Rodent Control in Tobin Hill and Near the Pearl
Tobin Hill runs north of downtown between the Pearl and San Antonio College. Most of its houses are early 1900s bungalows and frame cottages, many split into apartments over the years. On its east side, the old Pearl Brewery has become a mixed district of restaurants, shops and new apartments along the Museum Reach of the River Walk. North St. Mary's Street, the St. Mary's Strip, has its bars and live music.
Older homes, new apartment buildings, restaurants and a river all within a few blocks give rodents plenty of options.
Converted houses and shared walls
When a big old house becomes four apartments, the walls and floors that divide it often have gaps around pipes and wiring. Mice travel between units, and a problem in one unit shows up next door a week later. If you rent, tell the owner in writing. Our tenant and landlord guide covers who handles what in Texas.
Bungalows on piers have crawl spaces, and in this part of town the skirting is often patched or missing. That's where Norway rats settle.
Restaurants and nightlife
The Pearl and the St. Mary's Strip mean late-night food, busy dumpsters and grease bins. Rats work the alleys behind those businesses and spill into nearby yards. Neighbors with fruit trees or compost bins see them most. Business owners can set up commercial service with outside stations and a service log.
Noise in the attic tonight? Talk to someone who handles San Antonio rodents.
Call (210) 955-2948
Older trees on small lots
Tobin Hill lots are small, and many still have big pecans and hackberries that shade two or three houses at once. Roof rats use those trees to move between roofs along the block. If you trim your side, ask the neighbors to do the same, or the rats will just come across from the house next door. Roof rat activity here often shows up as noise over a back bedroom or a porch roof first.
Landmarks and streets: Pearl · N. St. Mary's St. · San Pedro Ave. · Museum Reach · San Antonio College · E. Grayson St. (ZIP 78212, 78215)
Questions from this part of town
Mice keep coming from the apartment next door. What now?
Report it to the owner or manager in writing. Treating one unit at a time rarely works in a converted house. The building needs the gaps sealed.
Are the new apartment buildings safe from rats?
Newer buildings have fewer gaps, but trash rooms and ground-floor retail still draw rodents. Report droppings to management early.
Who handles rats in the alley?
The property owners along it. Overflowing dumpsters and trash can be reported to 311.
Other parts of town: Alamo Heights, Olmos Park and Terrell Hills, Stone Oak, Timberwood Park, Leon Valley, Castle Hills and Shavano Park, Medical Center, Windcrest, Live Oak and Universal City, Leon Springs and Fair Oaks Ranch, Beacon Hill and Five Points, South Side and the Missions, Monte Vista, King William and Southtown, Dignowity Hill and the East Side, Woodlawn Lake and Jefferson, Helotes, Alamo Ranch, Schertz and Cibolo, Boerne, New Braunfels.