Signs of infestation of mice include gnaw marks on wood cabinets or furniture, track marks, nesting material, mouse droppings, and dribbles of urine.  Mice constantly need to file down their incisors so they gnaw on wood.  Nesting material can consist of sticks, leaves, fabric, hair, paper, cardboard, string, or anything that a mouse can forage and shred.

Mice are most active at night.  They prefer to eat grains, but they are scavengers and will feed upon any food source that they come across.  Not needing much food to survive, crumbs or pet food that is left unattended can feed hungry mice in a home.  Because mice have strong sharp teeth, they can easily rip open sealed packages of food and eat undetected in cabinets.

Mice infestations are difficult to control because they multiply very quickly.  Female mice can have from five to ten litters of pups in her lifetime.  Each litter has on average between five or six mice babies, which are born approximately 21 days after mating occurs.  Those babies reach reproductive maturity in six to ten weeks depending on the environment that they live within.  It’s easy to see how a single pair of fertile mice can multiply out-of-control and cause a full-blown mouse invasion in no time.

The pest control technicians at Stern Environmental Group are trained to look for the signs of mice activity and can find their nesting spots so that they can be safely eliminated in homes, garages, sheds, attics, and all types of businesses.

The house mouse is a native of Asia that was spread throughout Europe.  Humans helped the house mouse spread throughout the rest of the world.  Like other types of insects and animals, mice need food, water and shelter to survive.  Human habitats provide the perfect environment for mice to thrive.  Once they have moved into your home, you’ll need help from a NYC pest control professional to eliminate the pesky critters.

The house mouse will eat crumbs, food scraps, or pet food that is left out.  They will also gnaw into boxed or bagged food with ease to gain access to sealed food products.  Mice constantly dribble urine and leave a trail of feces behind in their wake which will contaminate any surface that they walk upon as well as any food product that they are near.

Mice tend to stay within 10 feet of their nesting site and they typically follow the same path to and from food or water sources over and over again.  Trying to remain undetected, mice will travel from place to place along the walls.  In addition to a dirt or oil type smear left on the wall.  You may also notice gnaw marks on the wood baseboards or furniture as mice are in constant need of filing down their incisor teeth.

Stern Environmental Group provides commercial and hospitality industry rodent extermination services to businesses in New York and New Jersey.  Call us today for help with your mice or rat eradication needs.

Ridgewood-GlenRock Patch reported on December 16, 2011 that 20 rat burrows have been found in three areas within one block in Ridgewood in Bergen County.    Reports are that rats have not been a problem for the Village in the past and these burrows are located in the Central Business District of the Village.  Unlike other cities where rat infestations are found, this NJ rat infestation is located where a minimal amount of restaurants are located.  The Village Manager is hopeful that the pesticides combined with the cold winter months ahead will wipe out the rat population that have moved into the Village.  You may read the article here.

Rats live in burrows outdoors so the cold winter weather does not affect them.  They are however on the constant hunt for food, which is not aplenty during the winter months.  Normally dining on seeds and plants which are gone during the wintertime, rats will turn to homes, businesses, and trash receptacles as a means to gain a meal.  Rats are excellent at climbing and can enter a structure via the soffits or attic vents.  They have powerful teeth and can chew their way through a variety of different building materials to reach their desired food sources as well.  Rats are so resourceful that they can squeeze their body through a hole the size of a quarter.

Rats can be dangerous pests to contend with as they are known disease carriers and can cause fires when they chew on electrical wires.  A NJ pest control professional can help you keep rats out of your home or business.  Call Stern Environmental Group today for expert rat removal services.

Many libraries in the United States and Canada have suffered from bed bug infestations.  Libraries are particularly susceptible to bed bugs because people often read books in their bed and place the book on the bed, nightstand, dresser or other nearby furniture piece.  If a home has an ongoing bed bug infestation, it is very easy for tiny bed bugs to crawl into the book binding area or between the pages of the books.  These books are then transported back to the library where they have infested books, pictures, tables, chairs, and upholstered furniture.  Additionally, females could easily lay eggs within the book that would not be detected by untrained personnel.  Those eggs would have the opportunity to be delivered back to the library, hatch, and then venture out to bite other library patrons, or even hitch a ride home with another host thereby spreading the infestation.

A Library System in Canada, which shares books and other materials among 18 libraries, spent several months battling bed bugs that were inadvertently transported from one library location to several other library locations.  In an effort to avoid that bed bug nightmare from occurring again, they have decided to use the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor reported The Globe and Mail on December 12, 2011.  The monitors/traps will be used in the trucks that transport library books and materials between the different libraries within the system, but are not designed to work in a space as large as the libraries.  In addition to using the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor, bed bug sniffing dogs will be called to root out the bloodsuckers if there are any bed bugs that the NightWatch captures.

Stern Environmental Group offers the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor in our online Marketplace as well as many other fantastic bed bug products for both home and business owners.

Not fearful in the slightest, you can find rats foraging in trash cans and large garbage bins throughout the city. They inhabit playgrounds, parks, apartments, homes, restaurants, offices, and of course the New York City subway system.

The mere sight of a rat can bring fear and often flight when a person sees their budging eyes, long scaly tale, large body, or pointed teeth. The fear of rats is real. Called Musophobia, it is one of the most common phobias in the United States. Musophobia can be triggered by a variety of different experiences with rats or mice. People report having this phobia when they see a rat or mouse on the television or in the movies, when they smell rats or mice, when they hear jokes about them, or when they are in the same room with the pests.

Just as people vary, so do the symptoms and reactions for those that suffer from this phobia. Some folks are mildly bothered while others suffer from sweating, rapid heartbeat, shaking, nausea, and shortness of breath.

