At the end of the day, mice are just looking for a place to call home. Unfortunately for them, that place doesn’t need to be your house. Rodent proofing is an important step in protecting your family from disease-carrying mice. If you have children, check out these 7 kid-safe tips for preventing rodents without the use of poison.
1. Block Potential Entry Points
As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Keeping mice from your home is also the best way to get rid of them.
Rodent proofing the exterior is the best first step. Inspect the foundation around your house to be sure all potential entry points are blocked.
As the weather starts to cool down near the end of fall, rodents look for shelter from the cold. They can enter even the smallest cracks which means filling all cracks in your home’s foundation is the best way to prevent entry.
Inspect the joints around windows and doorways for cracks that rodents can slip through. The weather seals along the garage door should also be tightly sealed to prevent possible entry.
When you come into the house, close the garage doors right away to avoid unwanted rodents.
2. Get Rid Of Bird Feeders
Mice are drawn to bird food. If you have a bird feeder near your home, it might be time to take a break on adding food to it to avoid also feeding mice.
Mice and squirrels tend to linger around bird feeders for the chance to get the leftover seeds and ground grains. Certain types of siding can attract birds looking for places to build a nest.
If birds have made holes in the side of your home, it’s important to get these holes filled right away so that birds don’t bring nuts and seeds into your home. Rodents who have already made it in will have a source of food that allows them to go undetected longer.
3. Seal Garbage Bins
Garbage bins are a necessary evil. They help prevent an unsanitary pile-up of trash in your home, but once the trash bins get full they are a beacon for pests of all sizes.
Make sure the lid stays sealed at all times. The more rodents are drawn to your trash, the closer they’ll be to potential entry points in your home.
If possible, keep outdoor trash cans as far from your home as possible.
4. Manage Shrubbery Near Your Foundation
Landscaping adds beauty to the home as long as it’s kept in check. Overgrown, dense shrubs provide hiding places for rodents seeking entry into your home.
Keep shrubs at a distance from the side of your house so you can spot potential pests before they sneak in. Make sure the soil level around your home is low enough to prevent rodents from squeezing behind the siding of your home.
5. Repackage Dry Foods
Once you see evidence of mice in your home, you need to take steps to rodent proofing all food sources. The food pantry in your home is a haven for mice.
Take all food from boxes and bags and place them in plastic or glass storage containers. This is a win-win for homeowners looking for a more organized pantry set up.
Mice have strong teeth, but they cannot penetrate plastic storage containers no matter how cheap the quality. The clear storage containers mean you can see all your food at once which is an upgrade for many pantries.
Place these containers on top of the refrigerator or up on high shelves. Rodents are less likely to stick around long-term when they can’t smell food sources nearby.
6. Keep The Home Clean
Dirty countertops and stovetops provide mice with a variety of places to snack. Wipe down your kitchen countertops at the end of the night with a disinfectant spray.
A good cleaning spray eliminates the smell of food in the kitchen once clean up is complete. Beware of food falling behind or in between your stove and countertop.
You might need to pull out your stove periodically to remove large crumbs and pieces of food that have fallen through the cracks. Use a cleaning product strong enough to remove the gunk from the cracks and crevices as these might contain edible bits for mice to eat.
Mice aren’t just after human food. Be sure to put away dog or cat food at the end of the night.
Often, pet food is labeled ‘mouse food’ to warn you of the potential to attract rodents. If you have a pet bird, clean up any seeds beneath your birdcage as it can be very attractive to mice.
7. Set Out Rodent Traps
One of the most common ways to get rid of rodents after they’ve penetrated your home is to set out traps. There are a variety of traps available on the market depending on your end goal.
Trapping a rodent and killing a rodent is not necessarily the same thing. Glue traps, for example, don’t kill rodents.
Instead, the mouse gets stuck allowing you to discard it once you catch it in the trap. Other traps snap closed instantly killing the mouse when it enters the trap.
You can decide how gentle or aggressive you want to be with your mousetrap based on your personal preference.
Rodent Proofing With Children
The sight of a dead mouse in the home can be upsetting for some children. Putting mouse traps behind appliances and inside closets or pantries is one way to hide its contents.
Remember to begin rodent-proofing your home before the winter months come around. By this time, rodents may have already found a point of entry and taken up residence in your home.
For more information on getting rid of pests, contact us today.
