As of this writing, millions of households are being attacked by small creatures called mice. While everyone is focused on the pandemic due to the spread of the coronavirus. So, as this is happening, Wilmington exterminators, led by Go-Forth Home Services, are working behind the scenes to make sure that while health officials are focusing on this terrible virus, every household is still protected from this disease-spreading creature.
Mice have been around since time immemorial, and they have indirectly caused the demise of millions of people throughout history. So while this coronavirus we are struggling to fight off is a big struggle for humanity right now, scientists are working hard to find a cure, and if we do our part, this too shall pass. Yet, through all this, there are things that never pass, like mice.
Mice are high health risks and can be just as deadly. Aside from that, they are capable of causing immense damage to property, to business, and to your reputation.
History has shown us that viruses can be contained, and their effects minimized. As for mice, they keep coming back. Due to the fact that they have negative consequences on the human way of life, they need to be controlled.
In this article, Go-Forth Home Services, the leading pest control company in Wilmington, would like to share with you lots of useful information about mice, and what you can do to get rid of mice in North Carolina.
So if you are ready, read on!
What Are Mice?
There are hundreds of types of mice, and we cannot discuss all of them. We will narrow it down to the most common, which is the house mice. This type of mice has large rounded eyes, are gray in color, with cream-colored bellies, pointed muzzles, and has four legs. Their tails are longer than their bodies. They grow from 1 inch up to 7 inches long excluding the tail. They weigh around .5 and 1 ounce. Mice are nocturnal creatures and forage for food at night. They sleep during the day.
When mice go out of their nests, they crawl beside walls. They do not like to be exposed in open spaces where predators might snatch them.
They like to chew on almost anything because they have constantly growing incisors. Chewing on things like books, cardboard, gas pipes, electric cables, and paper helps stop their incisors’ growth.
Special Abilities
Mice are said to be highly intelligent creatures. They also have incredible memories and can easily remember the paths that they took, as well as remember the faces of their owners if they are pets. When there is an obstruction on their old paths, they would look for another way to go back to their nests.
Mice are used for laboratory tests because they have lots of similarities to humans. Almost all of the medicines that we use today were tested on mice.
Mice are very tough mentally. When they set their sights on prey, they can withstand any pain being inflicted on them as self-defense by their prey. Mice are talented jumpers. They can jump as high as 18 inches. They are also good climbers and swimmers.
Reproduction
The reason why mice are so successful is that they breed rapidly and can adapt easily to ever-changing conditions. At 5 weeks of age, a mouse can already reproduce. They can reproduce every 3 weeks and can do so until they reach the age of 2 years.
Social Life
Mice are highly social creatures. They all live together in a nest where they eat together, play together, and sleep together. They can be heard laughing each time they play. They get sad and lonely when they are left alone. When a fellow mouse dies, they mourn and they get depressed.
Where Do They Live?
Mice can be found in all countries in the world. They are very hardy since they can survive in any environment. They live in forests, grasslands, man-made parks, residential areas, and commercial establishments.
Outdoors, mice make a burrow underground. This protects them from predators like foxes, cats, birds, and wild dogs. Mice are very territorial and like to claim a wide area for their own.
Diet
One popular notion about mice is that all they eat is cheese.In reality, they like to eat fruits, nuts, grain, and seeds. They also eat meat since they are omnivores. Each time they forage for food, they actually do not eat all of them. Some are carried back to where they came from to use as materials for building nests. Mice build their nests out of anything that they can pick up.
Types Of Mice
There are other species of mice in Wilmington. Here are the other common types of mice and are considered as major household pests not only in Wilmington but in the rest of the country.
- Deer mouse - Deer mice are usually found outdoors, out in the woods. But they would willingly enter houses in search of food, water, and shelter. Deer mice can destroy wood structures. Aside from that, they also transmit several types of diseases. Deer mice can grow to about 5 inches, including their tails. The color of their bodies is grayish to reddish-brown and white fur on their bellies.
- Field mice - Field mice, like deer mice, prefer to live outdoors except that they rarely go indoors. But they do enter structures where fruits and vegetables are usually kept during the cold months. A field mouse can grow to about 80 mm to 100 mm in length, plus the tail which is around 80 mm long. They feed on seed crops of trees like oak, ash, lime, and sycamore. They also feed on apples and legume seeds.
Signs You Have Mice
Check around your house for the presence of mice droppings. Mice eat and poop a lot. Their droppings are black and they look like pellets. Mice poop is a few millimeters long. Seeing mice droppings is a sure sign that you have mice in the house.
Check for gnaw marks on your old boxes, cardboard, books, electric cables, and even clothes with chew marks on them. Mice also leave an unpleasant scent trail. If you smell something bad, this scent may have come from a mouse.
Mice leave grease trails but not on the floor, but on the walls. Mice travel near the walls. These marks look like smudges from handprints.
If you see a single mouse in your house, then there are surely more of them hidden somewhere. Mice reproduce quickly and like to be around their fellow mice.
Mice As Pests
It is very dangerous to have mice around. They can contaminate our food and water through their droppings, urine, saliva, and vomit. The diseases they transmit include hantavirus, salmonella, rat-bite fever, the plague, and listeria.
They can destroy homes by their chewing habits. Mice chew on electric wires and gas pipes, making them a fire hazard. They steal our food. They love to eat meat, grains, cereals, crackers, and many more.
Mice also chew on books, cardboard, papers, boxes, soft concrete, wood furniture, and even walls, making them a huge nuisance.
How To Get Rid Of Mice
Now we know the damage these little creatures can bring, it is clear now that we cannot cohabitate with them. After you see the signs of mice infestation in your house, you have to start acting on it. Here are tips on how to get rid of mice.
- Mice can fit into a hole the size of the tip of a pencil. Search around the house for holes, cracks, and spaces. Bring with you a pencil for checking. If you find a hole that is big enough to fit your pencil in, then a mouse can squeeze into that. Seal the hole by caulking.
- Cover your trash can with a lid. This will cut off one of their food supplies. Dispose of your garbage regularly.
- Place your food inside sealed containers to keep them safe.
- Fix leaky pipes and faucets.
- Having a cat also helps.
If you already have a mice infestation problem, then it is time to call us, the Go-Forth Pest Controlas we're a trusted commercial pest control company since 1959.
Go-Forth Is Simply The Best For Mice Control
No home or pest is the same, so there is no cookie-cutter solution. At Go-Forth Home Services, we have professional technicians who will examine your home and your lawn to evaluate your individual necessity. We will identify points of entry and make treatments as necessary. We only use state of the art equipment to keep up with these ever-evolving pests.
We bring in a new and fresh approach to the pest control industry, using family-friendly and pet-friendly methods of extermination that caters to your specific needs. Our expert experience in exterminating pests like cockroaches, wasps, weevils, mosquitoes, mice, flies, termites, ants, and spiders can really make you say goodbye to these pests in your home. You may check us on Facebook or Google us to see what our satisfied customers have to say about us.