Why Your DIY Rodent Control Isn’t Working

When you discover that there is a mouse or some other rodent in your house, your first thought may not be to call pest control. It is just one rodent, right? Unfortunately, months later, you may still have a rodent problem and it could have gotten much worse. DIY rodent control can work sometimes, but it doesn’t usually solve your rodent problem even if you do get rid of a few rodents. Here’s why things aren’t going so well.

Trapping

Trapping, be it traditional mouse traps, live traps, or poison is more difficult that the standard homeowner might expect. You can’t just bait it with some cheese and catch a rodent every night. First of all, rodents typically prefer grains, seeds, or nuts. So baiting with items like cheese is unlikely to work.

Another issue with DIY rodent control is that traps need to be placed correctly. Rodents typically stick close to the walls, so placing a trap in the middle of a room won’t work. They will also be less likely to work if you have handled them a lot. If rodents smell a human on the trap, it will be much less tempting.

Finally, most homeowners won’t use enough traps to catch a rodent. What usually gets them is having one trap, then a secondary trap that actually gets them when they spring backwards in fear. This is only applicable with spring traps, however.

Not Addressing The Entrances

In most cases, if you do put traps or poison down to get rid of a rodent, you are essentially just putting a band-aid on the real problem. Those rodents got in somehow. While rats or squirrels can make their own openings, mice will squeeze into pre-existing gaps by pipes and the like. Unfortunately, these gaps can be smaller than you would think a mouse could get through. Yet, if you want to keep rodents out, then the entry points need to be found and patched.

If you have tried DIY rodent control and it isn’t working out for you, contact us today. Home Run Pest & Termite Control can help you work to get rid of rodents and keep them out.