To some people, even just the sight of a mouse would make them shriek. They’re pesky little creatures that can make their way into your home, damage property, ruin furniture, and make you let out a terrifying scream.
Frankly, here at Rove Pest Control, we find them quite fascinating. That’s why we’ve made a list of 14 fun facts about these four legged creatures that you might not have known about.
1) The teeth on mice never stop growing.
Their incisor teeth, the ones in the front of their mouth, never stop growing! In fact, they can even grow about 0.3mm per day.
As a result of this, mice are constantly chewing on and gnawing through furniture, wood, cardboard boxes, wires, and furniture in order to keep their teeth at a modest length.
If they didn’t file their teeth down, they would be unable to eat, resulting in a rather unfortunate death.
2) Mice are very good at hearing.
An adult human can only hear frequencies in the 15-20kHz range. Research has shown that mice are far better listeners than us as humans. A full grown mouse can hear frequencies up to 90kHz and will communicate to surrounding mice through ultrasound.
3) Mice can jump quite high.
In addition to being very good listeners, they are able to jump quite high as well.
Some mice have been documented with the ability to jump about 10”. Considering that they’re bodies are smaller than 4”, that’s pretty remarkable.
4) Mice are fantastic at climbing.
Not only can they hear ultrasounds, jump twice the length of their bodies, they are also fantastic climbers.
Bricks, siding, trees, curtains, and even some forms of metal. If a mouse can use it’s claws to get a good grip, they will have no issues climbing it.
Some materials that are very smooth such as sheet metal and glass, mice are not able to get a grip, preventing them from climbing.
5) Mice are not fond of the cold.
Here in Minnesota, there’s no denying that we have extremely cold winters and very few of us enjoy those few months of freezing temperatures. Mice feel the exact same way.
As temperatures begin to drop, mice will begin to seek out warmer shelters to survive throughout the winter. It’s important to make sure your homes, garages, sheds, barns, or any building on your property are all sealed properly to prevent them from entering and causing damage.
At Rove Pest Control, this is one of the services that we specialize in. One of our licensed and professionally trained technicians will thoroughly inspect the foundation of your home for all potential entry points such as cracks, crevices, and gaps.
This includes making sure that the trim around all doors and windows are secure, verifying that all pipes are sealed up, and looking for other possible ways that mice may be able to enter. Once we’ve spotted a potential entry point, we go ahead and fill it up, ensuring that it’s sealed properly and then we will inform you of where these issues were located.
Interested in receiving this service? Give Rove Pest Control a call! Somebody in the office would love to answer any question that you might have.
6) Mice frequently use the same paths to travel.
These interesting little creatures frequently travel up against walls and along edges in order to protect themselves from prey and to help guide them to their destination.
If they are inside one of the buildings on your property, you may notice a distinct smudge along the baseboard, floors, or walls. These markings are a result of the dirt being transferred from their paws and fur and collecting on the building material.
7) Mice are night owls.
Mice are what we call nocturnal pests, meaning that they are most active late at night or early in the morning when it’s still dark out. They are not fond of bright lights, however, it’s still possible that a mouse may be spotted during the day if it is exploring their territory for food or if it’s been disturbed by something.
8) Mice are typically very hungry
Mice are omnivores, which means they will eat just about anything. Mice that are in the wild typically survive off of grains, fruits, and seeds. However, mice that make their way into your home will eat just about anything it can get its hands on.
When a food source has been located, mice will leave their nest and travel to that food source about 15-20 times per day to eat. They are very energetic and have extremely fast metabolism that requires them to keep their body’s fueled. When there is an abundant amount of food, mice will gather and store the surplus for times when food is not as plentiful.
9) Mice have very bad eyesight.
Most people aren’t aware of this, but mice are color-blind, just like most other mammals. As a result, mice can only focus on objects that are up to 2 feet away. Despite this, they are able to use their exceptional hearing to detect movement as far as 50 feet away. When out searching for food, they need to rely heavily on their hearing and their sense of smell in order to find their next meal.
10) Mice have short life spans.
In captivity, the average mouse can live to be about two years old. Unfortunately, wild mice will only live to be about five months old due to owls, snakes, and other natural predators.
11) Mice like to chew and nibble.
As we discussed earlier in this article, the teeth on a mouse never stop growing. This requires them to gnaw and chew on various objects to grind them down to a suitable size.
These determined, four-legged creatures have the ability to chew through just about anything while hunting for food and shelter.
Wood, plastic, vinyl, and metal stand no chance to their razor sharp teeth. As a matter of fact, if concrete has not been cured properly, they would have no issue chewing through that either.
12) Mice are very courageous.
When mice feel threatened, they will exhibit three types of behaviors: freezing, fighting, or fleeing. These responses vary depending on the level of a threat being posed and it’s possible escape routes.
When no threat is present, mice are very courageous when on the hunt for food or shelter. They will climb vertical surfaces such as walls, trees, bricks, and even jump from the branches of a tree onto the roof of your house.
13) Mice can squeeze through very small gaps.
Mice will flatten out their entire body in order to fit into gaps and crevices as small as 7mm wide. To put that into perspective, that’s about the size of a typical pen.
Considering how large our homes are and how small of a hole a mouse can fit into, it’s important to get a professionally trained set of eyes to inspect the exterior of your home.
The technicians here at Rove Pest Control are all licensed and diligently trained to thoroughly inspect your home for any issues. We will search for potential entry points around windows and doors, under the siding, along the foundation, under decks, around utility equipment, and all of the piping leading into the home.
Once we’ve located a potential entry point, we go ahead and fill the hole up and seal it properly to ensure mice will never be able to enter.
Interested in getting mice out and away from your home? Give Rove Pest Control a call today. We would love to answer any question or concern you might have.
14) Mice can cause problems in or around your home.
It’s pretty obvious that these little creatures are unique and have managed to develop the skill set needed to survive in the wild. However, at Rove Pest Control, even though we believe mice are quite fascinating, we know that they don’t belong in our homes.
If you are struggling with mice in or around your home, give us a call. We will gladly answer any question or concern that you might have, as well as discuss options to get mice out of your home and away from your property.