Where Do Mice Hide In My House?

Nobody wants to hear or see a mouse in their house, let alone several mice. Mice can transmit diseases, damage your walls, and burrow into your furniture. So, where do mice hide in my house?

Mice typically hide in dark, cluttered spaces in a house, such as pantries, bathroom cabinets, attics, closets, and garages. Many homeowners also find traces of mice in their old furniture and the gaps behind their kitchen appliances. Luckily, it’s easy to lure mice out of their hiding spaces with traps that contain peanut butter, chocolate, or soft cheese.

Call an exterminator if you suspect that your home is infested with mice. In that case, it will be hard to contain the infestation without professional help. Follow along as we highlight the most common places where mice hide in a house.

Where Are Mice Most Likely To Hide?

1. Crawl Space

Crawl spaces attract mice because they are perfect for nesting. Mice can nest year-round, but it often happens in the fall and winter when they need a warm, secluded location. You can also find mice in your crawl space throughout the spring and summer when mice often breed.

Mice are drawn to crawl spaces because they are often full of nesting materials and are close to food sources. For example, a mouse could easily leave your crawl space, go upstairs, raid your trash, and bring it back to their nest. It’s easy for mice to fit through tight spaces, so even a well-fortified crawl space is vulnerable to a mice infestation.

2. Kitchen

As gross as it may sound, kitchens are often hot spots for mouse activity. Kitchens have everything that mice want, from tight spaces and warmth to food. Mouse activity may slow down during the day when there is more foot traffic, but it often picks up at night.

Check behind your range and refrigerator if you suspect that there are mice in your kitchen. Mice can squeeze through spaces as tight as ¼” wide, so you must be thorough when you check for them. Some homeowners even find mice in the drawers in their kitchen.

It’s important to eradicate mice from your kitchen as soon as possible. Mice carry many diseases, and the last thing you want is to introduce them to your kitchen. Call a pest control company right away if you discover mouse droppings in your kitchen.

3. Bathroom

Your bathroom is a great hiding spot for mice, whether it is cluttered or tidy. Mice often hide behind toilets and trash cans in bathrooms. It’s also worth checking under your sink if you suspect that mice are in your bathroom.

Many homeowners keep cleaning supplies and toiletries under their bathroom sinks Cluttered spaces appeal to mice as they provide hiding spots and opportunities to nest. Luckily, it’s easy to trap and or kill mice under your bathroom sink.

You can easily place some glue and spring traps under the sink to capture mice. However, you must be careful where you place the traps if you have pets. The last thing you want is for your cat’s paw to get stuck in a glue trap that is meant for a mouse.

4. Closets

Closets are essential storage spaces, but mice use them for other purposes. Most closets are dark, warm, and full of items that provide plenty of cover. This makes it easy for mice to hide and go undetected for weeks or even months.

That’s why it’s hard to tell if there are mice in your closet until you clean it. Carefully clean your closet if you hear scratching noises. There is a good chance that you will discover mice or mouse droppings in your closet.

Unfortunately, you must disinfect everything in your closet if you discover mouse droppings. Otherwise, you may introduce harmful bacteria and viruses to yourself, your family, and your pets. Check the closets in your bedrooms, hallways, and kitchen for signs of mouse activity.

5. Attic

Attics are similar to crawl spaces in that they provide a great environment for mice, even if it inconveniences you. Many homeowners rarely visit their attic, so they may not notice mice until they hear them scurrying about. Secluded, dark, and warm, an attic is the perfect nesting atmosphere for mice.

It’s important to check your attic for mice and other pests somewhat regularly. Mice can chew through the insulation in your attic. Not only is this expensive to replace, but damaged insulation can increase your energy bills.

Depending on your home’s layout, the mice in your attic may also easily reach other parts of your house. It’s best to address the problem, place traps, and stop the mice before they nest and breed in your home. 

6. Garage

It’s all too easy for mice to get into a garage, whether the door is open or closed. Mice can easily squeeze through gaps at the bottom and sides of your garage door. Otherwise, they may simply sneak into your garage when the door is open.

Unfortunately, it is often hard to detect mice in a garage if it is packed with items. Garages attract mice because they are somewhat secluded, warm, and dark when the door is closed. Some homeowners also keep their trash cans in the garage, and that attracts mice as well.

7. Family Room

It’s understandably scary to hear the scratching and scurrying of mice in your family room. That’s especially true if the sounds come from beneath or behind you. This is more common than you may think, as mice often burrow into furniture.

That’s especially true if you have old furniture with tears in the upholstery. However, mice can easily chew through the upholstery and create an entry point. After that, they can burrow and nest in your furniture until you catch them.

The darkness, seclusion, and comfort that furniture provides are enough to attract mice. You may be able to fit traps inside your furniture if there is a big enough gap. Otherwise, you may need to lure the mice out of your furniture with traps that contain food.

8. Pantry

The spaces behind your refrigerator and stove aren’t the only places mice like to hide in a kitchen. Mice often hide in the pantry as well because they have everything they typically look for. The scent of the food paired with the darkness and clutter in a pantry can attract mice.

You must keep all of your canned and boxed food airtight in your pantry to help conceal the odor. Regularly clean your pantry and remove food debris, or else you will attract mice. Ideally, you should remove at least some of the food from your pantry and set out traps until you catch the mice.

Throw away any food items that show signs of contact with the mice. You must especially throw anything away that contains traces of mouse droppings. Carefully disinfect the shelves and the floor in your pantry after you catch the mice.

How Do You Lure A Mouse Out Of Hiding?

You can easily lure a mouse out of hiding if you use food as bait. A mouse has an extraordinary sense of smell, and that’s what attracts them to your home to begin with. Despite their strong sense of smell, mice aren’t intelligent, and they can’t discern how dangerous traps are.

Aromatic food like cheese, peanut butter, chocolate, and even bacon can lure mice out of their hiding spots. That said, you must exercise caution if you have pets, as they may trigger the trap in search of food. Mice are unlikely to take the bait and fall into your trap until nighttime. 

They are more active at night, so you may want to wait until it gets dark to set the trap out. You may need to place several mouse traps if you have an infestation. However, it’s worth calling a pest control company if you have an infestation. It may be too hard to catch all the mice with standard traps in that case.

Summing It Up

Crawl spaces, kitchens, bathrooms, and closets are some of the most common hiding places for mice in a house. You can also often find mice hiding in your attic, garage, family room furniture, and pantry. The best way to catch mice is to place aromatic food in a glue or spring trap.

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