How to keep rodents out of your home in winter?

How to keep rodents out of your home in winter?

Mice are annoying little creatures. They offer little to no value as a species yet serve as pests to the human population. Given their propensity for spreading diseases and causing damage, rats are not something you want wandering around your home. With wintertime fast approaching, you might want to start thinking about ways to protect your home from a rat invasion and need some help with pest control.

What you might not realize is rats hate the cold weather almost as much as we humans do. When the air gets cold, the rat population goes in search of a warm place to hibernate until spring. If you give them access to your home, you might end up with some unwanted rodents running about driving you and your family crazy.

Even if your home is reasonably secure from rodents, the pesky rats can still terrorize you from outside of your home. All the while, they will be looking for a way to enter your domicile.

Assuming you would prefer a quiet winter without rats inside or outside of your home, you might want to consider the following 8 tips for rodent management and prevention.

With winter approaching, the end of fall is a good time to survey the outside of your home for potential repair needs and help you with pest control. While going through the process, be wary of places where rats might enter your home. You need to keep in mind that a rat’s skeletal system will allow it to contort itself in many ways. Rats don’t need much of a hole or crack to enter a structure. You will want to pay particular attention to the lower part of the foundation. That’s where gaps in the dirt can create an entry point.

If you identify potential rat entry points, you need to get them sealed as quickly as possible. You can use exterior-grade caulk to close off holes and cracks of all sizes. Once you have your exterior secured, rats will move on in search of a neighbor who doesn’t take the same kinds of precautions. A highly motivated rat trying to survive a cold winter has no time to waste trying to get into homes were trying to find an entry point is futile. This is the key to good rodent winter control.

You need to know this about rats. They can chew through anything, including metal and rubber. They can also climb up slick surfaces. If you leave trash bags or cans outside, rats will see that as an invitation to dinner. If there is a food supply outside, they will stick around in hopes of eventually getting inside. To prevent rats from getting access to an outside food supply, you should keep your trash cans and bags inside a garage until your trash pick-up day.

Also, rats love tasty pet food for birds, dogs, and cats. If you have to leave food for your pets outside, put it in places that rats won’t be able to reach.

Once a rat gets into your house, they will make themselves at home if you are feeding them. They are rats. They don’t need much in the way of food. As long as you leave food and crumbs where they can reach it, they will be happy to accept your offering.

This alone should be an incentive for you to keep your home clean. As long as you wipe down counters, dispose of trash properly, and put all food items in your cabinets or fridge, rats won’t stay where they cannot get food.

It’s no secret that cats and rats are natural enemies. For cats, the pursuit and killing of a rat is a source of pride. If you are not averse to having pets in your home, a good, young, and active cat will be more than happy to keep your home free of rodents. Meanwhile, cats can offer you affection and entertainment as they go about being the finicky little creatures they were made to be.

You stay in your home because you enjoy the comforts of being in your home. Rats are like you in that regard. If they have a nice place to hide and a comfortable place to sleep, they are going to make themselves feel right at home.

You can make rats feel very uncomfortable if you leave them with no place to hide and sleep. That means eliminating clutter around your home. Isn’t doing a little extra housework worth the benefit of making rats feel unwelcomed?

If all else fails, rat traps do work. Your rat trap options include spring-loaded traps, glue traps, and rat poison. If you have any sympathy for little creatures, the spring-loaded trap is the most humane option. If set and baited properly, it will immediately kill rodent intruders. Glue traps and poison work, but the little creatures are going to suffer a long, tormented death.

If you have persistent issues with pest management and need some pest control in Montreal, you could certainly benefit from hiring a professional exterminator. A visit from a pest management professional about every six months could save you from the turmoil of trying to coexist with rodents and bugs.

If you are in the market for a professional exterminator near you, you should give Exterminateurs Associés a call. They offer fast and effective services, such a pest control at prices that are competitive and affordable. One visit and you will be able to sleep well at night.