for dogs to attack rodents?

A more important question for pet owners, we feel. Yes, you might be able to rely on your canine friend to exterminate a pesky rat and rid you of a problem, but at what cost? What you have to remember here is that rats and mice are notorious carriers of disease and will fight if threatened and cornered. This means that your beloved pet might be injured, and ultimately even killed, if the rat has passed on disease and it isn’t treated in time.

You need to ask yourself – is that a risk you want to take in regard to your four-legged friend? Most pet owners don’t. So our suggestion would be to consider the type of dog you have. If it’s a Dachshund or a Terrier, you might leave your rodent problem up to them. But in most cases, your best bet would be to keep your dog away from the rodent and have a professional pest removal company like Magic Touch Exterminating and Wildlife Control dispose of the problem for you.

Also, most pet parents simply don’t rely on their dog taking care of their rodent problem, they also turn to and utilize snap traps or other traps that can potentially injure their dog or cat unintentionally.

In having your dog go after a rat, you may be saving a few bucks in the short term, but will be spending a lot more on vet bills in the long term.

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