A house mouse is typically gray in color with a cream-colored stomach. They range from 5.5 to 7 inches in length, including their tail. House mice can adapt to the surroundings of your mid-Missouri home quickly and are able to breed rapidly, making them one of the most common household pests in the world. A female house mouse can give birth about every three weeks to six babies at a time, totaling to about 35 per year! They can nest just about anywhere, including attics, basements, inside walls and behind furniture or appliances.
Rodent Identification
Rodents in Mid-Missouri
Get Rid of Rats in Your Home in Mid-Missouri With Steve’s Pest Control
Mice and rats enter mid-Missouri buildings in search of shelter, food, and warmth, but can easily become an out-of-hand problem. Even holes the size of a dime are no challenge for these little troublemakers to enter your home. Rodents are rapid breeders who can easily invade and contaminate a home or workplace in the central Missouri area. At Steve’s Pest Control, we want you to have the proper knowledge on mice and rats so you can recognize a problem in time to call for rodent control.
How to tell if I have a rodent Infestation in my central Missouri home
Rodents are mammals like us: they want food, water, and a warm place to stay. Unfortunately, they also carry a number of germs, damage property, and contaminate the food and water in your mid-Missouri home. If you’re catching signs of mice or rats around the house, they need to be removed immediately before they multiply into an army. These are the general clues to tell if you have a rodent infestation in your central Missouri home:
- Tiny droppings in cabinets or around the floor
- Gnaw marks or holes in walls
- Nests of shredded paper and trash
- Squeaking noises and sounds of little feet scampering
- Pets in your home acting strange
- The smell of urine (similar to ammonia)
Types of Rodents Mid-Missouri Homeowners Should Watch Out For
House mice in mid-Missouri
Meadow mice, aka voles live under homes and yards in Missouri
Voles can be distinguished from mice by their short tails, stocky bodies, and short legs. They are brown or gray in color, have small eyes, and almost hidden ears. They live in colonies and have networks of underground burrows, usually in pastures, fields, roadsides, and other grassy areas in mid-Missouri. They primarily feed on crops, grasses, beans, flower bulbs, roots, etc. The life expectancy of a vole is fairly short—usually about 2 months—because they are a vital food source for predators in Missouri such as hawks, owls, foxes, snakes, and coyotes.
Norway rats can spread disease
The Norway rat has shaggy brown fur with black hairs scattered throughout, and a gray to yellowish-white belly. They have a blunt muzzle, small eyes and ears, and a scaly bicolored tail. Signs of a Norway rat infestation in mid-Missouri are the same as those for a house mouse, but Norway rat droppings are about ¾” in length. They are primarily nocturnal and much more cautious than mice, shying away from new objects and changes, making them more difficult to trap if they’re hiding in your central Missouri home. Norway rats prefer to build burrows along river banks, under concrete slabs and other places outside, but they have been found in attics, basements, roofs, and sewers. Norway rats also carry some of the following diseases that can be transmitted to humans:
- Seoul hantavirus
- Plague
- Leptospirosis
- Murine typhus
Hear scurrying above your mid-Missouri home? It could be roof rats
The roof rat has soft brown and black fur with a white, gray, or black belly. They have a pointed muzzle, large eyes and ears, and a long, scaly tail. Infestation signs are the same as other rodents. They have poor vision but keenly developed senses of hearing, smell, touch, and taste. They are fairly cautious about new objects, although they are constantly exploring their surroundings. In structures, roof rats prefer to nest in the upper parts of the building, hence the name “roof rat”, but they are occasionally found in basements and sewers. Outdoors, they prefer nesting in trees, but burrows are sometimes found in vegetation around buildings. Roof rats also carry a number of diseases, so it’s important to keep them out of your mid-Missouri home or lake house.
What’s the difference between a mouse & a rat in my mid-Missouri home?
Rats and mice are similar to each other in many ways. The primary difference is that rats are considerably larger than mice, but they have other separating characteristics. Mice also have skinnier tails, where rats’ tails are thicker and stubbier. If you can’t tell whether the droppings in your home are from mice or rats, rat droppings are banana-shaped and mice droppings are more frequent with pointy ends.
Basic facts about rodents in Missouri
- Rodent teeth are constantly growing, which leads them to gnawing on materials to trim their incisors.
- Mice and rats are responsible for at least 35 diseases to mid-Missouri homeowners.
- Rats can chew through hard materials like cinder blocks and iron.
- In 2021, approximately 14.8 million rodent problems were reported in the U.S.
- Rats and mice typically prefer to eat grains in your mid-Missouri kitchen.
What factors cause a mouse or rat infestation in homes across central Missouri?
