Rodent Rundown: Keeping These Dangerous Pests Away From Your McAllen Property

There are many rodents in the world. Some will never cause any trouble for you inside your McAllen home. Take beavers, for example. A beaver could chew a hole and get into your home, but it doesn't want to do this. Do you know why? It doesn't see your home as a place to live. A beaver lives in a wooden structure it creates in a damp environment. Since your home doesn't resemble any place a beaver would want to live, you don't have to worry about a beaver problem. But rats and mice are a different story.

Of all the rodents in McAllen, rats and mice are two of the worst. The reason relates to where rats and mice live in natural habitats. A rat or a mouse can find a home inside a tree cavity. Sometimes, they have to work hard to get into a tree cavity and will gnaw on bark and wood to enter. They'll do the same to get into the walls of your home if they suspect a protective cavity is on the other side of a small hole. How do you stop them from doing this? We're glad you asked.

Join us as we give you a quick rundown of rodent control in McAllen. We'll tell you all the facts you need for rodent detection, threat evaluation, prevention, and management. As always, we're here if you need us. BUGWORKS Termite & Pest Control serves McAllen and the surrounding area. We're the experts to call when you have trouble with pests. Connect with us today.

Signs Of Rodent Activity: How To Detect A Problem Early

Rodents are clever and sneaky animals. If you hope to catch them early and prevent a problem, you must understand how they behave on your property. Here are the most common signs left by rodents on McAllen properties and what makes rodents leave these signs.

Damage to soft materials: Rats and mice make soft nests out of the materials they collect. While they can make a nest from leaves and twigs, they prefer insulation, stuffing, and clothing. For this reason, you may open the hood of your car or truck and find the insulation damaged. You may find a hole in a cushion on a piece of outdoor furniture. You may notice damage to a shirt left outdoors overnight.

Black droppings: Rats and mice leave their fecal matter in many places. You'll most likely find dropping along your foundation because rodents run with one side touching. You'll also find droppings under your back deck or in a crawl space. Rodents prefer protected areas.

Small holes: Holes created by rodents aren't much to look at. A full-grown mouse can squeeze through a hole about the size of a dime. If it can get its head through, it can also get its body through. Check the wood of your exterior, weatherproofing materials, frames, and screens.

If you're looking to catch rodents in McAllen early and prevent yard rodents from turning into house rodents, you must look for these subtle signs. Don't wait until you hear rodents in your walls because it is rare to hear rodents early in an infestation. Sounds typically occur long after rats and mice create a viable population. Let's look at why you'll want to catch rodents early.

The Rodent Menace: Understanding The Threat Of Uninvited Guests

Rodents aren't so bad, are they? Not always. But they have the potential to present a significant problem. It is important to know the risks associated with house rodents and how quickly they can rise as the number of rodents in your home increases.

Rodents Spread Germs

In urban environments, rats and mice commonly find themselves in unsanitary places, eating unsanitary things. For this reason, they are known to carry a long list of disease-causing microorganisms.

Rodents Aren't Potty Trained

When any wild animal infiltrates your home, it will soil building materials with feces and urine. Their waste materials are also considered a danger to public health. Always wear protective gloves and a respirator when cleaning contaminated areas.

Rodents Carry Ticks

Do you know that one itty bitty mouse can have as many as a hundred seed ticks on its body? Seed ticks are the size of a pencil tip. When a rodent explores your home, ticks (and fleas) can take root in your house. We recommend checking out the CDC website to learn about diseases spread by ticks.

Rodents Are A Fire Hazard

A rodent will gnaw on many things, including wires. If they cut a wire, a fire can break out inside your walls. We don't need to tell you the risks of having a house fire sneak up on you.

Rodent control isn't easy, but in light of the threats rodents can present a threat to your home and family, you may want to roll your sleeves up and do the hard work or seek professional assistance. They can do these and many other things in your home, and all the more as they grow their numbers. Rats and mice outbreed rabbits. They can produce a population of thousands in just one year.

Rodent-Proof Your Home: Essential Steps To Keep Unwanted Guests Away

At this point, we hope you agree that it is best to keep rodents out of your home. If you have any handyman skills, you can get ahead of rats and mice and prevent trouble. Let's explore some common entry points rodents use and what you can do to address them.

Foundation Cracks

A rodent can squeeze through a small crack or a gap around a pipe. You can use mortar or expanding foam to address most entry points in your foundation. If rodents are chewing on the materials you've applied, use wire mesh for more protection.

Wood Cavities

A rodent will make small wood holes or gaps larger. Look for the tiniest holes because tiny rodents will make them large enough to squeeze through. Expanding foam and caulking material will address most entry points in wood.

Exterior Doors

A rodent will squeeze under a door or through a gap in a door frame. Replace weatherproofing, use caulking material to seal around frames, repair screens, replace damaged panes of glass, and align double doors.

Routes

A rodent will climb a tree, wiggle up a downspout, or run across a power line to get to your roof. Once it gets up there, it will gnaw its way into your attic if it sees a potential entry point. Trim branches, apply rodent guards and use wire mesh to stop rodents in their tracks.

Do you see how exclusions can work to keep rats and mice from entering your home? You can prevent a rodent infestation if you have the skills and energy. But what if you already have a rodent problem? We recommend professional control. Let's take a look at why this is the case.

Professional Pest Control: The Most Effective Rodent Control Solution

Sadly, rats and mice aren't easy to control. No silver bullet will help you get rid of a rodent infestation in McAllen. We'll end today by looking at what the technicians at BUGWORKS Termite & Pest Control do to address rodent problems:

• We inspect your home and evaluate the conditions of your infestations. We'll discuss the alterations you can make to drive rodents out, such as removing food options.
• We seal up many entry points in your exterior but leave some for the rats or mice to use as an exit. Sealing them all indoors is bad because they may decide to make new exit holes to get out.
• We apply a multi-pronged strategy indoors to collect rodents and drive them out. While traps are the most important tool in our toolbox, it is only one of many control methods.
• We use field-tested techniques when applying traps. Rodents often outsmart traps because of their unique abilities and behavior patterns. Our technicians have the training and experience to ensure rodents don't evade our traps.
• Sometimes, a bait solution is required. We may use tamper-resistant bait stations to collect or reduce the rodent population when rodent pressures are high. We properly bait and deploy these stations and continually evaluate our control strategies to ensure success.
• We follow up until no rodents remain inside your house. Rodent control is a process, and we do it right.

Are you in McAllen? Are you in need of rodent control near you? Let your BUGWORKS Termite & Pest Control team help. It is easy to get started. Navigate to our Contact Us page and tell us a bit about your rodent issue. Through that portal, you can get answers to many of your questions, such as what your rodent control might look like, what it may cost, and how long it might take. You can get all this information without speaking to anyone directly. That means no sales pitch—just the help you need. Connect with us today; we look forward to serving you.