Having to share our home with uninvited guests can be very unpleasant. Especially if these guests take over some of your favorite areas, play hard to get, and threaten the health of your family.

Many times, we are completely unaware that we have these guests, and at times even if we notice something suspicious, we don’t take their presence seriously. As for who can you expect to find your home, the list is quite long.

From different kinds of bugs like cockroaches to bigger more serious animals like mice, rats, opossums, etc. As we said, the list is quite long. However, you should probably be most concerned if you find signs of rats inside your home.

That is why we have decided to write about how you can know if you have rodents inside your home, and what measures should you take to get rid of them permanently.

What is their favorite place?

Source: rurallivingtoday.com

To know where to look for the signs, you must know what is the most common place these rodents can be found. A kitchen is a place that is considered to be sterile at all times because that is where the food that goes directly into our body is located.

However, some things are out of our control, like the leftovers we forget about, or parts of them being dropped and forgotten somewhere out of sight,  and often rodents and pests come to these places in search of food.

What are the signs they have invaded your home?

Source: americanratcontrol.com

According to experts, you should always pay attention to one sign that indicates that there are unwanted guests in your kitchen.

You may notice chew marks on packaging in your pantry or on books, fabrics, plants, and other soft objects they use as nesting material. In many cases, you can hear them running along the walls or across the floor. And in some cases, even your nose can smell the presence in your home. They can emit an ammonia-like odor, a very strong urine odor. This will be particularly noticeable in closed spaces such as cupboards or ovens.

The presence of rodents in apartments and commercial buildings can often go unnoticed until we notice live individuals when it is already too late.

The first sign of the presence of rodents in the facility is the presence of their feces. We often don’t notice their excrement because it has no characteristic appearance. According to the shape and size of it, we can determine which rodent it is (house mouse, gray or black rat).

In addition to excrement, their presence is also indicated by an unpleasant smell that arises due to their very presence, as well as due to their excrement. According to the information you can find here, a characteristic strong smell of sewage may indicate that a rat has entered your house and in that case, you should call a professional service for rodent control to deal with it.

The damage caused by these to your furniture, installations, and food can also indicate their presence. When feeding, mice shred pieces of food, and dust is often left behind at the feeding place. Rats, since they are bigger, do not leave dust and the amount of food they eat is larger.

What can you do to get rid of them?

The smartest way is to call a professional rodent control service and leave the dirty job to them. But, of course, there are other methods you can use to prevent them from further entering your home. To do this, you need to treat the cause of their arrival in the first place.

Here are some of the reasons they chose to stay:

1. You’ve been piling up rubbish in your backyard

Source: npr.org

Remove piles of debris, clutter, and trash from your yard. Clean up the exterior of your home by removing piles of debris or especially those near the house. Keep all trash in covered bins. Bins must be metal or made of solid material so that pests cannot penetrate, and are always closed. Keep firewood away from the house – preferably at a height, because rodents can congregate there.

2. You have some food sources in front of your house. Something that made them choose your home.

Yards and orchards can be a paradise for harmful rodents. If you have fruit trees, regularly remove fallen fruit from the ground. Maintain the tree, prune it and make sure it is far enough away from the house because it can be a place where rats and mice will hide from other predators. Also, rats can jump from a branch to the roof, if it is close enough.

For these reasons we’ve mentioned above, you should:

3. Practice Cleanliness Inside And Outside Your Home

Source: healthline.com

If mice and rats do not have food and water, your home will certainly not be interesting to them. Do not leave food in and around your home. Make sure trash cans and pet food are safely stored. If they don’t feel the crumbs and the smell of food, they won’t have anything to ask for from you.

Keep leftovers in containers with a vacuum seal. Vacuum and throw out the trash regularly. Pantry and basement are the main targets of rats. Keep attics and spaces well ventilated and dry. Eliminate all areas of moisture, including leaky pipes and clogged drains that provide the perfect breeding ground for pests.

And finally, close any openings you may notice. Seal all holes on the outside using recommended rodent protection materials. Check doors, windows, and hatches. Pay special attention to sewage, heating, and water pipes, which rodents use as a way to the interior of human habitats. Seal the openings using solid materials that pests cannot gnaw through – steel wool, plaster, or a combination of them – never foam.

Inspect your chimney and chimney openings.

All these will make sure your house stays rodent-free.