The number one reason rodents enter your mid-Missouri home is in search of food. Although they aren’t picky, rats and mice are particularly attracted to grains, nuts, and seeds in your pantry. Make sure you are checking your kitchen for holes or spills that could attract rodents. They are also more likely to invade your home during the mid-Missouri winter to stay warm.
How can I prevent rats or mice from infesting my mid-Missouri home?
The best way you can prevent a rodent infestation is by keeping your home clean and dry. It’s important to keep containers sealed, patch up holes, and keep your surfaces and floors clean. You should keep the outside of your home clean as well by raking leaves and trimming tree branches. Last but certainly not least, it’s good to call a proactive exterminator like Steve’s Pest Control to inspect your home from time to time.
Steve’s Pest Control Offers Rodent Control Services Across Mid-Missouri
Steve’s Pest Control is mid-Missouri’s top quality, accessible pest control service proudly serving 18 cities. See if your area is available for our services and call for a mouse or rat exterminator today!
Want to Keep Rodents Out of Your Mid-Missouri Home Year Round? Steve’s Pest Control Is Trusted for Our 5 Star Pest Control Services
5 Star
As soon as a rodent steps foot in your mid-Missouri home, you’re going to want a dependable rat exterminator who can solve the problem quickly and efficiently. You also want to be protected from other pests like cockroaches, spiders, and ants. To get started, our 5 Star Program includes:
- 5 general pest services (1 interior, 5 exterior, exterior web and nest removal, exterior rodent baiting).
- Pests are eliminated outside before they enter your building.
- Safer and more effective than continuous interior treatment.
- Easy, hassle-free scheduling – you won’t even need to be home.
- Unlimited retreatment warranty – if a covered pest problem develops at any time, we will promptly perform a re-treat at no additional charge!
5 Star Advantage
Ready to upgrade your pest control plan? Steve’s Pest Control offers some of the best termite control in mid-Missouri with our 5 Star Advantage Plan. This service program provides rodent protection both indoors and outside your home or building. In full, the 5 Star Advantage Plan includes:
- 5 general pest services (1 interior, 5 exterior, exterior web and nest removal, exterior rodent baiting).
- Pests are eliminated outside before they enter the building.
- Safer and more effective than continuous interior treatment.
- Easy, hassle-free scheduling – you won’t even need to be home.
- Unlimited retreatment warranty – if a covered pest problem develops at any time, we will promptly perform a re-treat at no additional charge!
- Pest and rodent protection.
- Termite protection with Sentricon.
- A $250,000 damage warranty.
5 Star Complete
If you thought it couldn’t get any better than the 5 Star Advantage, you’re wrong. With 5 Star Complete, you are protected from nearly every annoying pest in mid-Missouri, including termites and mosquitoes. This plan comes with:
- 5 general pest services (1 interior, 5 exterior, exterior web and nest removal, exterior rodent baiting).
- Pests are eliminated outside before they enter the building.
- Safer and more effective than continuous interior treatment.
- Easy, hassle-free scheduling – you won’t even need to be home.
- Unlimited re-treatment warranty – if a covered pest problem develops at any time, we will promptly perform a re-treat at no additional charge!
- Pest and rodent protection.
- Termite protection with Sentricon.
- $250,000 damage warranty.
- Mosquito reduction with unlimited re-treatment warranty.
Steve’s Lake Services eliminate mice & roof rats from mid-Missouri lake houses
Lake Ozark, MO is a lovely place to visit over the summer, but there are several pests and rodents that live by the forest and water of this area. Keep your lake house protected with none other than Steve’s Lake Services! This plan includes:
- Initial treatment for the year, including interior treatments.
- Treatments performed on your home’s exterior, including around the house and at the dock if applicable.
- Removal of spider webs and insect nests within reach during each service.
- Pest elimination before they enter the interior of your home, which is safer and more effective than continuous interior treatments.
- Easy, hassle-free scheduling.
- $250,000 Termite Damage Warranty with The Sentricon System, if applicable.
- Unlimited Retreatment Warranty with seven or more consecutive monthly services.
Are You in Need of Mice or Rat Removal for Your Mid-Missouri Home or Business? Steve’s Pest Control Has Experienced Rodent Exterminators to Save the Day!
Our incredible team of rat exterminators are happy to answer any questions you may have about rodent control in mid-Missouri. Whether you’re hearing roof rats up above or voles scurrying under, you can depend on Steve’s Pest Control to take care of it. Contact us today and get started on rodent control for your home in central Missouri.
Steve’s Pest Control is a full-service pest control business run by a team of experts who are dedicated to taking care of your pest problems once and for all. We guarantee all of our pest control services with 100% customer satisfaction to ensure you are receiving the best.
Contact Information
© 2022 Steve's Pest Control. All Rights Reserved.
Background Vector Created by FreePik.