Research has shown that the house mouse has proven to be very intelligent.  In fact, mammalogists around the world rate the common house mouse as the second most successful mammal on earth, trailing behind humans.

The house mouse is able to live and thrive under a variety of conditions.  You will easily find them in homes, business, open fields and agricultural areas.  The house mouse may look unassuming and even cute to some people, with their oversized ears and small eyes, but they are considered to be a troublesome pest that seriously impacts the economy in all parts of the United States.

The house mouse can be gray or brown in color with a white belly, weighs ½ ounce, and will grow to about 7 inches long (including the tail) at adulthood.  New York City pest control experts report that the house mouse is a serious threat to homes and commercial structures because they consume and contaminate massive amounts of food products.  They prefer to dine on cereal grains, but will eat any food that is meant for humans or pets.  Mice can enter a structure via holes as small as the size of a pencil so it’s important to seal up holes to ensure that mice are kept outdoors.

Besides the economic problems that having mice create, mice can also cause serious health problems for humans.  Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a common rodent-borne disease that is contracted by humans, which is fatal in over half of the diagnosed cases.  Hantavirus is transmitted when the dust that is contaminated in rodent urine or feces is breathed in.  Hantavirus often goes undetected because the symptoms mimic the flu with headaches, nausea, rapid shallow breathing, vomiting and dry cough.  Humans are also at risk of contracting Lymphocytic Chorio-meningitis (LCM) and Salmonellosis from the house mouse.

Properly controlling mice can be achieved by hiring a New York City pest control expert with experience in mice removal.

A friend of mine picked her daughter up from an elementary school last week and she overheard the Kindergarten teacher tell the class full of children to remember to take home their lunchboxes so that their “friends” would not visit them over the weekend.  Curious as to what the teacher was talking about, my friend asked her “what friends would come to visit the lunchboxes over the weekend?”  The teacher whispered, “We have a bit of a mouse problem here at the school at the moment!”  The teacher went on to tell my friend about how the previous afternoon a  mouse had scurried across the lockers, onto the counter, into the sink, and then disappeared behind one of the cubbies that the classroom books are stored in.  My friend asked if any pest control professionals had been called to the school for rodent treatment and was informed that each of the teachers were given sticky traps to place throughout their classrooms.  Worried that the school was not taking the rodent infestation too seriously, my friend asked if the teacher would mind calling me this weekend to speak about the situation.

When I spoke with the teacher this weekend, my suspicions were confirmed about how extensive the schools mice infestation really is.  She confirmed that mice have been seen in many classrooms, in the lunchroom, in bathrooms, and in the cafeteria as well.  Evidence of mouse activity has been reported throughout the entire school as teachers report seeing mice feces in cabinets, along classroom walls, in supply boxes, and in the hallways too.

Unlike when a school has a bed bug infestation problem, a school does not need to worry about children taking mice home and transferring the infestation. They should however be worried about the dangers that mice present when they are infesting a school.  Although the teacher was in good spirits about the mice running wild in the school, she had no idea that having a mouse infestation is actually quite dangerous for the children as well as the staff members.

Please check back on Wednesday for the conclusion.

They are quite small and to some they seem to be a cute a cuddly cartoon like character.  For others the mere presence of their long tails and bulging eyes in the house will bring screams of fear and trips atop the kitchen table.  It’s hard to imagine that a little mouse can cause such an uproar; but even the mighty elephant is afraid of the scurrying little rodent.

As the weather turns to bitter cold in New Jersey, many people are finding that mice are working their way indoors to seek shelter.  Mice can squeeze their nimble body into spaces as small as ¼ of an inch.  Any type of crack, crevice or hole around your home is fair game to a cleaver little mouse.  Basements, attics, wall voids and garages all serve as perfect mice nesting spots during the wintertime.  The trouble is, once mice move indoors, if the food supply is good, they don’t tend to ever leave.  Mice are prolific breeders and will have pups year round.  Having one mouse in your home can quickly turn into a serious NJ mice infestation.

