Manchester Pest Control – Mice Facts
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Manchester Pest Control Fact file: Mice
If you’ve seen a mouse in your home or office, or think you may have found signs of their presence, you may want to find out some more information about them before you decide what to do next. This fact file comes courtesy of Manchester Pest Control, your local provider of pest control services in the Manchester, Stockport and Cheshire areas.
Mice are quite robust for their size (up to 8cm long, not including the tail), and weigh very little (17 grams on average) but are voracious, determined little things. Their fur can range from grey to brown in colour, and is a little lighter on their undersides. As you might expect from the name ‘house mouse’, they prefer to live in the vicinity of people so they can benefit from the warmth and protection of our homes, and live off our food supplies.
Mice in the wild
House mice can survive outdoors, even if they’d prefer to be inside. You might find them:
- Sheltering in dense grass, beneath bushes or amongst tangled vines;
- Underneath piles of chopped wood that has been left for a while;
- Near or within household rubbish that has been put out for collection;
- Inside old white goods and furniture discarded outdoors;
- In or underneath sheds, garages or other buildings – wherever there is a convenient entry point.
Mice in the home
With mice setting up temporary homes so close to our properties, it is no surprise that they often find their way indoors. Here they might make a nest:
- In loft space or basements, where anything you have stored away could be used as potential nest material;
- Within insulated ceiling space or wall cavities;
- Inside, under or behind kitchen and other wall units – in any room, even the bathroom;
- Close to a primary heat source such as your boiler.
Once the mouse has found somewhere it can live in comfort, it has the run of your food stocks, and any scraps which have been dropped or discarded. Mice have very keen senses of smell and unless all food in your home is stored in air-tight containers, their senses are likely to go wild with so much food to choose from! They are certainly not fussy eaters, and their reputation for hunting out cheese is highly exaggerated.
Mice and food
Variously inside and outside the home, mice can comfortably live off:
- Rubbish and food-waste
- Things you like to snack on, such as chocolate, or biscuits;
- Breakfast cereals;
- Pet or bird food in non-secured containers or left on the ground;
- Juicy berries and other fruits, either shop-bought or dropped by plants outdoors;
- Contents of food recycling and regular bins, and items left on compost heaps.
There is enough water content in the food mice eat that they do not need to ingest fluids separately.
Tell-tale signs of mice in your property
You may not have seen a mouse in your home, as they will try and keep out of your way much of the time, and also are more active at the start and end of the day – they prefer these times as they have vision is not very good, although this is made up for by their keen senses of taste and smell. There are plenty of signs that you may however come across, such as:
- Partially chewed cardboard and plastic food containers;
- Noise, such as scratching or scurrying;
- Mouse faeces, little pellets approximately half a centimetre in length, close to food and skirting boards;
- An unpleasant, slightly overpowering musky scent;
- Finding a nest.
Problems associated with mice
From the lists above, you’ll already have a pretty good idea that mice are not the best of housemates. But there’s a lot more:
- A house mouse can live for up to twelve months, and is able to breed from four weeks of age, producing litters of up to a dozen at a time – so there can be a very real risk of infestation;
- Mice have teeth that grow for their whole lives; these are continually whittled down by their compulsion to chew almost everything they come across: items of furniture, walls, doors, sideboards, valuable possessions;
- The damage that mice can do may even have an impact on the structural integrity of your property, and they can cause significant damage if they chew through pipes or cables which may lead to water leakage or a fire breaking out;
- If you are bitten by a mouse, you should get a tetanus jab as there is a risk from this kind of exposure;
- There are diseases, such as Listeria and Salmonella, that mice are known to carry and which can be transmitted to humans and other animals from contact with their faeces and urine – although they do not suffer from incontinence, mice will leave scent-trails on their regular routes around your house;
- Mice are carriers of parasites, such as fleas and ticks, which they may also bring into your home, and can then spread to family members and household pets, leading to more than just a mouse problem to deal with;
- Mice are very agile little climbers, and can swim if they need to, so nowhere is out of bounds for them!
Getting mice out of your home
Now you know what you’re up against: these pests may be small, but allow them to run loose in a home or business property and they can do an awful lot of damage, as well as being potentially harmful in various ways . If you live in Manchester, Stockport or Cheshire, why not call Manchester Pest Control for a guaranteed quick response and immediate solution?
We do not use sign written vehicles and will be discreet at all times when dealing with your pest problem. All pest control work is guaranteed, Treatments are available 24 hours a day 7 days a week including bank holidays. We will also advise on any pest proofing issues and how to avoid pest problems in the future. We all want what's best for our family and to protect our home. Apart from the danger to health, many pests can also cause extensive structural damage, as well as an offensive odour. Before you go down the DIY route, why not give us a call to see how we can help? You have nothing to lose! We all want what's best for our family and to protect our home. Apart from the danger to health, many pests can also cause extensive structural damage, as well as an offensive odour. Before you go down the DIY route, why not give us a call to see how we can help? You have nothing to lose!
Manchester Pest Control – Mice Facts Pest Control Services
People and companies think they can treat the pest problem themselves, only to find that they make the infestation worse by purchasing products from DIY outlets with a poor percentage of insecticide. This may prove to be an expensive waste of time and money. Manchester Pest Control – Mice Facts Manchester Pest Control – Mice Facts & Pest Control provides an effective solution to your pest control problem with advice to prevent any infestation recurring.
Ants Bedbugs Beetles Birds Cockroaches Fleas Flies Foxes Mice Mites Moles Moths Pigeons Rabbits Rats Silverfish Spiders Squirrels Wasps Woodlice
Manchester Pest control services:
People and companies think they can treat the pest problem themselves, only to find that they make the infestation worse by purchasing products from DIY outlets with a poor percentage of insecticide. This may prove to be an expensive waste of time and money. Manchester Pest Control provides an effective solution to your pest control problem with advice to prevent any infestation recurring.
Manchester Pest covers Greater Manchester and Cheshire.
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