• Rats are typically the first animals people think of as pests, but there are as many types of rodent as there are ways to control them.rat image by RomainQu??r?? from Fotolia.com
  
  Rodents---members of the Rodentia family, defined as small mammals that gnaw their food and obstacles in their way---are often considered pests. Beavers, for example, are very important to the natural environment but might chew down your favorite ornamental trees. Rats and mice are the most prevalent rodent pests, and a number of government grants are available for controlling their populations and the damage they do.
  
  

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)

• NIFA, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), offers at least 10 grants to agriculture-based businesses that utilize and/or research bio-based---environmentally friendly---pest management. Although most of the grants are applied for and awarded to insect pest management programs, some specify mammal control and most do not designate rodent programs as ineligible. These grant programs include, but are not limited to: Extension Integrated Pest Management (IPM), Small Business Innovation Research, Pest Management Alternatives Program (PMAP), National Research Initiative and Crops at Risk (CAR).
  
  National Institute of Food and Agriculture
  
  Waterfront Centre
  
  800 9th St. SW.
  
  Washington, DC 20024
  
  202-720-4423
  
  Crees.usda.gov
  
  

Bureau of Land Management (BLM)

• BLM awards pest control grants each year to state, county and local governments throughout the country. The BLM grants change with demand and are often created based on applications for assistance rather than preplanned by the agency. For example, the spring 2010 Wyoming County Weed and Pest Control grant has a $9 million total funding package and offers up to $500,000 for invasive plants and non-plant species on BLM land. Although this particular grant offering is specific to Wyoming, BLM has the prerogative to allocate plant, insect and animal control grant resources elsewhere.
  
  BLM
  
  Business and Fiscal Resources
  
  1849 C Street NW, Rm. 5624
  
  Washington, DC 20240
  
  307-775-6293
  
  Epa.gov
  
  

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Much like BLM, the EPA has the authority to award grant money to rodent and other pest control programs. EPA grants focus on pest control practices and research that maximize environmental health and minimize harmful toxicity. For example, one IPM grant, designed for best practices in environmentally friendly pest control in agricultural programs, has a fund of $93,000 to be divided between two applicants or awarded in full to just one. The applicants are then required to develop and/or utilize rodent and other pest control methods that use few, if any, pesticides.
  
  EPA
  
  Ariel Rios Building
  
  1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
  
  Washington, DC 20460
  
  202-272-0167
  
  Epa.gov