MICE – 8 SIGNS YOU MAY HAVE THEM

Do you hear suspicious scrabbling behind your walls? Are you finding questionable black pellets in the basement? Does your pantry have a sharp, musky odour?

Chances are you have a mouse in the house.

Mice rarely stay single, and one female mouse can produce as many as 10 litters in a year. They are born about 20 days after mating and are capable of reproduction within two months. Because of this procreation proliferation, infestations can rapidly escalate beyond a homeowner’s control, posing a hazard to food stocks, electrical wiring, and even your health, because mouse droppings carry harmful bacteria, diseases, and viruses.

Even small numbers can cause large problems, so it is important to recognize and attend to an infestation as soon as possible.

Read on for a few tell-tale signs of a mouse problem:

Icky Droppings

• Mouse faeces are found in areas where mice are most active, near feeding, breeding, and nesting areas.
• Droppings are black, cylindrical in shape, and between three to six millimetres (about 1/4 inch) in length. Mouse droppings resemble small grains of rice and are commonly mistaken for cockroach droppings.
• Always wear protective gloves when disposing of mouse droppings. In heavily infested areas, also wear a respirator. Don’t sweep or vacuum the droppings, disturbing them could release bacteria and virus particles. Droppings should be carefully picked up and disposed of in sealed plastic bags.

Noises in the Night

• Strange scratching or scrabbling noises in the walls, especially at night, are another sign of mice.
• Mice are excellent climbers and jumpers and are capable of fitting through openings much smaller than their bodies. They can use the spaces in between joists to travel from one part of the house to another. Mice are typically nocturnal, so you will probably hear them only at night.

Rodent Roadways

• A regular pattern of dirty smudges along floors and baseboards could be a sign of mouse traffic.
• Mice tend to run along walls and follow the same route night after night. Over time, the dirt from their fur and feet will create a distinctive streaking or smudging tracery along the path. You may also find small patches of urine or droppings along the route.

Holes or Tears in Material

• If you find unexpected holes, tears, or signs of gnawing in bedding, clothing, insulation, fabrics, or other materials, it is a good bet that they are present.
• They use shredded materials to build nests, which are usually located in dark corners, drawers, cabinets, storage boxes, or behind fridges and other large, seldom-moved appliances.
• Will often chew small holes in the bottom of drawers, cabinets, and furniture and fill the holes with shredded material.

Teeth Marks

• They have teeth that grow continuously, so they need to gnaw on hard, inedible materials, including wood, plastic, cables, and electrical wiring, to wear them down.
• This makes them a serious fire hazard, as they can chew through shielding and wiring, which can cause shorts, power outages, equipment damage, or fire.

Foul Smells

• Mice have a distinctive, musky ammonia smell that smells like stale urine.
• This odour can be particularly noticeable in enclosed areas, such as pantries, cabinets, or drawers. The smell may also be evident along baseboards and walls where mice frequently travel. The odour helps them establish and mark their territory.

Nests

• Mice use, dried plants, shredded paper, and fabric as well as other soft materials to make their nests.
• You could find scraps of the above materials littered in your home. This means the mice are making nests. If you suspect you might have mice, check under floorboards, under stoves, in cavity walls and suspended ceilings for nests.
• If you are finding small holes in your wooden furniture it is also a definite sign that the mice are making their nests in the furniture.

Dead or live mice

• Seeing mice in your home during the day could be a sign of an infestation.  Finding one dead mouse means you have more living hiding in your home.

Baits

• The bait used by Sydney’s Best Pest Control will get the mouse to go out searching for water once eaten and they will hopefully do that outside of your home.
• Our friendly and experienced technicians will advise you on closing the holes once the mice have left to prevent more coming back through the same entrance.
• Our bait is placed in areas where children cannot reach and rodent stations can be provided if you have pets.

If you have spotted any of the signs above then call us on 1800 819 189 or email us using our easy contact us form.