Mice can be adorable pets. They can also be frustrating pests. The only difference is where they stay when they're in your home. If they are contained in a regularly cleaned cage and only fed safe foods, mice are wonderful. However, if mice are allowed to roam freely inside, coming and going when they please and eating whatever they find, the problems they’ll cause become endless. For instance, did you know that a mouse can burn your house down? The chances are slim, but if a mouse chews on the right group of wires, and a spark ignites their nest or a patch of insulation nearby, a fire could follow. The question is, how are mice getting into your Elizabeth City home in the first place, and is there any way you can stop them? Let’s find out together.
Common Ways Mice Enter Into Homes
Mice are crafty little creatures and able to invade homes in many different ways. All they need is an entry point. This opening could be a gap in your foundation or a rip in one of your window screens. Mice have even been known to climb trees and jump from close hanging branches onto the roof or enter through a 3rd story open window. The kicker is if a mouse finds a hole in your home that's not big enough, they will use their teeth to make it bigger until they fit. By the way, mice only need a hole the size of a nickel to squeeze inside, and they will search high and low until they find it with the right motivation.
Why Mice Invade Homes
There are a few reasons why mice want to be in your house. For one, your home provides them with several safe places to hide, such as inside your wall voids or around storage areas cramped with boxes. Your home also provides mice with an infinite amount of food. As long as you keep bringing home groceries, mice will never run out of food to eat. Finally, your home is warm. While not as important during the summer months - when winter hits, this warmth becomes vital to their survival.
Prevention Steps
The good news is that you can prevent mice from invading with a little effort. To do this, you need to focus on two things: blocking off their entry points and limiting their food supply. Below are some practical ways you can do this.
- Make sure all of your screens are in good repair.
- Clean clutter from your yard.
- Store all leftover food inside of airtight containers or inside your refrigerator.
- Clean regularly and limit the areas around your house where you eat food to 1 or 2 rooms.
- Pick up pet bowls and clean them out before going to bed at night.
- Purchase a caulking gun and some wire mesh and use them to seal up gaps, cracks, and holes around the exterior of your home. Common places you will find these entry points are around window and door frames, along your exterior foundation, and on the outside of utility pipes.
Why Choose Professional Pest Control For Mouse Problems
Many resources on the internet will tell you that dealing with mice is easy. They say to buy a few traps, and bingo, problem solved. Unfortunately, the answer is not always that simple. With a few rodents, you might have luck with mouse traps and bait. However, with larger infestations, traps don’t work fast enough to eliminate every mouse. There are chemical-based mouse control products on the market also, but we recommend avoiding these. Misused, they can put you, your family, and your pets at risk of getting very sick.
The simplest and safest way to get mice out of your home is by letting the professionals here at Albemarle Termite & Pest Control come to your aid. We have the tools and experience needed to eliminate rodent infestations of any size and will be happy to share our years of success with you. Give us a call today with any questions you have or to schedule home pest control services for your Elizabeth City, NC home.