What Draws Rodents Indoors, And How To Stop Drawing In These Pests

Rodents are typically outdoor creatures. There are only certain things or events that bring these pests indoors. Let's take a closer look, using your teenager's messy bedroom as an example.

An Abundance of Food

Rats and mice are not particular about what they eat, so long as what is available to eat is abundant. When your teen leaves old pizza boxes with half-eaten pizzas or pizza crust edges in his or her room, that is enough to draw these pests to that area of the house. If your teen has lots of other edible "goodies" for the pests (e.g., boxes of cookies and crackers, bags and cans of chips/crisps, and bottles or cans of sweet liquids slowly dripping out onto the floor) these pests will follow the smells and sticky messes right into that room. Since they leave behind a pheromone trail, rats and mice can find their way back into your teen's room no matter how well you clean it.

Lots of Nice Nesting Material

Everything from socks to chenille sweaters makes good nesting material to rats and mice. If it will keep them warm and cozy, they will use it. If your teen argues about picking up clothes and keeping them off the floor, remind him/her it is just as easy as scurrying under a blanket for rodents to select clothing items and "move in." Worse still is the amount of damage the pests will cause to your teen's clothes. Girls more than boys will attempt to keep their clothes off the floor when they learn that rats and mice will chew right through their favorite jeans or sweater.

No Indoor Hindrances

A rat or mouse can come and go in a house without a homeowner even knowing it. What makes the rat or mouse decide to stay often has a lot to do with the indoor hindrances. These hindrances are too much noise, too much activity, and/or family pets that are willing to chase and kill the rodents. Still, if a rat or mouse is starving and desperate, it will still go into your teen's messy room to get a bite to eat when your teen is blasting music with a wall-shaking bass!

Next to hiring rodent control services like Sentinel  Pest Control for a total extermination of your rodent problem, you can help deter the return of more of these pests. Make sure that your teen's room is constantly clean, with no food or drink around, no clothing on the floor, and an active cat or dog who seems interested in chasing rats and mice. These tactics help, but only if you adhere to them consistently and only when deployed after pest control has eliminated the original pests seen in the home.