Signs of a rodent infestation in your home may send even the biggest animal lovers into a panic. Rodents notoriously carry over 35 diseases that they can spread by their bites, feces, and fleas and ticks. The Center for Disease Control reported an outbreak of Seoul Virus in as many as 11 states – the result of rodents. Rodents and other pests love to make their nests in our cool, dark homes, especially in our attics and crawl spaces. In order to prevent the spread of disease from rodent infestations, it is important for pest management companies to regularly inspect and remove unwanted pests.
Rodents love to nest in cool, dark places where they can avoid human contact. They may enter your home through cracks and holes on your roof and make nests in your attic and walls. Rodents may even take up residents in your garage and rooms with excessive clutter from hoarding, for example.
Signs of a rodent infestation
Before you can rid your home of rodents, it’s important to determine what kind of rodents have made a nest in your home. Mice and roof rats are some of the most common culprits and their presence can often be identified by:
- Droppings
- Urine odors
- Gnawed holes
- Odd pet behavior
- Rodent tracks
Diseases directly transmitted by rodents include:
- Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
- Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome
- Lassa Fever
- Leptospirosis
- Lymphocytic Chorio-meningitis (LCM)
- Omsk Hemorrhagic Fever
- Plague
- Rat-Bite Fever
- Salmonellosis
- South American Arenaviruses (Argentine hemorrhagic fever, Bolivian hemorrhagic fever, Sabiá-associated hemorrhagic fever, Venezuelan hemorrhagic fever)
- Tularemia
What To Do If You Notice Signs Of An Infestation
If you have noticed any of the tell-tale signs of a rodent infestation it is important to call your pest management company to remove the pest infestation. Apart from transmitting the Seoul Virus, rodents are also carriers of many other diseases.