​

As the crisp fall air settles in and the days grow shorter, many homeowners face an unwelcome challenge: rodents entering their homes. With the changing season, mice and rats are on the lookout for warm, cozy places to nest, and unfortunately, your home can seem like the perfect spot.

Taking proactive measures can help prevent these rodents from claiming your home as their own. Let’s explore fall pest control tips that can help deter and prevent rodents from getting inside your home. Terminix’s professional rodent control and exclusion services1 can help eliminate rodents and prevent infestations from worsening or reoccurring.

rat near leaves

How mice and rat behavior change in the fall

As fall arrives and temperatures begin to drop, mice and rats start exhibiting notable changes in behavior. Here’s how their behavior shifts and why:

  1. Seeking shelter: The increase in rats and mice in the fall is typically due to their search for food and warmth as outdoor conditions become less hospitable. Rodents can enter through small cracks, gaps, or holes around a home’s foundation, walls, or roof.

  2. Nesting behavior: Rodents build nests in sheltered areas within your home, such as attics, basements, or wall voids. They gather materials like paper, fabric, and insulation to create a warm environment for themselves and their young.

  3. Food foraging: In the fall, rodents increase their foraging efforts to stock up before the colder months. They can invade pantries, cupboards, or pet food storage areas for food.

  4. Reproduction: With the onset of fall, some rodent species may enter a period of increased reproductive activity, leading to higher populations within your home if infestations are not addressed promptly.

While you can encounter rodents at any time of the year, their behavior can become more noticeable in the fall. The cooler weather drives them indoors, making their presence and nesting behaviors more apparent.

Keeping rodents out of your home

With rodents actively seeking shelter as the weather cools, it is crucial to take preventive measures to help keep them out of your home. The following fall pest control tips can help you secure your home against these unwelcome intruders.

Inspect your home for entry points

One of the most effective ways to help keep rodents out of your home is to inspect and seal potential entry points. Rodents can enter through openings as small as a quarter of an inch, so even minor gaps can be problematic. Check the following areas for any holes, gaps, or cracks:

  • Gaps around doors and windows: Check for spaces or damaged seals around doors and windows.

  • Vents and utility lines: Look for gaps around vents, pipes, and wires where they enter your home.

  • Cracks in walls and foundations: Inspect your home’s exterior for cracks or holes in the walls, foundation, and around the base of the structure.

  • Attic and basement: Rodents can enter through poorly sealed attic vents or basement windows.

Seal off entry points

Securing potential entry points around your home can help prevent issues with rats and mice in the fall. Exclusion includes sealing off entry points to prevent rodents from accessing your home. Terminix professionals use Flexi Amour or other pest-proof materials to address vulnerabilities in your home’s structure and secure them to create a barrier against pests. These materials can be applied to:

  • Exterior walls and foundations

  • Vents and utility openings

  • Doors and windows

  • Attics and basements

rat hiding near roof

Maintain a clean exterior

Keeping the exterior of your home clean and well-maintained is a crucial step that can help prevent rodents from being drawn to your home.

  • Trim branches: Keep tree branches and shrubs away from your home to help prevent rodents from accessing your roof or attic.

  • Manage compost: Properly cover compost piles to help deter rodents from seeking food and nesting materials.

  • Clear debris: Remove fallen leaves and sticks regularly to help eliminate potential shelters or nesting sites.

  • Store firewood: Keep firewood away from your home and elevated off the ground to help prevent nesting.

  • Secure trash and pet food: To help avoid attracting rats and mice in the fall, store human and pet food in tightly sealed containers.

Invest in an exclusion plan to help keep pests out

The best method to deal with rodents is prevention. Terminix’s exclusion services help keep pests out and prevent infestations. Our experts will inspect your property for potential rodent entry points and create a tailored plan to address problem areas. They will use various durable, pest-proof materials, like Flexi Amour™, to seal the identified entry points around your home. As part of our lineup of exclusion materials, our family of brands is proud to be the exclusive North American provider of Flexi Armour products.

Signs rodents have made your house their fall home

Being vigilant for signs of rodents in your home can help you notice signs of an infestation and address the problem before it escalates. Here are some common indicators that rodents have infiltrated your home:

  1. Droppings: Small, dark pellets often found near food sources, along walls, or in hidden areas like under sinks.

  2. Gnaw marks: Rodents' teeth never stop growing, so they chew on various materials to prevent them from getting too long. Look for damaged food packaging, wires, or wooden structures

  3. Nesting materials: Shredded paper, fabric, or insulation in hidden spots can indicate rodent nesting.

  4. Noises: Scratching, scurrying, or squeaking sounds, particularly at night, may suggest rodents are moving around your walls or attic.

  5. Odors: A musty or urine-like smell can indicate a larger infestation, especially if noticeable in enclosed spaces.

The following video provides several effective tips that can help keep rodents out of your home.

What to do if you still see mice or rats

If you notice mice or rats inside your home, you should first schedule an inspection with Terminix. Our professionals will conduct a thorough inspection to identify entry points, nesting sites, and the size of the infestation. Once the inspection is complete, we will provide you with a customized removal plan and exclusion services if needed. Rodents can breed rapidly, and infestations can quickly worsen, so it is important to act quickly if you suspect you have a rodent problem.

1Coverage generally includes commensal rodents (house mice, Norway rats, roof rats), tree squirrels, flying squirrels, raccoons, opossums, pigeons, starlings, sparrows, armadillos, and skunks. Covered pests vary between Rodent & Wildlife Exclusion service plans. See Plan for details.

2Coverage includes: "House" Ants, Bird Mites, Indoor Ticks, Cockroaches, Carpet Beetles, Fabric Moths, Overwintering Insects, Ground Beetles, Centipedes, Crickets, Earwigs, Firebrats, Millipedes, Clover Mites, Pillbugs/Sowbugs, Psocids, Scorpions, Silverfish, Paper Wasps, Springtails, Spiders, Stored Product Beetles, Stored Product Moths, Mice, and Rats.

 

​