Leaves falling, sweater weather, pumpkin spice, festive holidays, what’s not to love about Fall? Well, maybe not the leaves falling. However, did you know the Fall season is the time of year when your home is the most susceptible to rodents and other pests? We know no one wants to think about that. For the safety of one of your most significant investments and family, you must. The most devastating, dangerous, and financially disastrous thing that can happen to your home is an infestation of rodents. A rodent infestation can substantially wreak havoc on a home in a short time and right under your nose.
Rodents reproduce incredibly fast. A female rodent can give birth to five litters within a year, with each litter having 5-14 offspring. On average, one female will give birth to around 40 mice! When you multiply that by all those female offspring rodents also reproducing, you’ll clearly understand how one rodent can quickly turn into hundreds in a short time. If you think your home is safe from a rodent infestation this Fall, think again. Here are three reasons mice love your home and why you need to schedule pest control this Fall season.
Shelter
Like you and I, Rodents feel the seasons change, and they must find shelter. Mice do not like cold weather, wind, ice, or snow. Most animals do not enjoy standing in precipitation, and rodents especially will scramble quickly to take cover from any severe weather. Female mice will feel an urgency to find shelter to deliver litter in a safe, covered, and dry place. Unfortunately, your home is the perfect place for this event, especially within your walls where female mice are hidden and safe. Rodents will tear up and steal paper, fabric, and even insulation to nest in. Rodents make a huge mess, which is an unpleasant job cleaning up. It is dangerous and requires unique clothing and protection when cleaning up rodent nests and feces. Rodents carry Hantavirus and other devastatingly harmful and deadly diseases transmitted through rodent feces, even in the air near it.
Warmth
Rodents can live 1-5 years, but how can they survive the winter? Rodents are proficient at finding shelter during cold months. Rodents, such as mice and rats, naturally search for a place to wait out the cold frigid weather. Underground shelters, a woodpile, your shed, your garage, or your house are places they wait out the winter. Being warm-blooded, they are vulnerable to cold weather and will perish if they do not find shelter before the freezing temperatures. Their desperation escalates as temperatures drop each day. Rodents will use their strong jaws to gnaw through the exterior of homes. It is especially beneficial to them if your home already has cracks or openings, as they make these slightly more prominent and can squeeze through openings the size of a nickel. Yes, we said a nickel.
Food
Once a rodent has acquired shelter and warmth in your home, shed, or garage, it will be on the hunt for food. To survive the cold months ahead, they need to find food. Rodents are extreme scavengers. Rodents dig through your garbage, get into your pet’s food, and steal from your food pantry. Rodents are not picky eaters, and when desperate, they will eat anything. You might not notice their robbery at first, but if you pay close attention, you might see chew marks on packaging and rodent feces in corners. They urinate and defecate on and near everything they touch. Finding little droppings that look like black or brown rice grains is a dead giveaway that you have a rodent problem and need urgent, professional mouse control.
No need to stress. The professionals will take care of you.
A rodent problem can give homeowners a feeling of extreme anxiety and frustration. We advise you to save your money on mouse traps. McGee Pest Control has the most advanced mouse control techniques, protection, and treatments for guaranteed, year-round rodent control so you can rest easy. Your home will be safe, protected, and rodent free with the help of our friendly and experienced team at McGee Pest Control. Call us today for fast and efficient rodent control services.