What Rodents Can Bring Into Your Smithfield Home

It’s bad enough to find a mouse in the pantry. You don’t want to have to think about everything else that could be coming along with it. Mice and rats carry diseases. They also carry other pests and can damage your home.

For Smithfield homeowners, it’s worth understanding that a rodent problem is rarely just a rodent problem alone. That's a good reason to deal with it early before the problem escalates.

Rodents Can Carry Fleas & Ticks

Rodents are hosts to other pests. Out in the yard and the woods, mice and rats pick up fleas, ticks, and mites. Those smaller pests ride along in their fur. So when rodents move inside your home in the walls or attic, their passengers come along with them too.

Once inside, fleas can jump to pets and people. You can find a tick attached to your leg without even going outside thanks to a rodent shaking one off in your house. That’s why it’s entirely possible to start with a rodent problem and end up with a flea and tick problem too.

Treating mice and rats without addressing the parasites they leave behind can leave you wondering what’s biting you weeks later.

Rodents Can Carry Disease

Rodents introduce serious health risks to your home that have nothing to do with a bite. As they move around at night, they leave droppings and urine across counters, inside cabinets, and throughout your pantries, easily contaminating your food and everyday prep surfaces. They’re associated with illnesses like salmonella, hantavirus, and leptospirosis. And all of this spreads through waste and nesting material. A few rodent droppings behind the toaster are worth taking seriously.

Rodents Can Damage Your Home

Beyond what they carry, rodents are hard on a house. Their teeth never stop growing, so they gnaw constantly, on wood, insulation, drywall, and wiring. That last problem, wiring, is a serious fire hazard. But even shredded insulation and the damage left behind by rodents nesting in wall voids can take a lot of money to fix.

Rodents can also tear right into stored belongings. If you have cardboard boxes in your garage, they can go through the boxes and anything stored inside them. They’re looking for nesting material. And sometimes, important documents or old keepsakes, torn into tiny pieces, can do the job.

Rodent Infestations Are Bad for Pets

Pets are often the first to notice the effects of a rodent infestation. The fleas and ticks that come along with rodents often readily move to dogs or cats who then carry them to the rest of the house. They can also be exposed to rodent-borne illnesses more directly whether by catching a rodent or by coming into contact with contaminated surfaces.

And if pet food is left out or stored in its original bag, that’s something rodents tend to make note of. This is why it always helps to keep pet food in sealed containers and pick up bowls overnight.

Need Smithfield Rodent Control?

A rodent problem can very quickly turn into a flea and tick problem, a big insurance bill, and a disease risk. Why take the chance? Take action before things spiral.

If mice or rats have found their way in, Mosquito Squad Plus of Hampton Roads can help you clear them out and close the gaps behind them. Call (757) 300-1839 or contact us online for a free pest control assessment and quote, backed by our 100% satisfaction guarantee. Ask about our rodent control options.