Roof Rat Vs Mouse

The most common rat species in the u s.

Roof rat vs mouse.

Like mice rats are nocturnal have very poor eyesight but have very strong senses of smell taste and hearing. How to tell the difference between rat vs mouse by their droppings. Norway rats for example stay around the lower levels of homes while roof rats prefer higher elevations like attics. So if rats and mice have found food around your home you might find their droppings in the kitchen as well as the attic or other places they hide.

Are the norway rat and the roof rat. A norway rat has capsule shaped feces while a roof rat has spindle shaped droppings and a house mouse has rod shaped excrement. Compared to mice rats are much larger have coarser fur and have proportionately larger heads and feet. Norway rat poop droppings norway rat poop droppings are even thicker that the roof rats and typically much shorter than field mice and roof rats.

Roof rat droppings are very similar to the house mouse but much thicker. Typically the length will still be the same but the thickness will be much greater than the typical field mouse. As you can see the biggest difference is size. Since most mice and rats tend to be nocturnal you may only notice them when you find food missing or with bites taken out of fruit or cereal.

Droppings are typically found around where these creatures eat. However rats and mice have different nesting preferences. While there are several species of rats and mice i will examine the two most common ones the roof or black rat and the house mouse both seen in the above photograph. You also may notice only when you discover they ve destroyed a part or parts of your property.

Rats live in similar colony structures.