- Beacon Pest and Wildlife Control | Safe. Effective. Eco-Friendly
- info@beaconpest.ca Ancaster, Ontario
As the weather gets colder, we all tend to spend more time keeping warm indoors. However, we are not the only ones looking for a cozy place to curl up. During the winter months, mice are also searching for somewhere to get in away from the cold, and if you are not careful, that place may just be inside your home.
To avoid a potentially expensive infestation, here are several practical tips for mice control in Oakville to get you safely though this winter without unwanted guests.
Close Off All Access Points
The best way to ensure mice don’t make themselves comfortable in your home is to make sure they can’t get in in the first place. Mice, even adult mice, are able to squeeze through incredibly small spaces; to help keep them out, any potential access point larger than a dime should be sealed. This includes gaps around windows, vents, doors, and siding, as well as any cracks in the foundation.
Clean Up the Exterior of Your Home
Overgrown bushes and shrubs, and clutter present places for mice to hide, nest, and potentially provide access your home. To eliminate these hiding places, you should declutter and remove debris from around your home and garden. Trim back trees, tidy up under bushes, and make sure that lawn clippings, piles of wood, or other debris are removed from around your property.
Eliminate Easy Access to Food
In addition to seeking warmth, mice may enter your home in search of food. Keeping your kitchen clean and your compost secure helps to eliminate potential food sources and make it less likely that mice and other pests will be attracted to your home. Cottages and secondary homes, in particular, should store dry food in tightly sealed glass or stainless steel containers.
How to tell if You Already Have Mice, and What You Can do About It
As mice are generally most active at night, you may not often see them scurrying about your property, however that doesn’t mean that they are not there. Although they can be hard to spot, if they are present in your home or around your property, they do leave behind some pretty identifiable evidence. Mouse droppings and nests made of scraps of material are sure signs of mice. You may also notice gnaw marks on food containers and possibly on furniture and walls, and if they have made their nest indoors, you may hear scratching or rustling sounds from inside walls and ceilings.
While there are many varieties of mouse traps and glues available at your local hardware store, these types of solutions are often ineffective and are inhumane. To safely and humanely rid yourself of a pest problem, professional mice control in Oakville should always be employed.