Why Can't I Get These Mice Out Of My Spring Home?
The Spring, Texas area is home to hundreds of different pest species, ranging from tiny insects to large mammals. But the most dangerous species of all isn’t large, imposing, or even scary looking. The most threatening species of pest found in Spring properties are furry, grey, and less than four inches long on average.
The house mouse is considered to be one of the most common home-invading pests in the United States. These creatures seek suitable living spaces in various locations, including garages, basements, outbuildings, and other warm areas. House mice are highly dependent on human activity and feed on whatever food stores, garbage bags, or compost piles become available. Although many homeowners don’t realize it, these three-to-four-inch rodents could be the most dangerous species of pest they ever come into contact with.
Below are a few other characteristics of house mice to be aware of:
House mice have bright white underbellies.
Most house mice have pink, furry, non-scaley tails.
House mice can appear in grey, tan, white, brown, and occasionally black color patterns.
Unlike rats, house mice have large ears, pointy snouts, and long whiskers.
House mice have an oval, almost round body shape.
The vision and sense of taste of a house mouse are primarily similar to humans. However, these pests have excellent senses of smell and hearing. These rodents typically live less than one year in the wild, although they may live for up to three years in total under the right circumstances. Their ability to infest homes quickly and quietly has highlighted them as one of the most unpopular pest species in Texas.
Today, house mice are known for living alongside humans in a variety of situations, although some wild populations still exist. Wild house mice can be found living in tall shrubs, grasses, and other thick vegetation. They rear their young in dense populations and engage in social behaviors that protect themselves and their colonies from drought, famine, and other disasters.
Due to their small bodies and less-than-imposing countenances, house mice rarely invoke the fear they deserve. If the scraping sounds, quiet squeaking, and small droppings around the house don’t phase you, spotting a mouse eating some of your precious food should stir you into action!
Let’s take a closer look at why house mice should be avoided at all costs and explore some of the best ways to get and keep them out of the house for the long term.
Why House Mice Should Be Avoided At All Costs
Most of us know that house mice are not the most sanitary of creatures, but few of us recognize how dangerous these pests can be. Rodent species such as house mice have been associated with some of the most dangerous illnesses on Earth. From salmonella and E.coli to leptospirosis and gastritis, these pests can carry many illnesses from place to place.
Just about every part of the house mouse can expose you to serious illnesses. Bites or scratches may open your skin to potential pathogens. Waste products such as urine and feces can carry deposits of hantavirus, which may be transmitted to unlucky homeowners through tiny water droplets. Finally, dead rodents and their decaying carrion may become a hotspot for disease and foul odors.
Below is a list of all serious rodent-borne illnesses discovered within the past few decades:
Tularemia
South American Arenaviruses
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
Plague
Lassa Fever
Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome
Salmonellosis
Omsk Hemorrhagic Fever
Leptospirosis
Lymphocytic Chorio-meningitis (LCM)
Rat-Bite Fever
Despite the seemingly endless list above, those illnesses are not the only vectors that house mice can carry. House mice tend to pick up a wide variety of ‘piggyback’ pests, including mammalian parasites such as fleas and ticks. Once these pests make their way into the home, they can spread their strains of illness and inflict secondary damage such as itchy bites and welts.
Worst of all, house mice are capable of breaking into and consuming your precious food stores. These rodents will eat just about anything and will stop at nothing to feed when necessary. Some house mice have been known to chew through heavy-duty plastics and drywall to get the food they so desire.
House mice create nothing but trouble for Spring’s home and business owners. As you will soon discover, it is almost impossible to remove them once they have established themselves within the home.
House Mice Are Difficult To Control In Spring
One of the biggest reasons house mice are such hated pests around the Spring area is their prolific nature. These rodents can reproduce exponentially in a concise amount of time, with hundreds of offspring within a single year. One female house mouse is capable of bearing over 300 young over the course of her lifetime. If even a single breeding pair of house mice make their way into your home, you may be overrun with pests in just a few short months.
Another reason house mice are difficult to control is their ability to slip through the tiniest of holes. Like rats, house mice can slightly bend their bone structure to fit through small gaps and sometimes holes as small as a dime. Even the tiniest cracks around windows, doors, and chimneys could be enough space for a mouse and their family to slip inside.
