Colorado Homeowners Guide To Rodent Prevention

Colorado is home to an abundance of rodents. It only becomes a problem when these rodents decide to make your home their place of residence! Once inside, rodents are known to cause damage and transmit diseases. It is important to understand what these dangerous pests look like and know how to keep them from becoming a problem in your Colorado home.

Common Colorado Rodents

Some rodents are perfectly happy to stay outdoors, but others will come in uninvited and wreak havoc on your home. Here's a list of the most common rodents you'll come into contact with while living in Colorado:

Vole
These little lawn pests are active all year round, making tunnels in the ground, damaging fruit trees, plants, and crops in the summer and threatening your foundation as they burrow in the winter.

Gopher
Responsible for ruining gardens, lawns, and killing trees with their tunneling, gophers are not a welcome sight.

Mouse
Small in size, but big in potential damage – mice in the house reproduce rapidly. One mouse in your home can become hundreds in a short period of time. They leave droppings and urine behind everywhere they go, contaminating food surfaces and your food.

Wood Rat
Also called pack rats, these rodents collect materials to build their nests and are among the most common rats in Colorado. They transmit parasites and diseases and can chew through insulation, drywall, pipes, and wires.

Squirrel
Outside, squirrels aren't much of a problem but if they find their way into your home they will eat your food, introduce parasites into your home, spread diseases, and damage insulation in between your walls. They may also eat electrical wires and put you at risk for house fires.

How to Prevent Rodents in Your Home

The key to a rodent-free home is to make it as unwelcoming as possible to these damaging critters. Take the following steps to prevent a rodent infestation:

• Keep food in sealed containers
• Clean up spills, crumbs, and food immediately
• Keep your trash emptied
• Seal all entry points into your home, remembering a mouse only needs a hole the size of a dime to gain access to your home
• Use weather-stripping around doors and windows
• Keep trees, shrubs, and mulch away from the foundation of your home
• Keep pet food in sealed containers
• Eliminate moisture in the basement and bathrooms, fix any leaking pipe

Colorado Wildlife & Rodent Control

If you're dealing with rodents in your home and your prevention measures and trapping attempts are unsuccessful, give EnviroPest a call. Our wildlife control specialists will identify the source of your rodent problem, eliminate existing pests, and help you implement measures to prevent future infestations.