Rodent Rundown: Keeping These Dangerous Pests Away From Your Ventura County Property
We do what we can to stay safe. We install locks, alarms, and video surveillance systems in our homes. We check the exterior doors before bed to ensure they are locked. When we snuggle into our beds, we want to feel secure.
One thing that can disrupt our sense of security is rodents. Despite having locked doors, alarms, and video cameras, these critters seem to find ways into our homes. It is disconcerting to lay in bed and hear scratching in the walls or underneath the floor. It is embarrassing when a rat or mouse runs from behind a kitchen cabinet.
You probably found this article because rodents are in your house, and you want them out. While you may not know about the problems they can cause, intuitively, you know they need to be gone. The first step for rodent removal begins by securing the Ventura County pest control experts from Ventura Pest Control. Our family-owned company has removed rodents from Ventura County homes since 1959. During the decades, our commitment to quality customer service and fair pricing has enabled us to become the oldest, largest, independent pest control company in Ventura County. As one client stated, "You wow your customers with our extraordinarily friendly, professional, and competitively priced services!"
We believe in the power of education; therefore, we provide information in this brief article to help you identify the rodents in your house, understand the health risks, and learn ways to keep them out. So, please keep reading.
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Common Rodent Species: Identifying Different Types Of Rodents
At the core level, rodents are furry, four-legged creatures with two ears, two eyes, and a tail. They are warm-blooded mammals who give birth and, except for five mammal species outside the United States, do not lay eggs. This description could describe your family dog or cat, so how are rodents different?
A pair of upper and lower incisor teeth sets rodents apart from other mammals. These teeth grow constantly and require the animal to gnaw on objects to keep them from becoming unmanageable. The teeth have a soft dentine backside and a hard frontside enamel, and where these two substances meet forms a razor's edge. In the wild, rodents use their long incisor teeth to chew through roots, small trees, wood, and nuts; inside a home, they gnaw on thin aluminum, plastic, glass, furniture, and concrete.
Most rodents are wild animals that avoid humans, but some do not mind humans and practically depend on us for survival. The rodents that are problematic for Ventura County homeowners are a mixture of both, such as:
- Roof rats
- House mice
- Meadow mice
- Moles
Let's look at each one in greater detail to help you determine what rodent species are on your property.
Types of rodents that don't mind living around humans are called commensal rodents, and rats and mice are prime examples. Although there are many rat species, roof rats are the ones that cause many Ventura County issues. The top side of a roof rat consists of brown hairs with black hairs intermixed, and its belly has white, grey, or black fur. Because roof rats are expert and active climbers, they have a slender 6 to 8-inch body (not including the 6 to 8-inch scaly tail). Roof rats, also known as black or ship rats, tend to live in the upper areas of a home.
Although our list has two mice on it, there is a vast difference between the two related species. House mice invade homes, while meadow mice, also known as voles, invade the yard. House mice have a 2 1/2 inch to 3 3/4 inch round dusty grey body with a cream-colored underside. They also have pointed ears and a pointed muzzle. Because this species is the most prolific, they are problematic for many Ventura County homeowners.
Meadow mice or voles are not commensal rodents but live in the ground outside homes. These chunky 5 to 7-inch rodents have short legs and, unlike house mice and roof rats, they possess short tails. They have dense chestnut-brown fur interspersed with black hairs on the top and dark grey on the underside.
Although technically not a rodent, moles are placed in the same category as voles because they create tunnels throughout the yard. Voles excavate highways on the property surface, but moles dig beneath the grass. Moles have a similar body length as voles but with a few distinguishing features. The first is the protruding, hairless snout that extends about a 1/2 inch beyond the mouth; the second is the outsized paddle-like front feet.
Whether you have moles, voles, mice, or rats in your Ventura County home, Ventura Pest Control provides the rodent control you need for your home.
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“He easily adapts to our conditions. Does a great job.”- Laura & Dan
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“The decades of stellar service you have rendered my family have been so much appreciated, and it is the reason we are loyal to Ventura Pest for rodent control.”- William
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“Jeremy did a great job. Working in the rain he crawled under the house in search of vermin.”- Patrick
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