Finally, house mice are also extremely quiet pests. These animals only make noises when necessary and are more or less silent as they crawl between the voids in your walls, kitchen cabinets, and other tiny spaces. Small, fast, and light on their feet, these pests rarely appear during regular waking hours. House mice will do whatever they can to circumnavigate prying eyes and are extremely quiet as they travel from place to place.
Because house mice are so difficult to control around the Spring area, regular do-it-yourself (DIY) control cannot be relied on to make a difference. Sticky tapes, traps, and other physical solutions may eliminate a small portion of the population but not the entire infestation. What's more, dangerous sprays, baits, and other products have the potential to harm the health of you and your loved ones significantly. Your best option for house mouse treatment is to get in touch with a professional mouse control agent in your area; Modern Pest Control.
All The Best Methods Of Mouse Prevention
Once your home has been appropriately treated against mouse infestations, it will be time to apply some long-term prevention steps. Contrary to popular belief, prevention methods must be used both before and after a mouse infestation. Buildings that have suffered from a mouse infestation in the past are much more likely to see them in the future.
Interestingly, house mice are particularly attracted to old nesting sites and other materials and will quickly re-infest if they catch a whiff of the previous inhabitant’s pheromones. What's more, house mice may begin to reproduce at extremely fast rates, reducing your chances of eliminating them for a second time.
After your property has been treated by the professional crew behind Modern Pest Control, start by applying some of these prevention steps to the lawn and home:
Begin your efforts by completing a thorough deep cleaning of the home. Scrub hard-to-reach places with a damp towel and firmly bristled pad. Pay close attention to the areas underneath heavy appliances, the backs of cabinets, and the undersides of drawers. Do this at least three or four times a year for optimal protection.
Rodents such as house mice require a large amount of moisture to survive. Mitigate as much of this moisture as you can by quickly treating leaky pipes and clogged drains. Use dehumidifiers to eliminate excess moisture in chronic areas. Tiny spaces, including pantries, can be treated with desiccant bags (among other things).
House mice are extremely good at finding food in the dirtiest places, including dumpsters and trash cans. Remove garbage from the home regularly and at least once a week.
Do what you can to trim away any excess vegetation near the sides of the home. Prune shrubs, remove large tree branches, and otherwise mow the grass to a consistent height. This will help to discourage any pests from creating nests too close to the sides of the home.
If you suspect that additional house mice may be a problem throughout the year, immediately reach out to the trained team behind Modern Pest Control.
Modern Pest Control is a one-stop-shop for efficient house mouse control. Get in touch with our Spring, Texas branch immediately when you are ready to eliminate pests without fearing for your safety.
Contact Modern Pest Control For Better Rodent Management
When house mice come calling to your home, cohabitation is not an option. You need to protect your family, your pets, and all your loved ones from the deadly effects of rodent activity, which may include disease, food contamination, or even physical injury. If you have an idea that these pests are already present in your Spring home, it will be high time to get in touch with the knowledgeable experts at Modern Pest Control.
Modern Pest Control is no stranger to rampant mouse activity and is one of Central Texas's primary rodent control and mitigation providers. We have years of experience helping home and business owners become rodent-free, applying our unique skills, products, and professional training to help you get rodent-free faster than ever. We don't just want to treat your pests; we want to lock them out for good!
Below is the step-by-step house mouse control process from Modern Pest Control:
We begin all of our treatments by quickly scanning the home for signs of pest activity. If any suspicious signs or symptoms are located, we will start completing a more thorough inspection. We will be looking for gnaw marks, oily stains, or dropping piles that correlate to a house mouse problem. If we locate anything that provides definite proof of an infestation, we will let you know immediately.
Our next step jumps right into the rodent treatment process. We discuss all options and alternatives with you upfront, allowing you to make the best possible decision for your family. Next, we apply treatments around the home in a way that is gentle on people yet rough on house mice.
Once the work is done, we will inspect your home for a final time to ensure our treatment protocol has done its job. If rodents somehow return to your property, or if you are concerned about your chances of reinfestation, you can easily call our team back for a consultation at any time.
With long-term professional treatments, house mouse control in Spring, Texas has never been easier. For total mouse or rodent control that surpasses all expectations, get in touch with the experts behind Modern Pest Control. Feel free to call us directly at our Spring office or submit an online contact form to have your questions answered by a knowledgeable representative. Remember: you don’t just need any pest control. You need Modern Pest Control!