Why You Should Be Extra Vigilant About Rodents in Manassas, VA

Spending more time at home in Fairfax County could mean many things. You get to have quality time with your family and connect some more. You also get to notice all the tiny details about your home. For example, have you suddenly discovered that your walls are not as clean as you thought? Or have you been tempted to do a complete clean-up of your home? Well, any rodents scampering around would make your efforts that much more complicated.

Rodents are a health risk to your loved ones, and that includes your pets. However, rodents are becoming increasingly popular as pet options. If you were thinking of getting a pet mouse, there are some important considerations to keep in mind.

Pet Rodents

Pet rodents (such as hamsters, gerbils, rats, mice, guinea pigs) can make great pets for the right family. However, pet rodents, even when they look clean and healthy, can carry germs that can make people sick. Following these tips can help you and your pet rodents stay safe and healthy.

Pick the right pet for your family. Pet rodents are not recommended for families with children 5 years old or younger, pregnant women, or people with weakened immune systems because these groups are at greater risk for serious illness.
Always wash your hands immediately after touching, feeding, or caring for pet rodents or cleaning their habitats.
Play safely. Do not kiss, nuzzle, or hold rodents close to your face. This can startle your rodents and also increase your chances of being bitten. Bites from pet rodents can spread germs and possibly make you sick. Read more at CDC…

It’s worth noting that germs from rodents can affect you even when you don’t directly touch these creatures. That is why every measure must be taken to ensure your family is safe when it comes to rodents (pets or otherwise).

So what if the rodents you’re dealing with are unwelcome guests in your home? Before you dive into finding an effective solution, you need to be aware of what you’re targeting. Which rodents are risky? Where do they live? Find out in the following post:

…there are three principal rodents that create problems: the house mouse, Norway rat and roof rat. They are referred to as commensal rodents, meaning they live in close contact with humans.

Not only are they annoying, but they also cause damages to homes and buildings, causing losses of billions of dollars annually. Most importantly, they harbor and transmit disease-causing pathogens to humans.

Murine typhus, bubonic plague, hantavirus, salmonellosis, trichinosis, leptospirosis, hemorrhagic fever, ricketsialpox and rat-bite fever are the diseases these commensal rodents cause. They are also responsible for transmitting diseases to livestock, poultry and pets, including brucellosis, distemper, leptospirosis, trichinosis and tuberculosis. Read more at Victoria Advocate…

Rodents generally compromise the safety of your family and pets. So, yes, it’s important to get your home cleaned up – in every sense of the word.

Apart from making you and your pets sick, rodents have a sneaky way of destroying your property in a slow but sure way. Here’s how they do it:

Once inside, if the rodents can find food and water, then it is highly likely that they will stay and the rodent population will quickly grow.

Making a Nest
Rodents like to have a nice, soft, comfortable nest for birthing babies. So, rodents will use whatever they can find—old newspapers, clothes, fabric stored in cardboard boxes (easily chewed into), stacks of magazines, or even important files. Say goodbye to those items, too, it will be chewed to shreds.

Even your drywall, insulation, and wiring is not safe. This can cause significant damage to your home and potentially cause a fire that ignites from the bared wires. Read more at The Spruce…

You’ve got all the reasons to protect your home and family from these tiny but harmful creatures, especially in this season.

At Backyard Bug Patrol, we have a perimeter rodent control plan. This ensures your home and the surroundings are rodent-free. This means that we cover both your indoor area and outdoor spaces. Although rodents have the uncanny ability to stay out of sight, the damage they leave behind cannot be ignored. We know how to track them and eliminate the rodent populations wherever they are. Give us a call today for amazing results.