How Do Rodents Find Their Way Into Huntsville Homes?
February 25, 2023
With days turning colder and winter on the horizon, rodents start looking for a warm and comfortable place to spend the winter, and our homes are beginning to look pretty good to them. Abundant food, stable and comfortable temperatures, and walls to separate them from their natural predators combine into an irresistible target for a multitude of different rodents.
Around the Huntsville area, you are likely to run into the following types of rodents aiming to make your home their residence:
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House mice grow between 2 1/2 to 3 3/4 inches long, not counting the tail, with grey fur and cream-colored undersides. House mice are the most common rodent to invade our homes and are famous for the speed with which they can reproduce.
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Deer mice are usually between 5 and 8 inches long and have slender brown bodies, white chests, and feet. Deer mice are not huge fans of sharing homes with humans and will invade our properties only during unusually cold spells or a lack of food resources in their habitat.
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Norway rats are the biggest common rat species in the United States, growing up to 9 1/2 inches long, not including the tail. They are apt burrowers and likely to be spotted in basements, crawl spaces, or outbuildings.
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Roof rats are a little smaller than Norway rats, growing up to 8 inches long with brown fur and grey undersides. Roof rats, as the name suggests, are incredible climbers and are likely to infest the attics and roofs of your house.
Let's take a look at what problems rodents bring with them into our houses, how to get rid of rodents, and if that fails, how to find quality pest control in the Huntsville area.
Why Rodents Are A Common Problem In Huntsville
Each year rodents invade approximately 21 million homes in the United States. As soon as they sneak inside, they start looking for a food source. On the way to destroy whatever food you have stored, rodents happily contaminate everything they come in contact with multiple bacteria and pathogens they carry on their bodies.
All rodents have front teeth that grow continuously and to keep them in check, they gnaw on walls, furniture legs, books, and anything else they can reach. Ticks and fleas that hitchhike into the house on rodents bring a whole new set of diseases with them.
How Rodents Enter Huntsville Home
Over the millennia, rodents have evolved into ninja-level infiltrators. A mouse can fit through a hole less than a nickel in size, and a foot-long rat through one the size of a quarter. They can run up vertical walls, saunter across phone wires, and chew through the walls of our houses.
How You Can Protect Your Property From Rodent Infestations
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so let's take a look at how to keep rodents out of your house:
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Keep human and pet food in sealed glass or metal containers.
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Keep basement floors clean and clear of debris.
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Fix plumbing issues and areas with moisture that will attract rodents.
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Keep garbage in tightly sealed, rodent-proof containers.
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Regularly inspect attics, basements, and outbuildings for signs of rodent infestation.
Most rodent infestations go undetected for a long time because rodents are nocturnal and don't venture out far from the nest until space is tight and new food sources are needed.
Why Professional Treatment Is Always Best For Rodents
It takes training and experience to be able to recognize a rodent infestation by the few signs they leave behind. At Custom Pest Control, we have over 29 years of experience helping Huntsville area residents deal with invasive pests. If you're struggling with a rodent infestation in your house, get in touch with us today and ask about our rodent control services!