City & Country Pest Control, a leader in pest control in Toronto and the surrounding regions, advises that there are ways to prevent unwanted four-legged house guests from taking up residence in your home this winter.
While you may be tempted to just put out a few traps and be done with it, this is only a band-aid solution. If you kill one mouse, chances are another one, or even a dozen more, will come in to take its place. Further, releasing them into the wild may just lead them back to your house.
To start, make sure there are no ways mice or other rodents could get into your house. Seal any cracks in the foundation and put a cover over any pipes that rodents seeking a home for the winter could get in through. Mice can squeeze into tight places so leave no crack unsealed and no pipe uncovered. Ideally, you should use material such as concrete or caulking but in a pinch, coarse steel wool or hardware cloth, at least 26-gauge thickness, will do.
City & Country Pest Control also recommends doing a little landscaping to prevent mice from entering your house. You should trim the lower branches of any trees that are close to your house, since mice can jump up to 18 inches. You should also keep your grass cut short and expose the soil around bushes around your house so mice won’t seek shelter there.
Be sure to clean up after yourself in the kitchen, as well. Sweep up any crumbs and keep dry food in containers that mice or other rodents won’t be able to chew their way into.
Birds typically fly south during the winter, but many remain in Canada during that period. You may be tempted to keep feeding them through the winter, but they aren’t the only animals looking for food. City & Country Pest Control recommends only filling bird feeders after a heavy snowfall; the birds will otherwise be able to forage for food.
There’s nothing like a roaring fire during the winter, but that woodpile you keep next to your house can be a haven for mice and other rodents. The pest control experts at City & Country advise clients to keep woodpiles away from their house. Any lumber that you keep around the house should be elevated by at least 18 inches so mice will not be able to jump or crawl under it.
Owning a cat is another good deterrent for keeping mice out of your home. Often, the mere presence of a cat in a house will be enough to send a mouse and other rodents looking for a new home for the winter.
If you have any leaking or sweating pipes, either fix the leak or insulate the pipes, since mice and other rodents will also take up residence in a location where there’s a steady supply of water. Also be sure to empty any water troughs.
City & Country Pest Control recognizes that you are busy and many not have time to take these preventative measures yourself so we will come to your house and mouse-proof your house for the winter. If you have an existing infestation, not only will we take care of it, we’ll also prepare your house for the coming months by sealing off any possible ways mice and other rodents could gain access to your home. Both at a reasonable rate!
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