How to Identify and Prevent Rodent Infestations

As the weather cools off, rodents will begin looking for a place to keep warm for the fall and winter. If pest control solutions aren’t in place, you could find mice droppings in your kitchen and torn food packages in your cupboards. Your home will become theirs if you don’t follow our steps to keep your house rodent-free this fall and winter. Let’s look at what you can do to prevent rodents from entering your home this year and what you need to do if you already have signs of a rodent infestation. 

How To Prevent Rodents From Entering Your Home

1. Seal Cracks and Holes Inside and Outside of Your Home

Taking the time to seal any cracks or holes in and outside your home is one of the most critical steps in preventing a rodent infestation in your home this fall and winter. These cracks and holes can be an easy entry point for rodents seeking shelter from the cold. You can use caulk and steel wool to cover cracks and block small holes.

2. Remove Leaf Piles and Deep Mulch 

Leaf piles and mulch are excellent locations for rodents to make their homes and breed in the cooler months. This is especially true if the leaf piles and deep mulch are next to your home. If you don’t take steps to prevent these pests from entering your home, you’ll soon find them eating your food and scratching inside your house walls. 

3. Clean Any Food and Water Sources 

Like leaf piles and deep mulch around your house, you don’t want to make rodents comfortable in and around your home with potential food and water sources. Keep garbage in containers with tightly sealed lids. If you compost, turn the pile to cover fresh food scraps. If you have bird feeders near your home, stop feeding with seeds and instead choose options that hold together better to prevent creating food sources for rodents below.

4. Set Traps In Potential Entry Spaces

Setting traps in potential pest entry spaces or corners of your basement can be a great way to prevent rodents from entering your home further. By setting traps, you are creating an excellent way to have continuous protection in your home if you’re worried about the potential of pests inside. 

5. Contact A Pest Control Professional 

If you’re still unsure what you need to do to prevent rodents from entering your home this fall and winter, you can contact a pest control professional to keep your home clean and pest-free! At K&C Pest Control, we have Rodent Extermination Services available to get rid of the rodents already in your home and help you prevent them from entering your home in the future.

Signs That Rodents Have Already Entered Your Home

1. Rodent Droppings Inside Of Your Home

Rodent droppings are small and can sometimes be hard to spot if you aren’t looking. Look around your kitchen cupboards and drawers, food packages, and under the sink for any rodent droppings. Droppings are a telltale sign of a rodent infestation in your home. 

2. Nesting Material In Hidden Spaces

If you find scraps in a hole in the wall or ceiling of your home, you likely have a rodent infestation. Their nests are made of paper, fabric, string, fiberglass insulation, straw, and more. Clean out this material and use one of the above mentioned techniques to seal the crack or hole to prevent the rodent from returning. 

3. Bite Marks On Food Packaging

If you grab a chip bag or a cereal box from your kitchen cupboard and show signs of holes or tears, a rodent has made its way into your home. Make sure you throw away any food that shows these signs to prevent you and your family from getting sick. 

4. Holes Chewed In Walls and Floors 

Holes in your home can be typical as it wears, so it’s essential to keep up with maintenance around your house to ensure that cracks and gaps are correctly sealed. If you see a hole in your walls and floors that wasn’t there before and looks rugged and scratched, it is likely a rodent making that hole. 

5. Scratching Sounds In Walls and Ceilings 

If you haven’t noticed any of these signs in your home but have heard scratching and crawling in the walls or across your ceiling, you should contact a pest control professional to exterminate rodents in your house. Rodents moving through your walls means that they quickly travel through your home and that you must take the steps necessary to seal any openings. 

Rodents can be a threat to humans since they carry diseases into your home. Breathing in the dust from rodent droppings can cause significant health issues in your home. If you think you have a rodent infestation in your home or want a professional to ensure that your home stays protected in the fall and winter, contact the professionals at K&C Pest Control!