As our weather starts to cool down outside, the natural instinct of Mice will be to start finding a place to survive the cold of winter. Unfortunately for us, that will be, in a lot of cases, be our homes.

The following is some general helpful information to help prevent Mice problems in your home.

Sanitation

Good housekeeping and good sanitation practices such as proper storage and handling of food material, feed and garbage will aid in control by permitting easier detection and increased effectiveness of traps and baits.

Mice are very adaptive to living with people. They require very little space and only small amounts of food. Mice have been known to inhabit buildings even before construction has been completed, living off the crumbs and scraps of workers' lunches.

In offices, house mice may live behind cabinets or furniture and feed on scraps or crumbs from lunches or snacks, candies, or even sugar granules found on desktops.

In homes, mice may find ample food in kitchens, garbage cans, garages and even the pet dish.

Exclusion

Physical barriers can prevent mice from gaining entry to structures where food and shelter are available. To exclude mice, seal all holes and openings larger than 1/4 inch across. Rodent-proofing should be done with heavy materials that will resist rodent gnawing. These include concrete mortar, galvanized sheet metal, heavy gauge hardware cloth and Copper Mesh.

Rodent-proofing

Mouse damage can be reduced by removing or limiting access to nesting areas, food sources and, escape and nesting areas.

Eliminate weed and other vegetative cover as well as debris and litter in and around homes, buildings, crops, lawns and other cultivated areas.