For such small animals, rodents sure cause big problems. Even during the winter, when people think that pests hibernate or die off, rodents can thrive in human properties. Learning how to prevent an infestation and spot the early signs can help you keep rodents from making a holiday residence out of your home.
The Rodents That Invade Homes
Chances are a property will only be infested with one kind of rodent. The two most common are mice and rats, which are extremely territorial and don’t like having to compete with one another for shelter and resources. As such, it’s important to be able to tell which kind of rodent has gotten into your Denver home. Here’s how you can tell them apart:
- Size: Rats are typically much larger than mice, frequently growing to twice the length. Be careful not to confuse baby rats for mice, however.
- Shape: Rats have elongated faces and large haunches, whereas mice are more compact in body and face shape, though their long tails trail far behind them.
- Ears: Mouse ears are large and circular and sit directly atop their heads, while rats have ears that are pinched at the edges and sit far back on their skulls.
- Feces: You're more likely to see their droppings than you are to see the sneaky rodents themselves. Therefore, you should know that mice droppings are small and rice-like while rats have larger, curled feces. Both are dark in color.
The Destruction Rodents Cause
Mice and rats cause similar problems once they invade and both can breed quickly:
- Bites: Rodents chew on anything they can get their teeth around in order to keep their large front incisors filed down. This causes gnaw marks on household items and structural materials.
- Scratching: Rodents are burrowing mammals that like to get into cramped, tight spaces. To do this they will scratch and dig through insulation and wiring, possibly damaging crucial systems you rely on every day.
- Staining: Urine-soaked items and materials can become irreversibly stained and waterlogged. This not only contributes to odors but can increase the conditions of squalor.
The Dangers Of Rodents
The damage that rodents can cause is bad enough, but we haven’t even talked about the health concerns and direct dangers that they can pose to you and your loved ones:
- Disease: Rodents can be infected with dangerous and contagious illnesses, like salmonella and plague.
- Parasites: Rodents can be carriers of fleas and ticks, which pose their own health concerns for people and pets.
- Allergies: The dander that rodents carry in their fur can make some people experience allergic reactions or asthma attacks. This is especially problematic for children and the elderly.
- Odors: Foul smells aside, the mere presence of rodent droppings in a property can make people sick. Remember, droppings carry germs.
Stay Safe With Professional Protection
With such a formidable list of issues they can lead to, you really don’t want to take a chance on a rodent infestation. To truly protect your property, especially during the times of the year when rodents look to hunker down indoors and shelter themselves from the cold, you need to turn to professional help. At White Knight Pest Control, our trained staff can get started right away on an inspection of your property to help determine if rodents are active. Even if they aren’t, this provides peace of mind and we can assist you with future prevention. If mice or rats are there, only professional solutions are guaranteed to completely wipe them out and keep them gone.
For proven defense against rodents, trust White Knight Pest Control.