Rats and mice are far more than just unwelcome visitors. In food businesses, catering, hospitality, logistics, agriculture, municipal facilities, and facility management, rodent pests can cause significant hygiene, material, and financial damage.
Anyone wishing to control an infestation professionally will therefore often come into contact with rodenticides. However, clear legal requirements apply specifically to the professional use of these biocidal products.
For certain rodenticides and applications, the corresponding Expertise in rodent pest control required. Kaeferling Pro offers a compact, officially recognized course for this purpose, with 1 online day and 3 in-person days, including theoretical and practical examinations to.
After successfully completing the course, participants receive the relevant certificates of expertise and can document their qualifications to authorities, customers, clients, or auditors.
Why is expertise required for rodenticides?
Rodenticides are biocidal products and are subject to extensive legal requirements. There is a good reason for this: Improper use can pose risks to people, pets, wildlife, and the environment.
Among other things, the legal requirements distinguish between different user categories and the respective authorization of a product.
For biocidal products for whose intended use the user category “trained professional user” is required, Section 15c of the Hazardous Substances Ordinance requires corresponding expertise.
Since January 1, 2025, the regulations governing the sale and supply of biocidal products under the German Biocidal Products Implementing Ordinance (ChemBiozidDV) have also applied. Rodenticides are subject to special requirements regarding their offer and supply. The respective product authorization also determines which user category a product may be supplied to and who is permitted to use it.
For companies, this means: Anyone wishing to carry out professional rodent pest control independently should carefully check what qualification is required for the intended products and applications.
Expertise is more than a certificate
Professional rodent pest control is not simply a matter of putting out bait.
Proper control already begins with assessing the infestation:
- What type of rodent pest is present?
- How severe is the infestation?
- Where are the travel routes, hiding places, and food sources?
- Which preventive measures are possible?
- Is the use of a rodenticide necessary at all?
- Which active ingredient and application are approved?
- How are people and non-target organisms protected?
- How must the measure be documented and monitored?
This is precisely the knowledge that qualified expertise is intended to provide.
The Hazardous Substances Ordinance therefore requires not only theoretical legal knowledge, but also practical knowledge and skills in areas including toxicology and ecotoxicology, risk minimization, infestation prevention, alternative control methods, dosing and application, effectiveness monitoring, and proper disposal.
The Kaeferling Pro course: 1 day online + 3 days in person
Kaeferling Pro's training course for expertise combines digital learning with intensive practical training.
The format comprises a total of four training days:
Day 1: Online training – Killing vertebrates
The first training day takes place as a live online seminar and deals with the proper and animal welfare-compliant handling of vertebrates.
Topics include, among other things:
- Fundamentals of animal welfare law
- Requirements for killing animals in compliance with animal welfare standards
- Anatomy and physiology of rats and mice
- Behavior of the relevant pest rodents
- Suitable killing methods
- Correct implementation of the procedures
- Legal foundations of species protection
This allows the first part to be completed conveniently from the workplace or at home.
Days 2 to 4: In-person training – Use of rodenticides
This is followed by three in-person training days focusing on professional pest rodent control with rodenticides.
Topics include, among other things:
- Legal foundations and biocidal products law
- Active ingredients and modes of action of rodenticides
- Risks and risk-reduction measures
- Infestation assessment and baiting strategy
- proper use of tamper-resistant bait stations
- Documentation, first aid, and practical exercises
The goal is not merely to pass an examination. Participants should then understand, when, why, and how professional pest rodent control is carried out properly.
Theory and practice: The course ends with an examination
A recognized training course for expertise under the Hazardous Substances Ordinance includes an examination covering the essential course content.
The course therefore concludes with a theoretical and practical examination ends with
After successful participation and passing the examination, participants receive the corresponding certificates for the areas of competence covered in the course.
According to the course description, these include in particular:
Certificate of competence for controlling rodents with rodenticides
under Section 15c (3) in conjunction with Annex I No. 4.4 of the Hazardous Substances Ordinance.
Certificate of competence for killing vertebrates
under Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act.
This turns a four-day training course into a qualification that may be relevant to numerous professional fields.
Who is the certificate of competence course suitable for?
The course is not exclusively aimed at trained pest controllers.
The qualification is particularly relevant for:
- Employees and career changers in pest control
- Facility managers and building service providers
- Property management and real estate companies
- Hygiene and quality management
- Food production and food retail
- Catering and hotel businesses
- Logistics and warehousing companies
- Agricultural businesses
- Municipal companies and public works depots
- Waste disposal companies
- Employees involved in sewer maintenance
Especially for companies that want to carry out certain rodent control measures themselves in the future, the appropriate qualification of their own employees can be an important component of in-house pest management.
What are the participation requirements?
The following prerequisites apply for participation in the course offered by Kaeferling Pro:
Minimum age: 18 years
as well as good German language skills.
How long is the certificate of competence valid?
An important point that is easily overlooked in practice: Competence is not a certificate obtained once and then never requiring any further attention.
Under Annex I No. 4.4 of the Hazardous Substances Ordinance, the corresponding certificates of competence are generally valid for a period of six years.
Successfully completing an officially recognized continuing education course can then extend the validity period again.
Companies should therefore incorporate the renewal deadlines for their qualified employees into their internal training and compliance processes.
What advantage does the combination of online and in-person instruction offer?
Four days of further training also mean four days of staff deployment for companies.
By dividing it into one online day and three in-person days at least part of the course can be completed without additional travel.
At the same time, in-person instruction is not dispensed with for the crucial practical content.
This creates a sensible combination:
Online: flexible and efficient for theoretical fundamentals.
In person: direct exchange, practical exercises, and examination.
This connection is particularly useful for a topic such as the application of rodenticides, because legal knowledge alone is not sufficient for professional implementation.
Professional rodent control means risk management
Modern rodent control does not aim to deploy as much rodenticide as possible.
On the contrary.
Professional pest management means analyzing an infestation as accurately as possible, making full use of prevention options, selecting suitable methods, and limiting the use of biocides to what is necessary.
These include, for example, structural measures, hygiene measures, removing food sources, monitoring, and alternative control methods.
Only once the use of a rodenticide is necessary and permitted do the correct product selection, placement, dosage, monitoring, and documentation become important.
It is precisely this combination of Effectiveness, legal certainty, occupational safety, animal welfare, and environmental protection makes expertise in professional rodent control so important.
Acquire expertise in rodent control now
Anyone who wants to work professionally with professional rodenticides should familiarize themselves with the applicable expertise requirements at an early stage.
With the expertise course from Kaeferling Pro Participants have a compact opportunity to acquire the required theoretical and practical knowledge in just four training days:
✓ 1 day of live online seminar
✓ 3 days of in-person training
✓ theoretical and practical examination
✓ officially recognized course
✓ Proof of expertise upon successful completion
You can find current dates, venues, and further information directly from Kaeferling Pro:
Expertise: Rodent control with rodenticides – course with examination & certificate
