Mouse Trapping and Exclusion with ExtermPRO in Gainesville, VA

Despite their small size – only 3 inches long on average, excluding tails – house mice can do a lot of damage. Access to food in your kitchen or trash, along with water and protection from predators can lure them inside, where their fast reproduction cycles can quickly yield a significant infestation that puts both your health and your property at risk.

Because mice infestations can happen quickly and with significant consequences, it is important to partner with a company that works proactively to keep mice out. At ExtermPRO, mouse control is a standard part of our bi-monthly and quarterly pest control in Gainesville. We can both bait and trap any mice already in your home and use exclusion methods to keep them from coming back. Get a no cost estimate for rodent control at your home when you call us at 571-620-1168.

Characteristics of Mice in Gainesville, VA

The majority of mice that infest homes and businesses in Gainesville are house mice. These small mice measure about 2 to 4 inches long, with tails which are about 3 to 4 inches. A house mouse has soft, light brown fur, large ears, and a pointed nose. Their tails are lightly furry as well.

The house mouse’s small size allows it to push its body through holes as little as ¼ inch in diameter. This gives mice easy access to homes through cracks and crevices that you may not realize are there. Mice can easily climb as well, so they may enter through cracks in your foundation, gaps around windows and doors, vents, eaves, and holes around pipes or wiring.

Inside your home, they will build their nest as close as possible to their food source, meaning you will often find them hiding in wall voids, kitchen cabinets, or behind appliances. They could also be in your attic, basement, or garage. They will build their nest out of torn paper, insulation, and cloth.

Mice are curious animals and will readily explore their surroundings, although they do not tend to be aggressive towards approaching humans or house pets, choosing to flee instead. They do their exploring and food scavenging at night, so you are most likely to hear their scratching or squeaking in the evenings.

Other signs of mice in your home could be their dropping along the paths they walk, a cat or dog whining or scratching at an area of your wall, black staining on walls they have rubbed against, gnaw marks on surfaces around your home, and a musky scent from their urine that may build up over time as the mouse population grows.

Risks of House Mice in Gainesville, VA Properties

House mice are both a danger to your home’s structure and the health of those on the property. The physical damage they cause is most typically as a result of their nest building and chewing behaviors, consisting of issues that may include:

• Destroyed Insulation – Insulation is a choice material for mice nests and they will tear out pieces to build their nests. Their urine and feces can also saturate insulation if they nest in an attic or wall void, lessening the effectiveness of insulation and also increasing the potential for mold and odors.
• Droppings – Droppings and urine on other floors and walls can also result in staining and a powerful trail of scent that other mice can follow, potentially attracting other rodents to your home.
• Markings from Chewing – Mice will chew on nearly anything. This can include fixtures and features in your home, but also any boxes or items stored in your basement or attic. Left long enough, their gnawing can cause irreparable damage to your home and belongings.
• Damaged Wires – Wires are another target of mice’s chewing, and their teeth can sever the insulation and wire. This can result in shorted circuits, broken appliances, flickering lights, or even fire if the wires are near insulation or other flammable materials.

In terms of health risks, mice can transmit a variety of viruses and bacteria. Their bites, scratches, feces, and the oils on their fur can all carry germs throughout a property. Among the diseases mice carry are:

• Salmonella
• Rat Bite Fever
• Hantavirus
• Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis
• ‎Leptospirosis

Mice can also introduce ticks and fleas to your home, and allergens in their urine and feces can cause allergy symptoms or asthma attacks, especially in young children.

These risks to both people and property make it necessary to remove house mice as quickly as possible, or ideally prevent them from entering your houses in the first place.

Our Approach to Mouse Control at ExtermPRO

We are able to come to your property fast when you are faced with these rodents, and get rid of mice fast using traps, baits, exclusion, and other pest treatment methods. But we also can support your property before the first mouse has made it inside with our pest protection plans.

Our pest protection plans are focused on exterior rodent control, since effectively preventing mice from coming into your home begins outside. With the right exclusion measures, mice are physically unable to enter your home.

But if your home has been previously unprotected and mice gained entry, we first need to remove them and this often requires interior service. When you have noticed any of the signs of rodents in your home, we use the follow process to locate and remove them:

• Inspection – Because they are nocturnal and good at hiding, it may not be obvious that you have a mouse infestation in the beginning. We use an inspection to seek out the more subtle signs and determine where mice have made their nest, how they are getting in, where their main food source is, and more so that we can devise a treatment plan.
• Set Traps and Baits – We use traps correctly sized for house mice, placing them in the mice’s path so the mice will engage with them. Our traps can be either physical or chemical based on the characteristics of the infestation.
• Exclusion – In the exclusion process, we seal all the cracks and holes mice could squeeze through to get inside your home. The different materials we use depend on where the entrance is and whether it is a natural opening or the result of damage.
• Exterior Assessment – While food inside your home can attract mice inside, exterior conditions can also make your yard more inviting for them, bringing them nearer your home. We go over any external conditions such as brush, trash, and other factors that should be rectified to avoid drawing mice.

All follow up visits entail a similar process, adapted to the specific needs of your property. We will first look for any signs of mice or any new cracks that may have developed that rodents could use to get inside. We then set traps or limit entry points as needed to keep mice out.

We provide our pest treatments for rodents on a bi-monthly or quarterly basis depending on your needs, budget, and risk factors around your home. Each of these plans focuses on all of the common pests that seasonally infest yards and homes in Gainesville, including mice.

Commercial Mouse Control

While house mice are commonly associated with kitchens, they will eat almost any food, and can invade a variety of properties to find crumbs or trash. This is why we work with so many property types beyond single family homes and multi-family residential. Our pest prevention plans work to keep mice out at:

• Restaurants
• Retail Stores
• Offices
• Schools, and More

With their potential for spreading diseases, a mouse nest in your business is a health concern and leaving your business unprotected can lead to code violations, illnesses, and a damaged reputation, all of which have financial repercussions.

About ExtermPRO – Gainesville Mouse Exclusion Specialist

There are many tools available to get rid of mice on your own, and while curious mice will readily walk into traps, the traps still need to be in the right place, with the correct bait, handled carefully (mice can bite when injured and still carry disease), and more. Traps will also not prevent mice from coming back.

ExtermPRO takes the uncertainty out of mouse control, helping you get rid of mice fast. We have years of training in eliminating mice from a range of properties. We have worked at properties with uncontrolled infestations and those simply seeking preventative exclusion, and in every case we are able to remove every last rodent with services that are:

• Effective – We have worked and trained on the methods for house mouse removal for many years. We can identify how mice are getting in, even if the entry point is tiny or hidden and when mice are already inside, we can place the right traps to target them.
• Fast – Every moment you spend with mice in your home is another moment that you are at risk for disease, property damage, and a growing infestation. We prioritize fast elimination with our knowledge that enables us to notice the signs of mice and choose the most expedient removal techniques.
• Guaranteed – Our long lasting pest treatments and mice exclusion are designed to keep mice and other pests out between our bi-monthly or quarterly visits. If you have a rodent in your home between services, we can return for interior pest control as well.

Mouse control as part of our pest protection plans is also a cost-effective way to manage your pest control. Rather than face the inconvenience and expense of removing a large mouse infestation – not to mention the cleanup required afterwards to restore your home – ongoing rodent control helps us solve the problem before it starts.

Call Us Today to Set Up Ongoing Mouse Exclusion

Our mouse removal and exclusion are available in all of the cities and towns surrounding Gainesville including Centreville, Warrington, Bristow, and Haymarket. Let us get rid of mice at your home or business, and keep you protected from any potential invasions. Contact us to get started with a quote.