Uninvited guests are a nightmare, especially when those guests are disease carrying, smelly rodents with a penchant for working their way through your food and rubbish and leaving a trail of destruction. Here are the tell tale signs that mice have been in your home.
Odor
A strong smell of ammonia, almost musky will follow the mice as they mark their pathways and territories with urine. Cats and dogs are likely to notice the odor before you do and will express this through excitement where the mice are most active. If you see them take interest in particular cupboards or skirting boards then take a closer look for the other signs of an infestation. It could just be that there is a rogue toy or treat that had previously gone unnoticed, however if there are other signs then you have mice. Such is there habit of urinating you may notice yellow trails building up along their trails.
Droppings
Mice pellets are around 5 mm in length and dark in color where you suspect the mice have been there will be a number of them. Check under the sink, in the dark corners underneath and inside drawers and around food containers and rubbish bags.
Scratching & Squeaking
Mice are noisy creatures and due to their poor eyesight and danger from predators they will move around the crevices and pathways around your walls and cupboards. They are nocturnal creatures so you will be able to hear their high pitched squeaking and the scurrying and scratching noises of their paws in the silence of the night.
Gnawing
Bite marks, or more accurately little nibble marks where they have happily gnawed through food packaging, wood, plastic or even cables. Mice have teeth that are always growing so will chew through most hard surfaces to relieve this. If you fear you have mice ensure food packets that have been opened are re-sealed and kept in air-tight containers .Food debris such as bread crumbs or cereal, or food left out is what attracts them in the first place. Ensure that food waste is put in a rubbish bin that is routinely emptied or has a strong lid.
Finally you may see a mouse, in which case it is likely there will be more nearby. Mice are quite small in size and of a light brown or grey color with a thin tail. They also have soft skeletons that allow them to fit through spaces just quarter of an inch thick making gaps in floorboards and cupboards ideal.
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- License: Creative Commons image source
Thanks to James from Terminex pest control in London for writing this post.
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