With the temperature dropping, in come the pests. One pest that is an especially aggressive fall invader is mice. Colorado is home to a number of mice species and many will now begin to invade homes in search of warm places to hide out winter. Often mice will invade homes, commercial buildings, sheds and garages. At this point in the season you may find you’re battling a mice infestation. For those who need help dealing with such an infestation, Effective Pest Services will share a few ways you can get mice out of your home.
Clean Up After Mice
One of the first steps of controlling mice is to start by cleaning up. Mice can hide, nest, and travel through clutter and debris both outside and side. You will want to reduce the number of places mice can use to hide. However, even in a pristine home, mice will find places to hide. However by reducing potential nest sites, it can make it easier to control mice.
Reduce Rodent Resources
Mice need food and water as well as shelter from the elements and predators. This is what homes and other human domains provide them. You will want to reduce, if not completely deny, mice of food and water. This can become tricky since mice only need a little bit of water to survive. Both inside and outside your home look for leaks or dripping water sites. This could include spouts, faucets, sprinklers and leaky water pipes. Thoroughly go through your home and inspect all of your plumbing. Repair or replace dripping or leaking water features in your home. After you have spent time removing any potential water sources, your next focus is removing food sources. Mice will squeeze inside pantries and begin feasting on boxes or packaged goods. When you get a mice infestation you will first want to store your food in rodent proof containers. Use air tight metal or glass containers to store your dried foods. Avoid plastic as mice will chew through plastic to get to the food. There are some heavier plastic containers that can resist rodents if you choose to use plastic. After sealing away your home goods, next make sure to keep a tidy kitchen. Clean up after each meal. Avoid leaving crumbs and dirty dishes out for extended periods of time.
Mice Control
With your home cleaned and you have done your best to reduce water, food and shelter, your next step is to control and rid your home of the mice that wandered inside. There are a number of products used for rodent control. The best starting point is the use of traps. There are live capture traps, kill traps and sticky traps. Most traps will require bait. You can use a number of things for bait such as cheese, peanut butter, or butter. However, mice can become picky. Make sure to replace old bait with fresh bait and make sure to change up the type of bait you use. Mice are very clever and will begin avoiding certain baits once they learn it’s a trap. The use of poison is often used but only in certain situations. Poison can find its way to pets and even children, so they must be carefully placed.
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One of the most reliable mouse control tactics is using a professional pest control service. We can help determine the best location for trap and baits, if poison will be needed and more. When you need a professional and reliable pest control service, call Effective Pest Services today.