Rodent infestations are extremely common, especially in the Fall and Winter. Not only are rodents common, but they are some of the most damaging and dangerous pests you can have in your home.
Rodents constantly gnaw on soft objects, chew through electrical wires, damage furniture, and leave behind feces and urine. If these things haven’t convinced you of the dangers of having a rodent infestation, we put together some more dangerous and damaging things rodents do to homes and why they do them:
Why are Rodents so Problematic?
Rodents’ frontmost teeth (incisors) never stop growing, and to keep them sharp and useful they have to gnaw on soft objects constantly. They chew through electrical wire, damage furniture, ruin storage material, and rip up insulation. The pests also leave behind feces and urine, which soils food and often becomes a serious health hazard.
Dangers of Having Rodents in Your Home
1. Mice and Rats are a Fire Hazard
You may be wondering, do mice cause house fires!? The short and simple answer: they can. In fact, approximately 25% of house fires from “unknown causes” aren’t so unknown; Mice or rats actually cause them!
As rats and mice chew on electrical wiring, they damage it; damaged wiring sparks and overheats, which frequently starts electrical fires. Because of this, rodent infestations should be considered a real and significant fire hazard.
2. Rodents Can Be a Health Hazard
Health Hazards that Come Directly from Rodents:
Rodents are infamous for carrying diseases. Rodent feces, urine, saliva, and blood can directly transmit a wide variety of diseases, including Hantavirus and Tularemia.
Health Hazards that Come Indirectly from Rodents:
Additionally, rodents can also carry ticks, lice, and other pests into your home, which means they can indirectly spread even more diseases.
Health Hazards from Rodent Bi-Products:
Although people rarely transmit diseases by coming into direct contact with the rodents in their homes, they are afflicted with diseases after contacting rodent biproducts byproducts (such as waste or fur). Rodents are notoriously unsanitary pests. They leave behind feces, urine, fur, and other remains wherever they live (and especially where they eat).
The most common way people get sick from rodent contact is by eating food contaminated with rat droppings. Rats usually feed on dry pantry goods, but they aren’t picky and will take just about anything they can find.
3. Mice and Rats Contaminate and Waste Food
In order to contaminate your food, rodents have to get into it first. Unfortunately, rats and mice are notorious for their ability to make their way into stored foods. Both rodents have an amazingly potent sense of smell. They can sniff out the specific location of food through doors, containers, and even walls. In fact, rodents often enter your home in the first place by following the smell of food.
Once rodents locate a food source, they rarely have trouble accessing it. Rats can squeeze through an opening the size of a quarter. Their gnawing front teeth help them tear through boxes and bags. If rodents are left unchecked, they eat and spread continuously. Plus, rats and mice taking up space in your food isn’t just a health risk… wasting food is also a significant expense!
4. Rodents Cause Structural Damage
Rodent pastimes like eating, gnawing, nest building, and reproducing end up hurting your home. Rodents work their way through walls and nooks and crannies to get food—they end up dislodging insulation and harming weather-proofing products in the process. Rodents gnaw on plastic, fabric, and paper and will wear down furniture and ruin paper products.
To make their nests, rats and mice drag insulation, paper, packing materials, and various garbage into corners and crannies. They often pull this material off furniture or boxes. Worst of all, while they’re doing all the gnawing, ripping, and tearing, they’re also having babies! These babies grow quickly and start doing some gnawing, ripping, and tearing off their own. Rodent damage tends to get exponentially worse as time goes on.
Avoid the Damage, Get Help from a Professional Rodent Control Company
The best way to avoid the damage and dangers listed above is to keep rats out of your home… and the best way to keep rodents out of your home is by getting help from a professional rodent control company, like Plunkett’s Pest Control. We can get and keep mice and rats out of your home or business... For good! Contact us today!
