Why do mice come into the house in summer? This puzzling question has been dissected below. If you’re looking for answers, you only need to tag along.
In answering the question raised, we’ve covered signs of mice infestation, how they get in, mouse season, problems posed by mice presence, and why they target your home in summer.
Other points discussed include DIY mouse control when to call a professional exterminator, and prevention strategies. Let’s proceed to discuss these points.
Mice in House in Summer
Mice seek shelter from the harsh weather conditions they’re exposed to during winter and fall. While true, these rodents can also be found in homes during the summer when outdoor conditions are favorable.
Here is why there are mice in your house in the summer.
Signs of Mice Infestation
All through human history, mice have adapted to human dwellings as they’ve been able to feed on food remnants while taking shelter.
They leave behind multiple tell-tale signs that point to their presence.
Without knowing what these are, you’ll be unable to detect an infestation early enough. These signs include live or dead mice and droppings.
Other signs pointing to mice’s presence in your home include scratching noises primarily heard at night, greasy marks, and ammonia-like smell.
You may also come across their nests, footprints (usually noticed upon inspection of dusty areas, and gnawed furniture. Finding any or a combination of these symptoms requires urgent action.
How Mice Get into Your Home
Upon confirming their presence in your home, you may wonder how they got in. These rodents are known to be innovative in getting into human spaces.
They exploit gaps found in sewers, windows, ceilings, and walls. These rodents also use drain pipes, open doors, and windows. Once in, mice seek suitable nesting sites.
Adopting a preventive approach to mice control is essential, as these can be difficult to deal with. You’re better off keeping your home mice-free than having to play catch-up.
You’ll need to seal up all possible entry points to make your home inaccessible. There are lots of problems that can result from mice presence in your home. Some of these have been discussed below.
Mouse Season
The main topic highlights the presence of mice in the house in summer. However, summer isn’t the time when rats are more common in homes.
Fall and winter are due to the cold that sets in during this time. To escape the harsh weather conditions, mice will migrate to human dwellings for warmth, access to food, and reproduction.
So, if summer isn’t considered mouse season, why do these rodents appear in homes in summer? This has been answered in greater detail in the section below.
We’ve covered reasons like access to food, water, and shelter, a refuge from excessive heat, easy access, ample clutter, and existing nesting sites.
Problems Posed By Mice Presence
With mice in your home, you face many structural and health-related problems. These rodents chew through wire insulation for structural issues, which could expose the wires, leading to short circuits.
This could even lead to house fires. Mice will chew through furniture and leave gnaw marks behind. Their nests may be built inside your HVAC ducts, which could lead to malfunction.
Among the health risks or hazards posed by mice presence, several include the potential spread of hantavirus, salmonellosis, rat-bite fever, leptospirosis, and many more.
These can be transmitted by ingesting contaminated food from mice droppings and urine. Getting rid of these rodents helps prevent these risks.
Why Mice Get into Homes in Summer
In this section, we take a closer look at why mice come into the house in summer. There aren’t many reasons apart from the following: escape from heat and access to food.
Mice will also come into your home in summer due to ease of access, ample nesting sites, clutter, food & water. Let’s take a further look at each of these reasons.
i. Escape from Heat
Similar to conditions during mouse season, where these rodents try to escape from extreme environmental conditions like cold during the winter, mice will also run from heat in summer.
They prefer warm conditions that aren’t excessive. In summer, most homeowners regulate their home’s temperature. This condition is attractive to mice.
ii. Access to Food
Right from time, mice have often gravitated towards human dwellings as food availability is always assured. This is one of the reasons why you find mice in your home in summer.
As omnivores, they feed on anything you feed on, hence the need to properly store your food to avoid contamination from their droppings and urine.
iii. Ease of Entry
When there are many cracks or holes around your walls or foundation, they provide easy access to these rodents.
Also, doors and windows left wide open without screens are an open invite to all kinds of rodents.
They’re unlikely to move out when they get in, especially in favorable conditions. You’re better off sealing off all entry points.
iv. Ample Nesting Sites
Mice are very creative when seeking nesting sites around your home. Your ceiling, garage, basement, kitchen cabinets, attic, furniture, and car can be suitable sites.
Also, the mice infestation you just noticed may have been around for longer than thought.
v. Clutter
Cluttered surroundings are an open invite to mice. It doesn’t matter if it’s summer or winter; mice will come around when these conditions exist.
You will have to be more proactive in ensuring your surroundings are clutter-free.
Summer Mice Prevention Strategies
Do mice leave in the summer? No.
The most effective way of stopping mice presence in your home in summer is by adopting the preventive approach to treatment.
This proactive approach involves sealing up all cracks and openings, proper food storage, de-cluttering your surroundings, and introducing predators like cats.
These actions, though simple, will do a lot in fixing the problem.
Mice come into the house in summer for the reasons stated above. Luckily, there are ways to deal with the problem as outlined.
You can take the DIY approach or call for professional help during an active infestation.
Professional mice control tends to be the most reliable as it involves skilled and experienced technicians.