As the weather turns colder and temperatures begin to drop, rodents like mice start looking for warm, sheltered spaces with easy access to food, and unfortunately, that warm, sheltered space often means your home! While a single mouse may not seem like a significant issue, infestations can quickly escalate, leading to property damage, contaminated food, and even health risks.
Why You May Notice Mice More in the Winter
During the winter months, it’s common to see more signs of mice indoors as they move inside to escape the cold. Mice don’t hibernate, so it’s unlikely they will burrow down silently in your attic. If there are mice in your home, they are foraging for food or materials to build a warm, cozy nest.
Unfortunately, if you spot one mouse, more are likely on their way. According to Kansas State University, one pair of mice are capable of producing more than 100,000 offspring in a year!
Five Steps to Mouse Prevention All Year Round
While cold weather increases the odds of a mouse venturing into your home to start a family, there’s always a risk if you aren’t practicing good mouse prevention tactics. Here are six steps to take to mouse-proof your home and prevent an unpleasant rodent infestation.
1. Start with the Yard
Mouse prevention begins outside the home, on your surrounding property. During spring and summer, mice may find overgrown grass, weeds, and bushes perfectly pleasant places to live. Maintaining your property will decrease the chances of mice gathering in your yard before moving indoors when that first cold front of the season hits.
2. Seal Up Entry Points
If mice still get a little too close to home despite a tidy yard, make sure they don’t have a way in! Seal up any possible entry points, such as roof damage, worn-out weather stripping, or gaps around windows, doors, and utilities. Mice may not be as small as other pests like ants or silverfish, but they’re surprisingly good at squeezing through tight spaces.
3. Declutter Your Home
Mice that enter a home are seeking two primary things: food and shelter. Keeping your household tidy and free of clutter gets rid of a lot of potential shelter for mice to tuck in for a long winter’s nap. Plus, if mice don’t have anywhere to hide, you’ll have a better chance of noticing them before they leave damaging signs of an infestation in your home.
As you declutter and organize your living spaces, remove materials that mice may use to build nests, like newspapers, magazines, and cardboard. Replace cardboard boxes with plastic bins for any storage items to keep mice from chewing their way through.
4. Eliminate Food Sources
When it comes to mice, no crumb is too small to attract their attention. They will happily claim any food or edible mess that they can access! Sweep, mop, and vacuum regularly to remove food debris from the floor, and clean up after every meal so that there are no food items or messy dishes left out to attract scavengers. This is smart not only for mouse prevention, but for preventing ant infestations as well.
Mice will chew through just about anything to access food, including the softer plastic bags that cereal and bread may come in. Once mice realize they have a buffet available to them, it will be much harder to convince them to leave willingly. So to prevent your pantry staples from becoming a mouse feast, swap out the cardboard boxes and bags for airtight glass or hard plastic containers.
5. Ask the Professionals
If you’ve done all of the above and are worried it won’t be enough, or if you are still seeing signs of a possible mouse infestation, don’t panic! You don’t have to deal with it alone. Professional rodent control specialists, like our team at Advantage Termite and Pest Control, can advise you on effective preventive measures and contribute our expertise in mouse prevention to the cause.
What to Do If a Mouse Moves House
Cute as they are, you definitely don’t want mice sharing your home. If you discover signs of a potential rodent infestation in your Kansas City home, contact Advantage Termite and Pest Control right away! We will safely and effectively address any pest infestations in and around your home to ensure your peace of mind. Call us at first sight – we do it right!
