Do You Have Rats or Mice? How to Tell Which Critter Has Invaded Your Houston, TX Home
Houston residents often ask us whether they have rats or mice in their homes. The idea is that rats are a lot more dangerous than mice.
There are ways to tell whether you have a rat problem or a mouse problem. Here are four signs we look at.
#1) Droppings
Rat droppings are nearly an inch long. You'll tend to find them along walls, in corners, in ductwork, and your attic. You might also find them near food sources, like your pet's food bowls.
Mouse droppings are a lot smaller than rat droppings. You'll find them in many of the same places.
You can also look at the shape of the droppings. Rat droppings have blunt ends, whereas mouse droppings have pointed ends.
#3) Noise
Lots of scratching and scurrying indicates the presence of rats. "Quiet as a mouse" isn't just a saying. They really are a lot quieter!
#2) Damage
Rats do far more damage to your home than mice simply because they have larger bodies and stronger teeth. If you see bitemarks on wood, metal, and drywall, there's a good chance you have a rat problem.
Mice will typically stick to the cardboard. Rats will eat cardboard too.
In addition, rats will leave "rat runs," greasy streak marks on the walls that show where they've passed.
#4) Behavior
Mice come out during the daytime. Rats tend to come out at night.
Rats are typically more cautious but may grow bold as their swarm increases in size. We've seen houses where they start sunning themselves on exterior window sills like cats or wander up to stare challenges at homeowners who weren't fast enough to correct the problem.
Rats are more intelligent than mice. They avoid bait and traps like pros.
Yet mice catch on eventually: once they see a mouse get caught in a trap, they start avoiding them, too.
Does the difference matter?
Not really.
Both rats and mice carry serious diseases, and you don't even have to come face-to-face with one to be at risk. Once they start leaving droppings in your ductwork, there's a good chance you'll start breathing in particles of whatever disease they carry. Once that happens, it's only a matter of time before you get sick.
Both rats and mice like to tear up insulation and chew on wiring, so your home becomes less energy efficient and has more fire risk.
Both rats and mice attract snakes who want to prey on them.
In short, either type of rodent is a problem, and either should send you to call us for rodent control services. We offer fast, humane rat control and mouse removal that returns your clean, safe home to its former, rodent-free condition.
Call us to get help today.
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Can House Rats Hurt You?
People have been dealing with rat infestations as long as there have been cities. Rats enjoy living close to where the people are.
Continue readingWildlife Removal in The Woodlands
Many people enjoy living in The Woodlands because it puts them right next door to the 1800-acre George Mitchell Nature Preserve. While you might enjoy being able to spot various creatures when you visit the Preserve, the last place you want them is in your home or business.
It's not unusual for bats, raccoons, grey squirrels, rats, opossums, snakes, bees, and armadillos to become major issues for property owners in The Woodlands area. Each of these creatures threatens your investment in a variety of ways.
They Spread Disease
Every one of these animals carries some form of disease. Bats carry deadly upper respiratory fungal infections. Raccoons carry rabies. Rats carry just about every plague you can think of.
Wildlife in a building poses a severe health and safety risk that you need to address right away.
They Ruin Your Property
Properties in the Woodlands are often beautifully built and appointed. Yet you stand to lose all that if you let wildlife run rampant in your home.
First, there's just no getting around it: animals leave urine and feces everywhere. Bats and rats don't politely go outside or in litter boxes. That means stains, smells, and other damage that can be difficult and expensive to clean up.
Second, many of these creatures like to chew on wires, walls, roofs, soffits, and insulation. It just so happens that our homes and businesses are filled with ideal nesting materials.
Third, pests sometimes attract other pests.
Got rats? Snakes are right behind them, because the snakes feed on the rats. Got bees? Rats and roaches are ready to eat their honey.
They Threaten Your Safety
Sure, most of the snakes that might be found in your Woodlands home are unlikely to be venomous, but snake bites still hurt. Rats will bite, scratch, and spread disease when they feel threatened, and so will any other animal.
Honeybees? Swarms and stings can be deadly if you or anyone on your property is allergic.
The longer you leave these creatures on your property the more likely it is that you're going to have some kind of an encounter with them that could result in someone getting hurt. As they grow more invasive they push further and further into the spaces where humans live and work.
Humane Wildlife Removal Services
There are no DIY solutions that work well for chasing these animals away. The only ways to handle the problem are to find out how they're getting in. Then we have to seal those spaces and remove the animals that are already there.
Killing those animals comes with its own set of problems, including the fact that corpses can become trapped in walls or hard-to-reach attic spaces, creating their own smells, health, and safety issues.
Instead, we trap them and take them off to a place where they can live their little lives in peace while leaving you to yours.
If you know you have a problem, don't delay and don't wait. You've worked too long and too hard to secure your Woodlands property to lose it to these representatives from the great outdoors.
