As a homeowner, odds are strong that the day may come when you must deal with a mice problem at your residence. Unfortunately, in Southern California and across the United States, mice infestation represents one of the most common types of problems homeowners confront at least one time in their lives. For some people, issues with mice are something that happens with frustrating regularity. One area in your residence that can prove to be a magnet for mice is the area under your house. Thus, it is important for you to have an understanding of some basic facts associated with mice under your house. Bear in mind that this does not mean mice in your basement. That is a completely different issue altogether. This involves mice working their way into spaces under your residence, whether you have a basement or not. Indeed, mice can even create spaces of their own to nest under your home. A prime example is mice working their way into your home and living under your floorboards.
Indications That Mice Are Nesting and Infesting Under Your Home
There are telltale signs that mice have elected to take up residence under your home. A primary indication that you have mice under the home is the presence of mouse droppings. Mouse droppings are about the size of a grain of rice. When first produced, mouse droppings are dark in color, appearing almost black. After a bit of time, they take on a browner appearance. Once they dry out, they can appear gray in color. You may find mouse droppings near wiring or pipes that lead in and out of your home.
In addition to droppings, gnaw marks and holes in such areas as baseboards can be indicative of a mice infestation. Keep in mind that if you identify gnaw marks inside the livable spaces of your home, what is going on under your home is certain to be far, far worse.
Another indicator that you have a mice infestation can be found in the behavior of Fido and Fluffy (your dog and cat). They have keener ears and noses than you do and will be able to pick up the presence of mice before you do. You may notice your pets engaging in some unusual behavior, conduct that can provide a clue you have a mouse problem.
In the evening hours and into the night you eventually may start to hear scratching sounds yourself. It can be a bit harder to hear scratching under your home, underneath the floor. However, mice forage and you are likely to hear them in the walls. In addition, the sounds of scratching and scurrying, you may also hear the sounds of mice squealing or squeaking.
Getting Rid of Mice
There is a multitude of products on the market designed to eliminate mice in your home, including under the floors. The problem is that no product is 100 percent effective. In addition, when mice have decided to infiltrate the area under your house, under the floorboards, you may end up using a product that ends up with dead mice in a space from which their remains cannot be retrieved with ease – if at all. Thus, you can end up with the incomprehensible stench of deceased mice permeating your home.
If you have a mice infestation in your or under the residence, you do need to give serious consideration to engaging the services of a professional to eradicate a mice infestation. Taking this course significantly heightens the odds that the process of eliminating mice from your home is successful.
Dealing With Mice Droppings
Mouse droppings can be dangerous. You read that correctly. Not only are mouse droppings “gross,” they can contain harmful bacteria that can result in serious and even fatal diseases. The hantavirus is a prime example of such a dangerous pathogen. This virus can survive in mouse droppings for an extended period of time, even in dried feces. In fact, hantavirus presents a more significant danger to you and the people in your home when present in dried mouse feces.
Once mouse droppings dry out, they become very brittle. They can crumble with barely a touch. When that happens, dust containing a pathogen like the hantavirus becomes airborne. The hantavirus can infect a person in this manner.
In some cases, the hantavirus can result in a daunting illness known as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. This syndrome results in death in over 30 percent of cases. There is no known cure for it. Those who recover are said to do so spontaneously, with medical professionals not at all certain how or why it happens.
Due to the potentially dangerous (and even life-threatening) nature of mouse droppings, you should consider the benefits of hiring a professional rodent dropping remediation service to address the cleanup issue for you. By taking this course, you protect yourself and your loved ones during the mouse dropping cleanup process. In addition, you can rest assured that the eradication of biohazardous mouse droppings is thorough and complete.