Rats can become dangerous when they enter your home as they are known disease carriers. Additionally the razor sharp teeth of a rat are able to chomp into sealed food sources. Rats will contaminate food and food preparation areas as they leave urine and feces behind in their path. A NYC pest control professional can help determine where the rats are gaining entry and will provide fast rat removal services.

They are curious, cold, and above all else…always hungry.  They don’t care that they are dirty, or that they carry fleas, ticks, or can transmit a variety of dangerous diseases.  They are not toilet trained and will not hesitate to drop urine or feces throughout your home.  They won’t ask for food, they just take it…ripping packages and containers open by using their razor sharp teeth.  They prefer grain type food, but these hungry rodents will settle for anything to fill their bottomless pit stomachs.  Any food that is not sufficiently stored will become part of their menu plan.

Fall is a good time to check your home for rat and mice entry points.  Seal any holes or cracks where entry can be made into your home.  Trim branches and shrubbery away from the roof, windows and exterior walls.  Wood piles should be kept away from your home to discourage easy access to your structure.  Seal exterior pipes with expanding foam to discourage mice entry.  Rats and mice are prolific breeders so it’s important to call a NJ pest control professional at the first sign of their presence.

Rats and mice are the worst house guest that you can have entering your home.  Even if your home is sealed up tight, you could experience an invasion from these cleaver creatures.  Rodent control should not stop during the winter months.  If you find that you have mice or rat activity at your house, contact a licensed pest control specialist before these critters multiply out-of-control.

It may begin as an unexplained bang here or there, or maybe some strange scratching noises, or perhaps you’ll hear scampering in your attic, ceiling or wall voids.  The threat of rodents entering your attic is a problem says pest control experts.  Raccoons and squirrels are common rodents that invade homes as the winter months approach.  These pests often cause serious problems for residents in New York and New Jersey as they chew through electrical wiring causing electrical shorts and a fire hazard.  Once these pests arrive, they send pheromones out to others of their species inviting them to join them.

Raccoons are extremely agile creatures that will gain access to your home by tearing attic vents, soffits, and even shingles and roofing boards up.  Their paws are strong and resemble those of a human with long claws attached. Raccoons are curious creatures and scavengers that leave a trail of destruction in their wake.  Raccoons use attics at a nesting site to raise their young and reside as a family.  They defecate and urinate at will, causing serious damage and health threats to humans.

Squirrels may seem fun to watch as they frolic in the trees and garden, but once they gain access to your home, they are a menacing pest to encounter.  Squirrels can squeeze into small openings and gain access to an attic.  If they opportunity presents itself, squirrels won’t hesitate to venture into the main area of the house, helping themselves to food and causing enormous damage as well.

Raccoon and squirrels should not be poisoned to be eliminated and should instead be trapped by a licensed pest control professional with experience in rodent removal services.  For expert services in New York and New Jersey, contact Stern Environmental Group.

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.

New York City rats are notorious for their day and nighttime antics throughout the entire subway system.  NYC rats have lived within the subways for decades.  Entire families of rats live within the cinderblock walls according to NYC pest control experts.  Each cinderblock can house between 8 to 12 rats, so you can see why the rats are so problematic.  Much to the passenger’s dismay, rats are often seen boldly roaming the platform areas and tracks in search of a tasty treat that has been discarded by passengers.

In the past, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has tried to kill off the rodents by tossing poison bait packs onto the subway tracks, but to date, those tactics have not knocked the rat population down.

Despite the efforts put forth by renowned rat expert, Bobby Corrigan, to help the city get rid of the rats within the subway system, the rats remain.  Subway stations have trash rooms where trash is collected and stored until it is disposed of.  The trash rooms serve as a daily rat buffet for colonies of rats within the subway system.  The mishandling of subway station refuse is one of the primary reasons that the rat population has been able to continue to thrive in New York City.

Please check back on Monday for the conclusion.

Mice enter homes and commercial establishments, including schools, to feast on all types of food products.  They are a particular problem in with winter months as they work their way indoors to seek shelter from the cold east coast temperatures.  Once you have a mouse infestation indoors, it can be difficult to eradicate the filthy pests.

New York or New Jersey mice infestations can cause serious health problems for humans.  Mice can carry the Sin Nombre virus which can lead to humans contracting Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS).  Humans are  susceptible to HPS when they come in contact with mice or rat droppings which contain the virus.  There is no vaccine for Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, and once symptoms occur, it is important that immediate medical attention is received.

New York and New Jersey pest control experts say that mice infestations are fairly easy to detect by the trail of evidence that they leave behind.

•  Mice have a constant need to gnaw so keep on the look-out for gnawing, especially on wood.

•  Look for mice droppings (feces) along walls, in cabinets, in drawers, in boxes etc.  Mice leave many droppings in their path as they scurry.

•  Keep a watch out for dribbles or pools of urine.

•  Look for nibbling on food containers.  Mice have sharp teeth and can easily gain access to most any food item that is brought into your home or business.

•  Mice will build their nests in warm and cozy areas that are well hidden.  Look for nesting materials that contain fabric, hair, thread, paper, grass or twigs.

Rodents are typically nocturnal creatures.  Unless you have a large infestation, you won’t usually see the actual pests during the daytime hours.  If you are sharing your home or business with rodents, it is important to call a licensed pest control professional who knows how to provide the proper rodent removal services and rodent prevention techniques to eliminate future rodent infestations.  Stern Environmental Group provides professional experienced service to New York City, Manhattan, New York and parts of New Jersey.