Overgrown Tree/Shrubs

In the spring or fall, we frequently receive calls from our customer stating they are hearing noises in their attic space. When this happens, we inspect for trees, shrubs, or vegetation that have grown up to or past the roofline. Rodents want an easy way up to the attic, and when they find it, they use it over and over again. The same thing can be said for other pests, such as odorous house ants. We can handle some of the needed trimming with our handy loppers, however we are not arborists (though, we can recommend some good ones). Once the rodent’s pathway is cut off, they are easier to control. Keeping vegetation from your roofline is one of the easiest ways to prevent having to see our truck outside your home or business and therefore is worth the effort and investment put forth.

Over The Counter Ant Killer

We understand that when we get calls from customers with odorous house ants (sugar ants) that they have reached the point where they are about to pull their hair out. However, too often they go to the store and buy products to spray on the ants to get quick relief. Sure, these sprays do what they say—kill ants. They will kill ants that come into contact with them but are ineffectual against the queen. The problem is this has consistently shown to make the problem worse over time. These store-bought sprays have shown to fracture the colony into multiple colonies or set off an innate alarm within the colony where the queen begins to overproduce ants as if they were going to war with a rival colony. Short relief may be felt, and the ants may disappear from that area (they can sense it is not safe), but the next time you see them they will be more plentiful and attacking from more angles. We highly recommend you do not spray them with anything—only use bait (be prepared for it to take time), but this will not make it worse.

Call us, don’t waste your time or money and let us take care of it right so they don’t keep coming back every few weeks. Trust me on this one.

Bird Feeders

Many of us are bird lovers. However, using bird feeders to show your love may be causing your rodent or wildlife problem. Bird feeders tend to spread free food all over the ground, which rodents and small wildlife finish off.

We always recommend being very careful with how you choose to feed birds. Like moving the feeder as far from the structure as possible, choosing a type of feed that has less mess, and storing the bulk bags of feed in a strong container as rodents love to sneak into the garage to have this snack also.

If you can get rid of the bird feeder, we always recommend it. But beware, this is a huge cause of neighborhood rodent and wildlife problems.