As the colder months blow through your neighborhood and strip the trees of their leaves, warm sweaters and cups of hot chocolate become daily staples. During this time, you are also dragging in your outdoor grills, closing the swimming pool, and preparing to spend the next few months indoors. But, while you and your family are settling in for hibernation, some common pests are hoping to call your house their home as well.
Here, Dan Bradbury, who serves as the vice president of Viking Pest Control in the New York and New Jersey areas, describes the most common pests associated with the fall and winter seasons.
- Assassin bugs: With cone-shaped heads and a body that can measure up to one inch, assassin bugs are also sometimes known as kissing bugs, because when they bite people, it is usually around their mouths. When these pests make their way into your home, they tend to be drawn toward areas where water is present such as sinks, bathtubs and drains. If you do have assassin bugs in your home, it’s important to have them removed, as these pests can be harmful. Not only are their bites painful, but they also carry diseases such as Chaga’s disease for which there is no known cure. Chaga’s disease presents itself with swelling at the bite mark, swelling of the eyelids, and overall body aches and pains. For some, these are the only effects of the disease. However, according to the Centers for Disease Control, less than half of those infected may also experience irregular heartbeats, an enlarged heart, digestion problems, and an increased risk of stroke.
- Bats: In order to endure the colder months, bats will look for places to hibernate. While caves are the location that they would prefer, the likely absence of these in your neighborhood leaves bats with no choice but to look for alternative sanctuaries. While bats do not chew their way into your home as sometime perceived, they can squeeze through small gaps in your roof and start a nest in your attic. Many assumptions about bats are false (they feed on human blood, can’t see, get tangled in hair, always have rabies), but it is still important that you have them removed from your home, and properly seal any entry points once you’re certain that all of the bats are gone.
- Boxelder bugs: Boxelder bugs aren’t really as harmful as they are a nuisance, because they tend to travel in large colonies. You won’t see these bugs too much in the summer because they feed on outdoor plant life. But during the fall they start to seek warmer surroundings.
- Mice: As the temperature drops, mice in your neighborhood will be looking for warmer places to nest for the next few months. Unfortunately, many times their favorite destination tends to be your home because not only do you offer them shelter, but there is plenty of food for them to feast on while you sleep as well. Mice can get in through pipes that have openings on the outside of your home like dryer hoses and sewer pipes. They can also get into your home underneath doors and through cracked windows in the basement. Because of the diseases associated with mice and their feces, it’s important to have your home properly sanitized after their removal.
- Squirrels: During the winter months when the weather doesn’t always allow for all-day hunting, squirrels will look for a place to nap consistently for the next few months. While most squirrels would prefer to live in a hollow part of a tree for the fall and winter, it’s not too uncommon to find that a family is nesting in your attic or underneath the roof of your home.
- Stink bugs: Stink bugs are dark brown in color, have bodies that resemble a shield, and begin invading your home in the early fall. During the summer, they are busy reproducing. But as the weather gets chillier, they gain access to your home through tiny tears in your windows or screens, underneath doors, and through small vents. While the bugs are not necessarily harmful, they have gained their name because as a defense against predators — or after they are squished — the pests have the ability to emit an odorous liquid that has been compared to the stench of rotten or moldy fruit.
Like many pests and rodents, it’s never a good idea to handle any of these situations yourself. While you probably won’t be able to completely rid your home of an infestation, you also run the risk of becoming injured or ill if you are bitten or contact a contaminated rodent or pest in your home. Instead, it’s best to leave the task to the professionals, like the trained specialists at Viking who can guarantee that you won’t be spending your holidays with any of these critters.
