I have live trapped two small mouse sized Moles I thought. They have no eyes that I could see and look like mice aside from that. I had Moles in my garage last summer which we thought we got rid of but now I just don’t know what to do since they are in our home. Help!!
I have seen where moles can end up inside homes. Though not common, it does happen. In the cases where I’ve seen this the common thread has been an abundant amount of activity was known to exist in the yard. Another commonality was most of the homes were of slab construction and the problem was most active in the winter. I believe this happens because moles are actually quite active in the winter and in yards where they’re finding food, the warm soil around the home seems to be where most food can still be found. So as they narrow the area they’re using to forage, more and more will be active adjacent to the home.
Additionally, moles can readily forage down and under a slab constructed house. Once under the slab, they’re likely to forage most anywhere a termite would go and that means the same points of entry might be used by these wandering moles. Common locations would include bath tub traps, water pipe placements and electrical conduit routes. I’ve also seen the use of in ground air ducts and drain lines; mostly they use the small holes around these pipes where they poke through the slab and in fact don’t enter inside the duct or drain line but this shouldn’t be ruled out.
I have also seen where the homeowner will commonly confuse moles with shrews or voles. In fact, both shrews and voles are more likely to enter the home and neither should be ruled out. But based on the limited amount of information you provided, it would be hard for me to suggest a plan of controlling the activity without some questions. To make this process easier, I suggest you give our office a call at 1-800-877-7290. At that time we should be able to get more information and offer up some way to initiate a plan of defense.
Here are direct links to the information listed above:
Mole Control Article: http://www.bugspray.com/articles98/moles.html
Vole Control Article: http://www.bugspray.com/article/voles.html
Shrew Control Article: http://www.bugspray.com/article/shrews.html
guest says
I wrote you a few days ago and you responded regarding what I thought was a mouse but then thought it must be a Mole but now I’m thinking Shrew and am I frightened at that thought. Can I send you a picture of one that died while in the trash can?
Tech Support says
You can. There is a chance we’ll be able to determine what it is or maybe rule some options out so it’s worth a try.
Tech Support says
Based on the photo you sent, I’d say it’s a shrew for sure.
https://www.bugspray.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/MsgAttachment.jpg
guest says
Darn! what kind of shrew? Not the kind that have venomous saliva I hope. I’m worried about my six pound dog and parrot. I heard these shrew things are very aggressive and the short tailed one has venomous saliva to paralyze the small critters so it can take its time eating it.
Tech Support says
I’m not aware of any shrews with venomous saliva that’s strong enough to impact people or pets. However, I do know they’ll bite back if cornered or handled so small animals like a bird or dog like you say you have could be injured during a chance encounter.
To prevent future problems, I recommend doing some closure on your home to make sure there are no routes of entry so more can get inside. I also suggest setting out some of the Coyote Urine we have listed in our Shrew Control article. This would work as a natural deterrent and should keep any in the area away.
http://www.bugspray.com/article/shrews.html