Preventing Mice From Getting Inside Of Your Home
If you live in an area where mice are likely to try to get inside of your home to seek warmth or food, steps need to be taken to help to keep this scenario from occurring. There are a few preventative measures you can try to keep mice on the exterior of your home.
Move Brush And Wood Piles Away From View
If you keep a woodpile on your property, or if you have stacks of sticks or branches in a location near to your house, it is best to move it to a location where it cannot be seen from your structure. Mice tend to use piles of wood to nest. If you move these to a spot far away from your home, they are not as likely to make their way to your structure to seek out comforts they are unable to have outdoors.
Check For Areas In Need Of Repair
Mice can squeeze into very small areas. They are able to flatten themselves underneath door cracks or inside of holes present in your siding. If you have any voids present along the perimeter of your house, they can be a potential entryway for rodents. Perform a complete assessment of your home's building materials along the outside of the structure and make repairs to broken portions as soon as possible. If you are unable to obtain building materials for siding right away, affix pieces of flashing over holes and stuff pieces of wool inside of cracks. Add door sweeps or weatherstripping underneath doors to keep mice from utilizing this area to gain entry to your home's interior.
Try Using Some Deterrents
If mice are too scared to get too close to your home, you will enjoy a rodent-free home throughout the year. Mice do not stay in areas where they feel they are at risk of injury. Since birds are predators of mice, adding some birdfeeders or a birdbath to your property can be beneficial in keeping rodents far from your home. Larger birds, like hawks or eagles, are extremely dangerous to mice. For this reason, adding a few hunting decoys of these birds of prey to your property can trick mice into thinking they will become a meal if they get too close to your home. It is important to move these tools around every few days so that mice nearby do not get used to their locations. Keeping a cat on your property is also beneficial in keeping the mouse population at a minimum.
If it's too late to apply the above methods and your home already has mice, contact a local rodent control service.