How to get rid of mice
Finding mice in your home can be distressing, and if you find them in your business they could cause serious damage to your reputation. Mice also cause damage to property as they will gnaw away at insulation, pipes, electrical wires, doors, floorboards and soft furnishings.
Mice can also spread some nasty diseases in their search for food and shelter, including salmonella and listeria which cause food poisoning, so it’s important to deal with a mouse infestation as quickly as possible.
The quickest, most effective way to get rid of a mouse problem is to call a BPCA-certified pest controller like Masons Pest Control. We can visit your home or business and treat a mice infestation quickly, safely and discreetly, and advise how to stop it happening again. We also support the Think Wildlife Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use, which means our targeted treatment has minimum impact on surrounding wildlife.
What do mice look like?
In suburban and urban areas like south west London, you are most likely to find a house mouse in your home. They are light brown or grey, around 7-10cm long with a tail about the same length. Their small feet and head and large eyes and ears help tell them apart from a young brown rat.
Signs of a mouse infestation
Mice are active all year around and live in nests which are often built inside houses, especially during the winter months when they like to escape the cold, wet weather. Nests are built wherever there is access to a good source of food and are mostly built out of cloth, wool and paper. Mice are good climbers so spaces under the floor and in lofts are popular nesting places. Mouse holes are usually 2-3cm in diameter although mice can squeeze through cracks as small as 5mm, around the same diameter as a pencil.
Common signs of a mouse infestation include seeing their footprints or tail swipes in muddy or dusty surfaces. You might spot gnaw marks in food or non-food items, and mouse droppings, which are black and around 3-6mm long, on surfaces or the floor. You may also hear mice scurrying about or notice an unusual stale smell.
How to prevent a mouse infestation
Mice are a common problem in homes and businesses, and the best way to stop mice getting into your property is to block any gaps and entry points and clear up areas where they may build a nest. Mice can squeeze through cracks as small as 5mm so this may mean putting rodent-proof covers over air bricks.
Sometimes you may need a preventative pest control service, particularly if you live or work in a large building or block of flats, or your business deals with food. Masons Pest Control can visit your property to make an assessment of your pest control needs before making regular, discreet visits to ensure your rodent problem is kept under control. To find out more about this please call us today or visit our commercial services page.
Scientific name
Mus
Life span
Approximately 2 years
Did you know
Mice have supersonic hearing. They use ultrasound to communicate and can even serenade each other with high frequency love songs.