Mice is plural for the word mouse which is a small rodent characterized by a pointed snout,small rounded ears and a body-length scaly tail. They have a high breeding rate and can be used as pets.
They can be really cute as pets but you don’t want to imagine the damages they can cause as pests.
House mice are of Asian origin but they are found worldwide. They can quickly adapt to changing conditions and are well known for their high breeding rate.
A female house mouse can have up to 15 young ones every three weeks. Too fascinating I know but can be a horror too if you have them as pests. Imagine the rate of multiplication! Mice range from 2.5 to 3.75 inches long with unusually long tails that measure 2.75 to 4 inches long.
Due to their small size, they can enter through any tiny opening so make sure you repair or close any visible openings that might attract these rodents into your house.
Clear your area and store boxes off the floor as mice can hide in cluttered places. Mice feed on grains mostly and any human feed so keeps your grains in sealed glass jars or metal containers so that mice won’t reach them.
Mice can gnaw at plastic materials so don’t put food in plastic containers as mice can gnaw at the containers to get to the food.
Don’t leave bread crumbs or food morsels on the floor as this will surely attract mice into your home.
Also, don’t forget to empty your bins before going to sleep because mice can enter your home in search of food.
Make sure you burn or bury all rubbish as rubbish bins are also perfect places for mice to live in.
Mice Habits
Mice are very social beings so they live in groups. If you stumble upon their nest you might realize that there are many of them in one nest.
They make their nests in well-hidden areas like unused boxes, holes that they make or under piles of rubbish.
Mice eat small amounts of food at a time and are very notorious for leaving their droppings in food. Though they eat a small portion, you cannot eat their leftovers as they leave droppings and urine in the food.
They also make squeaky noises sometimes which is unpleasant especially when they have taken residence in your home.
They gnaw at anything that they can get their tiny teeth on including clothes, plastic containers, money and other valuable possessions.
They can also leave their urine stains on clothes and bedding.
They are excellent climbers and can jump too, thus they can have their habitats in your ceiling too.
Damages caused by Mice
Mice can cause lots of damage to property and your belongings. They can burrow in your ceiling or drag your important documents to make their nests.
Mice are a health risk too as they spread diseases by contaminating stored food that they eat in your home.
Mice droppings are said to be the chief cause of Salmonella so eating contaminated food can pose health risks to most people. Symptoms of salmonellosis include diarrhoea, fever and abdominal pain. Droplets of mice urine can cause allergies and inhaling dust that contains dried mice feces can cause allergies to people with sinusitis and cause asthma flare-ups.
Moreover, mice bring other pests such as fleas, ticks, and lice into your home. That will be double trouble as you will have to deal with mice infestation as well as lice, fleas and ticks.
Mice Detection
Mice cannot be easily detected at the early stages of infestation but as time goes on, and they begin to multiply, you will definitely feel their presence.
Not only can you feel the presence but you can hear them too. You can hear them making noise in the ceiling, inside their burrows or inside sofas.
Their droppings are also evidence of their presence in your home so if you suspect that you might have mice in your home, then look out for their droppings in your stored food. If you find nests made of cotton materials, paper, and all sorts of rubbish, then know that your home is mice infested.
Humane Mice Removal
Mice are hard to get rid of once they settle in your house. It is partly because they multiply so easily and the longer they take in your house the more they become.
If you detect mice infestation in your house then the best way is to call pest control services.
You can also do a thorough cleaning of your place hoping to find their habitats but most of them are unreachable to humans.
Pesticides can help get rid of the mice too but they have their consequences.
You cannot use pesticides in places where children can reach and besides that, if the mouse eats the poisoned food and dies somewhere else where you cant see it, your house will be really smelly.
You can also use mouse traps to try to trap the mouse or keep a cat to scare them away.
Above all, the most effective way to get rid of the mice once and for all is to involve pest control services.
