Tackling A House Mouse Problem In Western Massachusetts

Mice are common pests, and Western Massachusetts residents commonly battle these pests with common products. Unfortunately, mouse control isn't easy, and the results of failed control methods can lead to greater problems. We believe it is best to hire a licensed pest management professional for rodent pest control in Western Massachusetts. Why is professional service important? Join us as we look at the kinds of rodents we have in our area, some of the ways mice present problems in Western Massachusetts homes, a few of the challenges you may face with DIY mouse control, and how a service technician works to eliminate mice. If you're hearing mice climbing in your walls, thumping in your attic, or scratching behind the cabinets in your kitchen, this article is for you.    

What Kind Of Rodents Typically Invade Western Massachusetts Homes?

There are three kinds of rodents that enter our homes. They are rats, mice, and squirrels. Squirrels are the least common. They are also not nearly as problematic as rats and mice. They tend to stay in attic spaces and will not invade your kitchen and pantry. We're going to focus only on mice today.

There are primarily two types of mice that invade Western Massachusetts homes. One is a pernicious pest that is hard to remove. The other is an outdoor mouse that prefers to live in sheds and barns.

House Mice: These are gray mice with a cream-colored underbelly. House mice are aptly named. They prefer to live in houses. They have such a love for dwelling with humans that experts do not know of any wild populations of house mice in the world—which isn't to say that they are not wild mice. They're just always found in close proximity to humans.  

Deer Mice: These mice have the coloration of a deer. On top, they are a tawny color. Underneath, they are white. Deer mice like living near humans but prefer undisturbed areas and outdoor food sources. When you find a deer mouse inside, there is a chance it is only exploring your home. It may not have an indoor nest. But this is not always the case.

No matter what kind of mouse you see (or hear) in your home, it is wise to contact a licensed service professional. While deer mice are easier to keep out, they aren't harmless pests.     

Why Mice In Your House Can Be So Problematic

It is critical to tackle house mouse problems because a house mouse will cause no small problem in your home. One female house mouse can produce a litter of babies every three weeks. Each litter can have half a dozen pups and those pups can grow to sexual maturity in as little as four weeks. Every month, your infestation has the potential to grow exponentially. As the number of mice in your home increases, so do the problems. What problems can a little mouse cause? More than you might imagine.

House mice are not pets. They are not contained in a wire cage with a special floor that allows their waste and urine to soak into paper debris for easy removal. They move about in your home leaving their droppings and urine.

How troublesome can a little mouse be? It varies, depending on the circumstances of your mouse problem. For example, sealing a large entry point that is allowing mice to enter your home may seal them out of your home if they're deer mice. When deer mice come out at night to look for that opening and find it sealed, they'll stop getting inside.

Indoor mouse problems are harder to correct when house mice are the culprits. But is it really bad to have these cute animals scurrying around inside your home? Here are a few facts to consider:

• Mice climb in trash receptacles and move through sewer pipes. Activities like this expose them to harmful microorganisms associated with human illness.
• Mice aren't always picky about what they eat. They can eat rotting things and sometimes the droppings from animals.
• Mice leave their excrement and urine where they sleep. They are not clean animals. They also leave their waste as they explore your home, which is one way they may cause illness.
• Mice chew holes in food packages and contaminate food with the hairs from their bodies.
• Mice damage building materials as they gather what they need to construct their nests. 
• Mice get into the cushions of stored furniture and ruin these stored items.
• Mice chew on lots of things, but one thing they chew on that is a serious concern is the wiring inside walls. When a live wire is cut, it can result in a house fire. We don't need to tell you how bad that is.

How bad can one little mouse be? We can't tell you for sure. All we can say is that it is better not to have a mouse in your home and that one little mouse is likely to turn into an army of mice. House mice only have two things on their minds: eating and reproducing. We can also say that it is best to have a professional handle your mouse control. Let's take a look at why.

The Hassles With Do-It-Yourself House Mouse Control

Mouse control seems straightforward, but it rarely is. It is also a lot more hassle than most people think. Let's briefly look at why this is the case. Some of our points will likely surprise you.

• Mice avoid traps. It is a hassle to set traps and not catch mice. Mice are smart and talented critters. A mouse can learn to avoid traps in many ways. They also have the uncanny ability to eat all the bait off a trap latch without springing the trap. 
• Traps are rarely a complete solution. It is a hassle to successfully catch mice and have to keep catching mice. While traps are certainly important, they don't provide a complete solution because they only work to remove mice from your home. If you don't address the conditions that allow mice to continually enter, or alter the conditions that attract mice to your exterior, you may find yourself removing mice forever. That is not fun.
• Mouse control can fail without you knowing. It is a hassle to keep dealing with illness or property damage without realizing mice are to blame. If you have flu-like symptoms, how do you know you have the flu? In most cases, you're not going to go to the hospital for a tummy ache. Most Western Massachusetts residents are too tough for that. So what happens is they don't realize mice are to blame. It happens far more than you might realize.

You can avoid the hassles of failed or incomplete mouse control by hiring someone with training and experience. Let's look at how a service technician addresses mouse control. 

The Most Effective Mouse Control For Your Home

When you contact American Pest Solutions, what can you expect? It may surprise you that applying traps is only one small part of a rodent control program. Here are a few ways we may address your problem:

• We begin with a detailed inspection to consider nesting sites, indoor routes, exterior entry points, conducive conditions, and other factors related to your infestation. 
• We take steps to address infested areas and arrest activity. Traps are one way we do this.
• We examine damaged areas and make repairs so that mice can't freely move about inside your home. Our service technicians know where mice create these holes and how they use them to gain access to indoor food options.
• We examine the exterior of your home and apply exclusion work to keep mice out. The patches we apply are made of appropriate materials that will provide you with long-lasting protection from mice.
• We evaluate the conditions on your property and give you feedback to help deter rodent activity.
• If extra control is needed around your home to address higher-than-normal rodent pressures, we may suggest a bait solution. The deployment of tamper-resistant bait stations can provide extra control of rodent populations and ultimately deter rodents from getting inside.
• Some mouse control issues require extra exclusions. We may suggest ideas, such as applying guards on pipes that run up the side of your home, the application of wire mesh inside downspouts, or hardware cloth installation around a deck void.
• Some mouse problems require a mixture of control products and may include the use of glue traps or some other product that will provide another way to catch mice that have become trap averse. 
• We work the problem until there is no problem left to work.

If you want a control solution that will ensure no mice remain in your Western Massachusetts home, we can help. Reach out to American Pest Solutions today to schedule service or to get answers to your questions. We're happy to provide advice and give you a quote over the phone if needed. We're here to help.