For all your pest and vermin control needs; Fleas

Can you hear the pitter-patter of tiny footsteps behind the skirting? Does Tom keep bringing Jerry in from the garden? 

Mice are a part of British wildlife - but when they take up residence with you, they can be a cause for concern.

Active all year round, mice are one of the most common pest species in the UK.

 Their presence is usually detected from one of the following signs:

• Mice droppings - these are often black, and about the size and shape of a grain of rice. Fresh droppings will be soft and moist. Each mouse can leave approximately 80 droppings per day. Common places to find mouse droppings are under the kitchen sink, around central heating boilers and in roof spaces
• Strong ammonia smell - mice urinate frequently
• Smear marks - these are dark grey marks left on surfaces by repeated contact with the oils in mouse fur
• Nests - sometimes nests can be found indoors for example in lofts, under floorboards or in airing cupboards
• Damage to stored food in cupboards and pantries
• Gnaw marks on materials such as wood, carpets, paper, pipe cables and furniture.

These are all signs of potential rodent activity. If you have any of the above please get in touch. 

Although mice are often considered to be cute by some people, they are a public health pest and can cause serious harm.

Mice have been known to spread nasty diseases - such as Salmonella and Listeria - to humans through their urine, droppings and bedding.

Mice have a need to mark their territory with their urine and due to their sporadic eating habits, build nests near food sources. This puts anyone with an infestation at risk of food poisoning.

As they scurry around, they carry dirt and bacteria with them, transferring it to your counter tops, cabinets, pantry and anywhere else they travel.

These nibbling nuisances can also cause a lot of property damage, due to their compulsive need to gnaw to maintain their teeth at a constant length.

Electric cables, water and gas pipes, packaging and woodwork may all be seriously damaged by mice - many instances of electrical fires and floods have been attributed to them.

House mice are found in and around human structures as they rely on warmth and shelter for nesting sites, and our readily available food sources. 

Nests are often built in places such as roof spaces, under floors or in wall cavities, sheds, basements, storage boxes and wherever there is access to a good source of food and safe, warm harbourage to breed.

Outdoors, field mice will excavate burrows in which to build nests of dry grass, but they will also den among rocks and crevices.

Their main priority will be building a nesting site that isn’t accessible to predators, including cats, foxes, birds and even other rodents, like rats.

Mice are naturally inquisitive and can squeeze through cracks as small as 5mm, to search for food and shelter.

If a neighbouring property has an infestation, this can spread very quickly into your home or business.

They can also come into your property by climbing vines or trellis against the walls of your building.

If you have a lot of vegetation and foliage nearby this is perfect for mice to shelter in, until the time comes for them to find somewhere warmer.

The house mouse has a typical mouse profile: small feet with big eyes and thinly-haired ears, and a pointed snout with thin whiskers.

Their body length ranges between 60-90mm, and the tail generally equals the length of its body, adding another 90mm.

They weigh less than 25g, and their fur colour is uniformly light brown and grey, right down to the tail which has sparse hairs on it.

And keep those pegs handy - they have a really distinctive, strong smell so you’ll know if you have a large infestation of these unwanted guests.

A field mouse has sandy brown fur with a lighter underside.

As it mainly lives outdoors, it has bigger eyes and ears than a house mouse. This is an adaptation to avoid predation.

Field mice also have long tails, making them quite agile climbers.

Juveniles are greyer overall, still with larger ears, hind feet and tails than house mice.