When it comes to mice in Austin, there are a few types to look out for. Mice are an unwelcomed pest that can spread diseases and cause a considerable amount of damage to your home and possessions. Today, we at A-Tex Pest Management would like to cover the types of mice found in Texas and a few things everyone should know about mice control.
Main Mouse Types
House Mice: Though these mice prefer the outdoors, they will venture inside for shelter, food, or water. They are white, gray, brown, or black, with light-colored underbellies and toes. These mice average 5-7 inches in length. The reproduce about 4 babies up to 13 times each year. House mice are typically nocturnal, but will come out during the day to look for food. They are guilty of contaminating food and spreading disease.
Deer Mice: Deer mice are roughly about 6 ½ inches long. With white feet and bi-colored tails, they are brownish gray. They generally live in deserts, forests, and on open land. They will move indoors for food, and they nest on or near the ground in rocks, burrows, or brush piles. They reproduce several times a year and their average litter size is four. Deer mice are known to carry the Hantavirus and Lyme disease.
White-Footed Mice: They have white underbellies and feet along with being a cinnamon-gray with dark striations. They average 6.8 inches in length. They are known to nest in or near kitchens when outdoor food sources are low but prefer the woodlands. White-Footed mice have 4-5 litters each year with a litter of 4. They are known carriers of Lyme disease, but usually live approximately 18 months.
Field Mice. This eight-inch mouse is gray-brown is also known as the meadow vole. They have small eyes and ears, and fat bodies. Where there is one there are likely hundreds. They can cause great damage to yards, gardens, and fruit trees since they eat leaves and fruit. Field mice proliferate reproducers and nest on the ground.
What are the Attributes & Behavior of a Mouse?
1) Mice invade over 21 million homes throughout the country every year. Infestations spike between October and February. When they invade, they are looking for scarce food, water, and shelter.
2) Mice responsible for a lot of damage. Though tiny, mice have an insatiable appetite. They will eat fifteen to twenty times a day and usually will build nests close to their food source.
3) Mice are very acrobatic and limber. Mice can jump, climb, and swim like trained athletes. There athletics come in handy to forage for food, water, nesting materials, as well as to evade predators. As a result, the only way to keep the food secure in hard plastic tightly sealed containers.
4) Wild mice only live a couple of months because of natural predators, but even protected from predators, their natural life only lasts a couple of years.
5) Mice are full of germs and commonly spread salmonella and Hantavirus. They can carry about 200 different human pathogens.
6) As mentioned, they eat in excess, as a result, mice will produce anywhere between 40 and 100 droppings per day, just wherever they happen to be.
Rodent Pest Inspections, Treatment, Control, Removal & More in Austin, Round Rock, Leander, Pflugerville & Cedar Park Texas
If you suspect a mice infestation in your Austin, TX home or business contact A-Tex Pest Management and let us help you eliminate the problem.
