Pest Control Guide - Rodents in Indiana, Kentucky, & Illinois

Rodents can carry serious diseases and they are instinctively wary of traps and bait. They live everywhere outside and could enter at any time, but fortunately, this does not occur often. Usually, most home invasions occur in the fall, because the seeds and plants on which rodents feed outside are gone. The most common include:

• House mice are about 2 ½" to 3 1/2'" in length.
• They are gray with dark eyes.
• They weigh about ½-1 oz.
• They have pointy noses and large ears.
• They create health problems with their numerous fecal droppings and constant urination.
• They often enter structures in fall in search of food.
• They can produce about 6 young per litter and have about 8 litters per year.

• Sanitation is a leading factor in control of mice.
• Remove all food sources for mice.
• Straighten cluttered areas and storage.
• Vacuum droppings to remove pheromones.
• Place sticky traps and snap traps for low populations.
• The use of bait stations may be used in higher populations.
• Exclusion is critical to prevent further entry of mice.

• Norway rats are 7"-9 1/2" in length.
• The are gray to brown in color.
• They have a blunt nose and small ears.
• The tail when pulled over its head does not come to its nose.
• They are common nuisance in larger cities and sewer systems.
• They produce numerous droppings per day and constantly urinate creating a health issue.

• Sanitation is a leading factor in control of Norway Rats.
• Remove all food sources for the rats.
• Vacuum all droppings to remove pheromones.
• Use snap traps to control rat populations.
• The use of bait stations may be needed in heavier populations.
• Exclusion is critical to prevent further rats from entering the structure.

• Voles are about 7" in length.
• They are stout looking animals.
• They are typically dark gray in appearance.
• They have small fury ears.
• They have short stubby hairy tails that are about 1 1/2' long.
• Also called meadow mice or pine voles or meadow vole.
• They are one of the most prolific and widely distributed mammals in North America.

• Locate the runways for the vole.
• Identify any non target animals that may be in the area.
• The use of snap-traps with peanut butter as bait will work for a few voles.
• If a large vole population exists use Rodenticide AG. This is a granule bait that must be applied by a State Licensed Employee of SWAT Pest Management.
• Records of this application must be kept for two years.
• Place the granule along runways where voles are active.
• Inspect weekly and re-apply as needed.

• Moles are 5"-8" in length.
• They are dark gray in appearance with very soft fur.
• They have pointed snouts.
• Their front feet are greatly enlarge, rounded and have sharp claws for digging.
• Moles are insectivores feeding primarily on earthworms.
• They dig underground burrow systems and push up the soil along the runways.
• They can damage root systems and kill grass with their burrows.

• Treatment for moles isn't as simple as spraying you're yard for grub worms.
• Moles mostly eat earthworms and there is no spray for earthworms.
• Moles can be treated using various different types of traps. The most effective is the body hold or scissor trap.
• There is a bait that can be used in the runway of the mole.
• The bait looks like an earthworm and is place in an active runway. The mole finds the worm and is convinced it is real and consumes it. Eventually dying from the toxin

Related Pages

• Stinging Insect
• Silverfish