Despite their timid looks, the deer mouse and the white-footed mouse are known carriers of Hantavirus.  Hantavirus causes a disease called Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS).  People become infected with the disease through the urine, saliva, or droppings of the mouse.  It can take up to five weeks for symptoms of the disease to appear so many people do not associate Hantavirus with their illness.  To further complicate matters, the symptoms resemble the flu so the disease is able to progress without treatment or is often misdiagnosed.

The best way to avoid Hantavirus and HPS is to keep your home free of a NJ mice infestation problem by hiring a licensed pest control professional.  For expert mice or rat removal and exclusion services, contact Stern Environmental Group today!

The New York Post recently ran an article about the growing opossum population that has now joined the forces of other unwanted furry creatures in Brooklyn, New York.  These marsupials are wandering the streets in high numbers, reportedly because the City Council decided to introduce them into the borough as a means of controlling the ever growing rat population.

The opossums were apparently set free at various parks and underneath the Coney Island boardwalk two years ago.  It was assumed that once the rat population had diminished, the opossum populations would as well because of the lack of food that would be available.  The problem is that these cleaver pointy nosed creatures have been able to thrive alongside other problem pests in Brooklyn with great ease.

Many area homeowners are crying foul as they wonder why the City Council would release another type of problem pest into the area.  But, perhaps the opossums are not as problematic as you might think.  According to The National Opossum Society, opossums are a beneficial animal for many different reasons.

Contrary to what some people believe, opossums do hunt, kill, and consume a large number of rats and mice.  Being nature’s ultimate scavengers, they will consume all types of dead animals (carrion) that they encounter.  They also eat many types of bothersome insects like crickets, beetles, snails, slugs, and cockroaches too.  Fallen fruit in neighborhood yards is a particular treat to a roaming possum.  Opossums do tend to carry fleas like other wild animals; but they seem to have a high immunity to most diseases, especially rabies!

Now if we could just train them to hunt and eat NYC bed bugs, perhaps they would be the perfect pet!

Opossums can be trouble when they rummage through trash cans and pet food left outdoors.  Like any other wild animal, they will bite if they are grabbed too.  If they happen to enter your home or attic though, you should never try to remove them yourself.  Wildlife removal is best left to professional pest control experts like the ones you will find at Stern Environmental Group instead!

Famed New York City rat expert, Bobby Corrigan has recently written about new technology that is being used in rodent tracking and monitoring.  “Biomonitoring” is the new wave of “green” rat and mice pest control. According to Bobby Corrigan, laboratories have developed a new non-toxic bait for rats and mice that once ingested makes the rodents feces glow in the dark.  This new technology is perfect for Integrated Pest Management as it allows pest control experts the opportunity to see where rats and mice are gaining entry into buildings so that traps can be placed in specific spots where there is known rodent activity.

According to Bobby Corrigan, this new type of bait has been used in a variety of locations with great success.  It is perfect for use in locations that pesticide usage is discouraged.  This new type of bait is recommended for schools, biotech firms, pharmaceutical plants, zoological gardens, animal-rearing facilities, zoological gardens, etc.

Another interesting fact about this new bait is that it has been found to not only work on rodents, but cockroaches as well.  All pest control experts know that cockroach infestations are difficult to treat.  Bobby Corrigan’s study has found that once cockroaches have eaten the non-toxic bait, their feces also glow in the dark.  This new technology could also aid in the eradication of cockroaches as it will be easier to pin-point their exact locations so proper treatment can be applied.

Bobby Corrigan said “In short, monitoring/tracking baits can help us be better detectives.  Against the cleaver urban rodent pests, we need every detective tool and clue-gathering technique we can get.”  Read the entire “Biomonitoring For Rodents” article that was featured in PCT by Bobby Corrigan for more interesting information about rat and mouse tracking and monitoring.