7 Ways to Prevent Mice Infestations

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If you've had a mice infestation in the past, you already know how hard they can be to get rid of. Mice breed rapidly, and baby mice grow to full reproductive age within only a month or so after they are born. This means that what starts off as only a couple of mice can quickly become a full-blown infestation. For these reasons, it's always preferable to prevent mice from ever getting into your home in the first place. Here are seven of the best ways to do just that.

Seal Potential Entry Points

Mice can slip into your home through tiny holes and cracks around windows, around doors, in your home's foundation, or in walls. To prevent mice and other pests from getting inside, it's a good idea to periodically inspect your home for potential entry points and seal these with a caulk gun or wire mesh. As an added bonus, sealing these cracks and holes can make your home more energy efficient.

Keep Your Home Spic and Span

Another way to help prevent the presence of mice is to make your home less attractive to them by keeping it as clean as possible. If mice don't have a food source in the form of crumbs, they will be less likely to come in. Mice also like clutter, as it provides them a warm, dark place to hide out. Decluttering your home and getting into the habit of wiping down counters and sweeping and mopping floors will reduce your home's appeal to the local mice population.

Try Peppermint as a Deterrent

Another way to make your home less appealing to mice is to fill it with the smell of peppermint, a scent that most humans enjoy but that mice find repulsive. Whether you opt for sachets of peppermint placed around your home, potted peppermint in your kitchen, or peppermint oil sprayed liberally in every room, your home will soon smell fresh and be less likely to attract mice at the same time.

Seal Up Your Food

Mice come inside homes seeking warmth and food. By making your food inaccessible to them, you will make your home much less interesting to mice. Seal up your pet food and pantry items like rice and sugar in airtight containers. Clean up right away after cooking and don't leave food out in the open for any prolonged periods of time.

Screen Your Chimney

Another sneaky way mice get into homes is by crawling down the chimney. You can easily prevent this by adding a screen to the top of your chimney as well as any vents. Metal screening allows smoke from your fireplace to safely exit your chimney while preventing mice and other pests from getting inside.

Tidy Up the Outside of Your Home

Mice often live and breed inside piles of leaves, landscaping, or construction debris as well as other clutter that gathers in your yard or on your porch. The trouble with having mice this close to your home is that once it gets too cold outside to stay put, the mice will attempt to move from your yard into your home. Tidying up your yard and removing potential hiding places will lessen the chances of this ever happening.

Consider Adding a Cat

Cats are a natural predator of mice, and having a cat around can quickly scare off any mice that have been lingering nearby. Consider this step only if you are an animal lover and are already looking into adopting a cat, as pet ownership is a big responsibility.

By following these tips, you will greatly reduce your risk of a mouse infestation. If you already have evidence of mice inside your home, be sure to call a pest-control company such as American Pest Control Inc right away.

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25 January 2017