Pest Control Canterbury

Pest Control in Canterbury

Canterbury is one of England's most historic cities, built around the Cathedral and the medieval streets that have drawn pilgrims and visitors for a thousand years. The River Stour winds through the centre, the old city walls still stand in places and the housing stretches from medieval timber frames and Georgian townhouses to Victorian terraces and the large modern developments on the outskirts. The Stour is the biggest single factor in Canterbury's pest picture. Rats follow the river and its channels through the Westgate Gardens, past the high street and on through the water meadows and properties anywhere near the water see consistent rodent activity. The old drains under the city centre are in varying states of repair and a cracked sewer gives rats a second route into buildings. We carry out rat control across Canterbury, from the streets behind the Cathedral to the suburbs of Wincheap, St Dunstans and Hales Place.

Mice are one of the most frequent calls we get in Canterbury. The terraced streets between the city centre and the university campus have shared walls and old pipework that mice use to move between properties. Student houses and HMOs can be harder to manage because turnover is high and small gaps often go unreported between tenancies. Mouse control in these streets needs proofing alongside treatment to stop new mice replacing the old ones. The medieval and Tudor buildings in the city centre have so many hidden voids and interconnected spaces that tracking a mouse problem through them can be a real challenge.

Bed bugs have become a growing issue driven by the constant flow of tourists and students through the city. Hotels, guest houses, student halls and short-term lets all create conditions where bed bugs can spread if they are not caught early. Wasps nest in the eaves and wall cavities of the older buildings and the variety of rooflines across the city gives queen wasps no shortage of options. Pigeons roost on the Cathedral and the older commercial buildings in the centre and pigeon management on listed buildings needs careful planning. The newer estates on the outskirts see field mice coming in from the surrounding farmland and the green spaces along the Stour Valley bring foxes, squirrels and other wildlife into residential areas. Canterbury has the full range of pest pressures that come with an old, busy city sitting on a river.