A rodent control service does not end when the van leaves. Bait stations, tracking powder, glue boards, and snap traps keep working for 3 to 21 days, and most cat exposures happen 1 to 3 days after the technician is gone, not during the visit. Move the cat out before the service starts, keep it out for 72 hours, and treat any rodent found indoors as a toxic object that has to leave the house within 24 hours.
Why 72 hours, and not 2
Labels on rodenticide ask for re-entry after 2 to 4 hours, which is an air-quality number, not a cat number. The second-generation anticoagulant class is designed to kill after a single feed and to stay in tissue for weeks. A cat that eats a bait pellet or a poisoned mouse shows nothing for 24 to 72 hours, because the clotting factors it destroys have to fall before bleeding starts. That delay is the whole reason for a fixed 3-day window instead of a look-around.
Before the visit: 24 to 48 hours of prep
Book the service for a day when someone is home, and move the cat to a closed room or another address 24 hours before the technician arrives. Empty the food and water bowls from every treated room, lift the bowls off the floor by 1 m if they have to stay, and photograph each room so you can compare placement afterwards. Ask the company for 4 things in writing: the active ingredient class, the number and location of bait points, the re-entry time, and whether tracking powder or glue boards will be used. A company that will not list bait points is a company to replace.
The 4 things a technician leaves behind
Locked bait stations are the safest form, but a station with a 1 cm gap or a cracked hinge is a cat-sized door. Tracking powder travels on paws and is groomed off hours later. Glue boards trap a cat by the paw and strip fur and skin when pulled. Snap traps break toes on a cat that investigates a 20 g mouse-sized trigger. Ask which of the 4 will be used, and remove glue boards and snap traps from any room the cat can reach before it comes home.
The isolation geometry: 2 metres, 1 door, 6 hours of air
One closed door is the minimum, and 2 doors or a different floor is better, because a cat that slips out at hour 3 is exactly the scenario the 72-hour rule is written for. Keep a 2 m buffer between the cat and any bait point, seal gaps under doors wider than 1 cm, and ventilate treated rooms for 6 hours with 2 windows open before anyone spends time in them. Write the re-entry time on the door in marker, with the date, so a family member who was not there does not guess.
The dead rodent problem
A poisoned mouse carries a dose in its liver, and a cat that eats 1 or 2 of them can take in enough to bleed. Rodents also die in the open, in the middle of a room, at 2 to 3 days after baiting, which is inside the 72-hour window. Check the treated rooms twice a day, pick carcasses up with gloves and a bag rather than a bare hand, double-bag them, and put them in a bin the cat cannot open. Do not let a cat near a carcass to satisfy curiosity, and do not assume a small mouse is a small dose.
48 and 72 hours: what the clock is for
At 48 hours, a veterinarian can run a clotting test and get a number before any bleeding is visible; at 72 hours the same test is more informative still. Between visits, check the gums twice a day for pale pink turning white, look for bruising on the belly, and watch for black stool, nosebleeds, or a cat that is suddenly quiet and cold. Breathing that climbs above 40 per minute, or any wobble on the stairs, moves the appointment to today. A cat with no signs at day 3 still needs the day 5 to day 7 check, because the slow class can surface at 5 to 7 days.
Cleaning up without spreading it
Sweeping a dry powder moves roughly 60 per cent of it into the air. Use a vacuum with a fine filter, 2 passes over the same strip, and empty the canister outdoors. Wet-wipe skirting boards, the undersides of appliances, and the floor within 1 m of each bait point, then throw the cloth away rather than rinsing it in the kitchen sink. Wash hands for 20 seconds after gloves come off, and keep the cat out until every surface is dry.
What each form leaves, and how long it matters
| Left behind | Hazard window | Deadline to handle | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bait station | 14 to 21 days | 72 hours to count | Photograph and number |
| Loose pellets | 72 hours plus | 24 hours | Vacuum, then wet-wipe |
| Tracking powder | 72 hours | 24 hours | Wet-wipe, never sweep |
| Glue board | Until removed | Before re-entry | Remove from the house |
| Dead rodent | 24 hours | 24 hours | Gloves, double bag |
If the cat got in anyway
Note the hour, the room, and what was chewed, then call a veterinarian or a poison line within 30 minutes. Do not induce vomiting and do not give anything by mouth, including milk or oil; the treatment decision belongs to the clinic, which may check clotting at 48 and 72 hours and repeat it at 5 to 7 days. Bring the bait station label, even an empty one. A photo of the station in place tells the vet more than a description of a green block on the floor.
5 steps that cover the whole visit
- Move the cat out 24 hours before the service and keep it out for 72 hours after.
- Get the bait-point map and the active ingredient class in writing.
- Remove glue boards and snap traps before the cat comes home.
- Walk the rooms twice a day for dead rodents and wet-wipe the 2 m zone.
- Book the 48-hour clotting check if any bait was chewed or a carcass was found.
For the mechanism behind the slow class, the signs it produces, and how treatment is monitored, read anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning. If the cat was seen with bait in its mouth, the hour-by-hour steps are in rodenticide ingestion. To check a product before the technician arrives, use the toxin lookup tool.
Frequently asked
The technician said 4 hours before re-entry. Why do you say 72?
The 4-hour figure is about air and dust settling, and it is written for people. A cat walking the same floor picks residue up on 4 paws and grooms it off, and the slow-acting baits produce signs at 24 to 72 hours, not at hour 4. Use the label number for ventilation and a 72-hour number for the cat, and keep the cat out of the treated rooms until both have passed.
My cat ate a mouse that was probably poisoned. Is one mouse dangerous?
It can be. A rodent that died from an anticoagulant bait holds a dose in its liver, and 1 or 2 small mice can carry enough for a 4 kg cat. Call a veterinarian within 30 minutes, note the hour, and expect a clotting check at 48 and 72 hours, repeated at 5 to 7 days. Do not wait for bleeding to start before making the call.
Can I just put the cat in one room and leave the bait stations out?
Only if the room passes 3 checks: a door that closes fully, no gap over 1 cm under it, and no bait point within 2 m. Glue boards and snap traps should still leave the house, because a cat that slips out at hour 3 meets them first. Photograph each station, count them, and check the count again after 72 hours before the cat gets the run of the house.