Moving to a new house can be exciting, but it can also be nerve-wracking if you discover an infestation of mice in your new home that requires rodent removal services. If there is an infestation of mice in your new home, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the inspection missed something. It may mean that the mice stowed away with your belongings when you moved house. 

Where Do Mice Hide When You Are Moving?

Mice make nests in places that are warm and soft. For example, they may chew a hole through the upholstery of a chair or sofa and make a nest inside the cushions where they raise their babies. You may not notice that they are there. 

Mice are prey animals, so they also look for hiding places that are dark and provide plenty of cover. For this reason, they may crawl inside boxes or packing crates that you use to transport your belongings from one place to another. They do not need a big hole to get into a packing crate; an opening the size of a dime will do. Even if there isn’t a hole in the box, they may be able to make one. Mice have strong teeth and an instinctual urge to gnaw, and cardboard is a very yielding material. 

However, mice may not need to make a hole in a box if it is open at the top. Mice are good at climbing and can jump to a height of up to nine inches. Mice are fairly intelligent, so even if a box is too high for them to jump up on, if you have a lot of boxes of different heights grouped together, mice could keep jumping up on them like stair steps until they found one with an open top that they could crawl inside. 

Can Mice Survive the Move?

A mouse that has been relocated may have trouble finding food and water in its new environment. If that is the case, then it may not survive. However, mice are highly adaptable to new situations. They have excellent memories, so it typically does not take them long to figure out how to navigate their new environment. 

What Are the Signs of a Mouse Infestation?

The signs of an infestation may be more evident in a new home that has not yet been thoroughly lived in. One of a mouse’s first priorities will be to build a nest in which to raise offspring. Therefore, you may find damage to soft objects such as clothing, towels, or bed linens. You may also find holes in paper or cardboard food containers where the mice have chewed through. You may find tracks along the baseboards where mice like to travel and droppings in their nests, their feeding areas, and anywhere they have passed by. 

What Can You Do To Prevent a New Infestation?

Mice like clutter because it provides them with places to hide. If you do not unpack the boxes right away after your move, not only does it give more opportunity for the mice to escape, but it also provides cover for them while they are exploring their new surroundings. Therefore, one of the best things you can do to prevent an infestation in your new home is to unpack all your belongings and put them away as soon as possible. 

It may also help if you choose packing crates made of tough plastic with sealing lids to transport your belongings, especially if you have a history of rodent infestation in your current home. 

Call Truly Nolen for Rodent Removal Services

Moving is stressful enough without having to cope with an infestation in your new home. Learn more about the services we offer related to pest control in Burlington.