A problem that virtually everyone will face at some point during their lifetimes is house mouse infestation. Mice are ubiquitous creatures that are found virtually everywhere in the United States. The key to preventing more significant issues arising from mice in a residence is to deal with a mouse early on. At the heart of taking a more proactive approach to eliminating mice is to appreciate the major signs associated with a house mouse infestation.
Mouse Sightings
Mouse generally are nocturnal animals. Thus, some people have an infestation in their homes and yet never actually see a mouse. With that said, if you see a mouse scurrying about your home, you almost certainly have more of these rodents taking up residence somewhere in your house. You are most apt to spot a mouse moving about your home in the evening and into the night. However, these rodents also venture about during the day from time to time as well.
You most likely will see a mouse running next to a wall. In addition, if you are to sight a mouse, it also is likely to be in some more out of the way place in your home.
Mouse Droppings
The primary evidence that you have mice in your home is the presence of mouse droppings. Oddly, mouse droppings fairly regularly are confused with roach feces. This occurs because these to invaders do have droppings that are similar in size and color.
Correctly identifying what type of feces is important to ensure you understand what type of pest who have invading your home. The manner in which a pest is eliminated from your home depends on knowing what you face. The key distinguishing feature of a mouse dropping versus that from a roach is that mice feces typically have hair embedded in them from the grooming process.
A word of warning is vital when it comes to examining or coming near rodent droppings is a must. Rodent droppings of all types can contain harmful pathogens, dangerous viruses or bacteria that can threaten human health. An example is a highly dangerous hantavirus, which has the potential for causing fatal disease.
Bear in mind that a virus like the hantavirus can remain viable or alive in mouse droppings for an extended period of time. This type of virus remains active or alive even when mouse droppings are dry. Moreover, mouse droppings crumble very easily when dry. You might barely come into contact with mouse droppings and cause them to crumble. When that happens, dust from the crumbled mouse droppings is released into the air. This dust can contain a harmful virus which you potentially might inhale. In other words, you could become infected with the hantavirus when your only objective was to ascertain what type of droppings exist in your home.
Mouse Footprints
As mentioned previously, mice tend to travel in more out of the way places in your home. As a result, they may pick up dust or other substances on their feet and footprints or tracks where they scurry. Mice have distinctive footprint patterns. They leave behind four-toed front footprints and five-toes rear footprints.
Mouse Gnawing
Mice chew and gnaw on many, many different types of things in and around a home. In addition to potential health issues associated with mice, their ability to cause damage through chewing and gnawing is another major reason why you will want to be as proactive as possible in eradicating mice from your residence.
Common examples of noticeable gnawing are on the corners of walls and other objects. In addition, mice are known to chew through walls and similar parts of a residence to be able to gain entry into different parts of your home. For example, mice find nesting in walls and even in an attic attractive.
Mouse Sounds
As noted earlier, mice primarily are nocturnal animals. Thus, you are not likely to hear them moving about during the day. However, as the evening settles in you are likely to hear mice scurrying in walls or the attic. You might also hear them gnawing on things in your home. You may also hear an occasional “squeak” from a mouse.
Mouse Odor
Finally, a primary sign of a house infestation is an odor from mouse urine. Not only is urine waste from a mouse it serves as a means of communication as well. For example, mice use urine as a means of marking territory. Thus, if you have a growing number of mice in your home, you are likely to start smelling a urine odor. Additionally, if you have a smaller number of mice in your house but they’ve been there for a more extended period of time, you are also likely to begin to notice a urine smell in your residence.
In addition to being vigilant about identifying the signs of a house mouse infestation, you also need to be proactive in seeking assistance to eliminate the problem. You need to understand that the problem with a house mouse infestation is twofold. You need to eradicate the mice themselves. You also need to ensure that potentially hazardous mouse droppings safely and thoroughly are eliminated from your residence.