Snake control in At Tanim, Makkah

Targeted, not broadcast

Product goes into cracks and runways, never sprayed across open surfaces.
Told before we start

What we will use, where it goes, and what to cover or move before we arrive.
A follow-up visit

We return after the first treatment, because what survives it does not show on the day.
Homes and businesses

Apartments and villas, and kitchens and stores that need a record of each visit.

Why they keep coming back in At Tanim

Hundreds of pilgrims pass through the shops and restaurants daily and wait at the stations, leaving food scraps on every surface and even on the sealed floors of closed shops at night. The method is set out in full on how we approach Snake control.

The first reason

Coach stations provide steady rodent food

The SAPTCO Umrah station and other coach stops hold a constant supply of food scraps from travelling passengers. Rodents live under the stations and in floor cavities, and snakes arrive to hunt this easy prey, waiting under the buildings where travellers cannot see.

The second reason

Stacked commercial shops offer refuge

Ihram and clothing shops are stacked with shelves and boxes, and restaurants hold small kitchens with scattered food debris. Snakes hide between boxes and on high shelves, striking at the rats and geckos that live in the same stacks.

The third reason

Hotels and temporary lodgings are perfect shelters

Hotels, furnished flats and sleeping spaces left by departing guests are filled with food scraps and meal leftovers. Snakes know these places hold abundant food and rodents, so they enter and may surprise an occupant at night.

The character of At Tanim

Commercial area: offices, showrooms and small stores

A commercial area means continuous pilgrim movement, scattered food in abundance, and rodents everywhere. The snake in this setting finds everything it needs to survive, so it settles in the shops and stores rather than passing through and moving on.

Before treatment

What the site tells us before we start

A busy commercial zone on the north western boundary of the Haram, with coach stations, ihram shops, restaurants and many hotels that serve a continuous flow of pilgrims.

A shed skin

Shed snake skins are abundant under high shelves in stores and shops filled with stacked boxes and bundled clothing, where the snake moults in the shelter of the goods.

A winding trail across fine sand beside a wall

The track in the sand

Snake tracks on sandy ground around the coach stations show clearly at night after the crowds leave, revealing where the snake travels to hunt once the flow of people stops.

Concrete blocks stacked against an exterior wall

Block and rubble piles

Stacked boxes and goods in the stores provide complete shelter for snakes from heat and light, especially piles that are not moved for weeks and accumulate undisturbed.

A closed metal gate with a visible gap beneath it

The gap under the gate

Gaps under shop and store doors are wide enough for snake passage, particularly on older doors that have settled slightly over time and no longer seal the ground completely.

A burrow opening in dry soil beside a garden

Rodent burrows

Rodent burrows under the concrete floors of stations and shops provide the initial prey attraction, drawing hungry snakes within days of the rodent population establishing.

A drip irrigation line leaking onto garden soil

A leaking irrigation line

Leaking water from the daily cleaning and washing rituals at the Haram provides constant moisture around the shops, encouraging the growth of small rodent colonies.

How we work

1
Inspect and locate

We work the perimeter, the garden and the service rooms with a torch and a mirror, reading the tracks, the skins and the burrows to establish whether it is still on site and where it came in.
2
Safe removal

It comes out on a hook and tongs into a closed container and is released away from buildings where that is possible, with no chasing it around a room.
3
Close the routes, take away the shelter

A strip under the gate, sleeves around pipe entries, tight covers on the floor drains, and the blocks and palm fronds moved off the wall line.
4
Cut the food, then come back

We treat the rodents and the geckos on the perimeter, then return once that activity has settled to check the sealed points and look for any fresh track.

What snake control includes

A recorded site inspection

Perimeter, garden, service rooms and pipe entries, with tracks and skins recorded before anything is applied.
Drains and entries closed

Tight covers on floor drains, sleeves around waste and air conditioning pipe runs, and the weep holes in the boundary wall closed.
Rodent work around the building

Closed bait stations on the rodent runs, because cutting the prey is what makes the site stop suiting them.
Perimeter treatment down the food chain

Insects on lit walls hold the geckos, and geckos feed some species, so we treat the chain from the bottom up.
A perimeter housekeeping list

What to move off the wall line, how low to cut the ground cover, where the lighting sits, and what to do if you see another one.
A scheduled follow-up

A set date to check the sealed points, the rodent stations and any new track in the sand.

What is different about Al Umrah Sub-Municipality

Al Umrah sub municipality covers the north west of Makkah along the Madinah road and the old Jeddah road, from At Tanim and Masjid Aisha to An Nawwariyah. Its districts are the city's newest, villas and apartment blocks raised on wide schemes where large tracts in Al Umrah Al Jadidah, Al Fayha and Al Buhayrat remain vacant or under construction. Wadi Saraf and Wadi At Tanim run through it and rainwater gathers on unfinished schemes, ihram shops, restaurants and coach stops along the Madinah road serve a constant flow of pilgrims, and villas fill Al Hamra and Umm Al Jud.

Questions about this district

Are snakes common in ihram shops that are temporarily closed?

Very often. A closed shop with no daily activity offers the snake and rodents a safe environment. Rats live among the stacked clothes, and the snake enters through gaps round doors and windows and stays undisturbed for weeks.

Do snakes increase markedly in the hajj and umrah seasons?

Yes, the heavy foot traffic and abundant food in peak seasons attract rodents visibly. This brings more snakes to hunt. On quiet days snakes are much less commonly seen or reported.

Do snakes come from the nearby wadis or do they live in town?

Wadi At Tanim and Wadi Saraf nearby provide the natural habitat for snakes, but many now live permanently in the shops and stores because food here is far more abundant than in the wild.

Does humidity near the Haram boundary affect snake presence?

Yes, steady water from washing in the Haram and ritual ablutions keeps the ground and floors damp. This attracts rodents and geckos, which in turn draw snakes searching for prey.

Does removal work differ between coach stations and shops?

Yes significantly. Stations are open spaces with hiding places under the floors where the snake may be deeper than expected. Shops have solid floors but hidden spots between goods that are harder to search thoroughly.

Can snakes be kept out of an ihram shop before the season starts?

Yes. A thorough inspection before season of the shop and store, sealing all gaps and cracks, helps. We also clean the storage area of food scraps and rubbish to reduce its attraction to rodents first, which starves the snake's reason to come.

How much does snake control in At Tanim cost?

It is set after the inspection, because the price follows the type of infestation, the size of the space, how far it has spread and the number of visits it needs. Send a photo and a description on WhatsApp and we will give you an estimate before we reach At Tanim.