It’s that time of year when we take our holiday decorations out of our attics, basements, closets, and garages… and at the end of season we return them there. You probably don’t think much about where you store these decorations, but they may actually be rodent food for the majority of the year.
Why Do Mice Like These Locations?
Mice prefer dark, secluded places where they can be hidden from predators. The other parts of the equation they look for are food and nesting materials. These factors make attics, basements, closets and garages the perfect places for mice to live.
Why Do Mice Like Holiday Decorations?
Rodents will damage and/or contaminate various materials due to their nesting, eating, and gnawing habits. These materials include paper products, cotton, packing materials (such as cardboard and styrofoam), candles, fabrics, wires, and more. When you think about holiday decorations this translates to wrapping paper, candles, table cloths, blankets, pillows, tree skirts, and string lights, as well as the boxes and styrofoam these decorations are stored in.
How To Check For Rodents
Either when you take your decorations out or put them away, inspect the items and boxes for chew marks. You should also inspect for droppings which are oftentimes in the larger boxes and plastic totes that hold multiple decorations. Droppings may also be on the ground nearby the site of your decorations. If inspecting an attic or other area with insulation, keep an eye out for tunneling through the insulation.
Our Thoughts
Having holiday decorations stored in the attic, closet, basement or garage means that you run the risk of them being damaged or contaminated if you have rodents. We don’t say this to discourage you from storing them there. In fact, these locations are probably some of the best and most common spots to store holiday decorations. We say this to encourage everyone to monitor and make sure these areas don’t have rodents.
If you do see signs of rodents or have concerns, call Adam’s Pest Control at 763-478-9810 or follow this link Residential Estimate
