House Mouse

Adults are 2½–4 inches long (body) with a similar-length hairless tail, pointed snout, large ears and gray-brown fur. Look for fast, darting movement at night and footprints or tail slides in dusty basement or attic spaces. Fresh droppings are shiny and dark; older droppings look darker and brittle.

Fresh droppings clustered behind appliances or in cupboards, scratch marks at entry points, chewed packaging, greasy trails on baseboards, nests made of insulation or paper, hearing scampering at night or in quiet daytime if infestation is heavy.

Professional service begins with a detailed inspection of the home’s exterior and interior entry points, attic and crawlspaces. Technicians use targeted trapping (snap and enclosed live traps) placed in runways and near nests; when necessary and permitted, secure bait stations with tamper-resistant rodenticides are used as part of an integrated plan. Equally important is exclusion — sealing holes, gaps around pipes, vents, foundation cracks, and installing door sweeps — plus removing attractants (food, clutter, easy nesting material). Follow-up visits monitor activity and adjust placements until activity stops.

Seal all openings larger than 1/4 inch around foundations, eaves, and where utilities enter. Store pantry foods in metal or thick plastic containers and keep pet food off the floor. Trim vegetation and keep firewood at least 20 feet from the house and 2 feet off the ground. Clear attic and crawlspace clutter and seal attic vents with mesh screened to exclude rodents. Maintain good sanitation in shared spaces of multi-family buildings and report sightings to property managers promptly.

Outdoors: along foundations, under decks, in woodpiles, brush piles and compost. Indoors: kitchens, pantries, attics, wall voids and basements — anywhere with food, water and nesting material such as insulation or paper.

Common across Asheville and the Western NC mountains, especially near wooded lots, creek corridors and older homes. Mountain cabins and Craftsman bungalows with attic access or older masonry are frequent entry points; downtown condos and apartments see problems when exterior gaps and shared walls are not addressed.