Mice are shy creatures; they avoid contact with humans as much as possible. This means that if you do have mice in the attic, you’re much more likely to hear them than you are to see them. 

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There are some visual cues you can look for out, things like droppings found within your attic space, torn insulation, or food packaging that shows signs of having been chewed. While these are all warning signs, the biggest indicator of a mouse infestation is strange sounds coming from the attic. 

Mice like attics, along with walls and basements, because they’re generally dark, devoid of activity, and full of things like insulation to keep them warm. If you think you might have mice in the attic, keep your ears trained on any of the following weird sounds.

High-Pitched Squeaking

This is the most common sound associated with mice. They actually communicate through high-pitched squeaking, and since mice tend to live in large groups, if you have mice in the attic, eventually you’ll pick up on some of their conversations. 

Depending on what they’re trying to communicate with each other, the pitch and frequency of the squeaking can vary. For example, when they are mating or when they have found food, their squeaks are faster and higher in pitch.

Chewing, Scuffling & Scratching

An interesting fact about mice: their teeth never stop growing. As a result, they spend a lot of time chewing in order to keep their teeth filed and short. They’ll chew just about anything, from soft concrete to wood to electrical wiring. 

Mice also have quite long nails, and when scurrying around your attic, you’ll hear them moving as their nails click on various surfaces and attempt to gain grip. 

Mice also begin to put together nests from various materials they’ve found around your attic; anything from cloth they find lying around, debris, and insulation. They make their nests by scratching at various materials to loosen them and get them into strips that they can then build with. If you’re hearing chewing, scuffling, or scratching noises, we can almost guarantee you have some unwelcome mice in the attic.

Times of Day

Mice are nocturnal animals, meaning the bulk of the noise that you’ll hear will occur after dark. This can make them easier to identify as well; the sounds are amplified when the house is quiet, as opposed to during the day when the sounds they make are more easily masked.

However, mice do move around sometimes during the day, so if you’ve heard any of the noises we’ve described coming from the attic when the sun is still out, don’t automatically rule out mice.

A handy trick for testing whether it is in fact mice in the attic—tap on the spot where you’re hearing the sound. Mice will freeze up for about a moment before making their retreat; other animals would take off right away.

What Next?

If any of the sounds we’ve described sound familiar to you, then you might have a mouse problem. The next step is very important—you need to act immediately by calling a wildlife removal company.

Mice breed incredibly quickly. Not addressing the situation quickly can more than double the current number of mice in the attic. Mice can also be extremely destructive. The sounds described above, chewing and scratching, are also descriptions of the damage they are doing to your home. The quicker the problem is dealt with, the less damage they can do.

Additionally, mice carry all sorts of diseases, including Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), an infection that can have serious ramifications.

As soon as you hear any of the sounds we’ve described, calling a wildlife removal company needs to be the first action.

Do you need wildlife removal services? Request a quote today!

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