A mouse infestation can have catastrophic consequences for a home or business owner. This may sound like an overly dramatic statement. As you will see in a moment, it is not. If you learn that you have a mouse infestation in your residence, you need to understand the most effective way to eliminate these vermin.
Signs of a Mouse Infestation
The surest way to prevent the worst consequences of a mouse infestation is to take action to eradicate the rodents promptly. The only way you can take the promptest eradication action possible is to quickly identify the presence of mice in your home or business as directly after an infestation occurs as possible. Thus, you must know the basic signs of mouse infestation:
- Gnawing on the structure of the house or business as well as objects
- Mouse Droppings
- Greasy looking trails where mice traverse
- Scratch marks
- Scratching sounds
- Squealing sounds
- Scurrying sounds
- Smell of urine
Mouse Extermination Techniques Available to a Home or Business Owners
Cutting straight to the chase, the most effective way a home or business owner can eradicate or exterminate mice infesting a property is through the use of a traditional snap trap. The traditional snap trap generally comes in the form of a small wooden triangle with a spring-loaded bar on top. The trap is baited, with the intent of attracting mice. When a mouse arrives and attempts to take the bait, the spring-loaded bar snaps down on the rodent, immediately killing it.
When using spring-loaded traps, they need to be placed in locations in a residence or business where mice traverse. This can be determined by the signs of infestation discussed a moment ago.
When initially placing mice traps of this nature, don’t bait them. Mice may be wary of them when first set about. Thus, you’ll be wasting bait. Once the traps have been in place for a few days, bait them because mice should no longer be wary of them.
Other types of mouse extermination techniques include:
- Poisoned bait
- Electric traps
- Catch and release traps
- Glue Traps
Poisoned bait can be highly effective. However, there are drawbacks. Poisoned bait can harmful and even fatal is mistakenly eaten by a pet. A child likewise could become terribly sick if poisoned bait is consumed. Indeed, children have died by mistakenly ingesting poisoned mouse bait.
Electric traps are fairly effective and usually kill mice instantly. Catch and release traps are also fairly effective; however, you have the added task of needing to appropriately release the captured mouse an appropriate distance away from your home or business and in a manner that is authorized by local ordinances.
Glue traps are fairly roundly frowned upon. They are considered the most inhumane type of mousetrap. A trapped mouse will languish for days and eventually died from lack of food and water.
Coordinating Sealing of the Premises
Once you are certain mice have been removed from the premises, you need to diligently plug and holes and block other passages mice could use to access your home or business again in the future. The reality is that eradicating mice is meaningless if you leave portals through which they can return again.
Keep in mind that a mouse can get through even the smallest hole. A mouse can get through a hole that is no larger than a dime.
Benefits of Professional Mouse Extermination
Although you may work tirelessly in your attempts to exterminate mice in your home or business, you may never be able to complete the task. As a result, while you may eliminate mice with some regularity, the mouse infestation will remain and these rodents will continue to damage your home and present a risk to your health and the health of your family.
With these facts in mind, you will want to give serious consideration to hiring a mouse extermination professional. A professional has the tools, resources, supplies, and equipment necessary to safely and effectively eliminate a mouse infestation.
Proactive Steps to Prevent Mouse Infestation in a Home
In addition to plugging and blocking potential passages for mice, once an infestation is eradicated, you need to take some additional steps to prevent these rodents from returning. These steps include:
- Keep food in tightly sealed containers
- Make certain indoor and outdoor trashcans are tightly sealed
- Eliminate clutter from inside or outside your home or business
- Keep your home or business clean
- Eliminate and water drips or leaks in and around your home
- Keep bushes, shrubs, and other foliage away from being directly against exterior walls
- Keep lawn regularly mowed and gardens neat and tidy
Final Cleanup After Mouse Infestation
Whether you undertake mouse infestation yourself or hire a professional, there is one more step you need to take when the mice are gone. You need to ensure that any mouse droppings that remain behind, as well as dried urine and other waste, are safely and thoroughly removed from the premises.
Mice droppings can contain dangerous viruses and bacteria, pathogens that can carry serious and even potentially fatal disease. Indeed, when mouse droppings dry out, there are pathogens that remain alive in the feces. These dry droppings can easily crumble, causing the dust and dangerous pathogens to become airborne.
Due to the dangerous nature of mouse droppings, you should seriously consider hiring a skilled, experienced rodent droppings cleanup company to handle this task. By going this route, you can rest assured that your residence or business is restored to a safe and healthy condition.