Mouse Prevention

Mice and rats are the two most common in-home rodent nuisances to date and are known for crawling throughout the house and causing unseemly noises behind walls. Their real danger is the bacteria attached to mice, which can be spread throughout your home – onto your kitchen counter, in your food cabinets, and in other vulnerable areas. Instead of learning to live with the nest of mice within your walls, consider these steps for a viable mouse prevention strategy.

Things That Mice Love

To start, making your environment unfriendly to the living conditions of mice will stop more from visiting your home. A few things that can increase your home’s mouse population include scraps of food, opportunities to nest, an open-source of water, and vegetation overgrowth. Trash is an obvious one, which typically attracts mice with pungent smells. This is why a secure lid with a bit of weight is needed.

Additionally, different items in your yard that could be potential shelters for mice should be cleaned up so that they have nowhere to settle down. Some mice burrow beneath piles of junk, so be on the lookout for the smaller opportunities that aren’t immediately noticeable.

A water source is often seen near mice habitats, mostly in the form of small pools of water in a yard or garden. Reshaping the soil and dampening out those areas will give mice less water to drink, making it harder to live around your home. Lastly, overgrown vegetation gives mice more reason to hang around your abode, so keep it trimmed to further deter pesky mice from intrusion.

Keep Your Walls Sealed

Mice are known to adventure the nooks and crannies of the home until they have a network of entry points to travel through. Once entry points are established, the danger of nesting becomes more immediate. To see if your walls need some fixing, check exterior walls for signs of insect damage, as mice are likely to take advantage of this. Additionally, seal holes around piping or utility wiring no matter the size. Since mice can be of such miniature size, it’s safest to be proactive and keep every possible opening secure. Even if the hole is impossibly small, mice can always widen it with the use of their teeth.

Enclose Nooks & Crannies

Similar to how you’d seal holes around pipes and wiring, try to identify those areas that display damage or openings for mice to travel through. The foundation of your home might have some holes, as well as the garage, and openings around doors and windows are commonly seen as well. A smaller detail to consider is whether your garage door has a small gap, and needs new rubber seals to eliminate that space. Drains and vents need to be secured and the chimney should have a cap to prevent easy entry.

Famish Them

Keeping your food and trash under locks from the reaches of mice will prevent them from coming back over time. The difficulty arises in their powerful teeth, capable of cutting through concrete and even a few lighter metals. Therefore, simply securing a trash lid won’t be enough in many cases. Keep your outside trash bins in the garage instead for some added security and make sure trash inside the house is enclosed, never open. As for food in simple cardboard boxes, try using plastic containers with a tougher surface. Lastly, keep from stacking dirty dishes by the sink and either keep it clean or full of water so that no food can be nibbled on.

Poisonous Baits

If your problem persists, and you’re searching for a poisonous solution, rodenticides can be employed to simply kill off your mouse problem. These can be easily purchased at the local hardware store, feed stores, and garden centers. Remember that if you find yourself repeatedly baiting mice in your home, it might point to a sanitation issue or a need to patch up open entryways.

Wrapping it Up

Mice can be more difficult than most people imagine, with their extremely strong teeth and versatile size. Luckily, there are several steps that can mouse-proof your home and keep harmful bacteria from spreading to food, bathrooms, and other vulnerable spaces. Keeping food in different containers and securing your trash cans is a great start. After taking note of any current damage or holes around the exterior of the home, make sure to seal them immediately. Pay attention to the smaller things too, such as possible gaps beneath your garage door or loose vents that mice are taking advantage of. Continue to make it an unwelcome environment by famishing them and keeping your food secure. Lastly, poisonous baits could assist for a short while, though repeated use is usually a sign of lacking sanitation or open access that needs to be sealed.