PETERBOROUGH, KAWARTHAS, HALIBURTON, SIMCOE
Escaping to cottage country and is a summer staple for many Canadian families. However, sharing your cottage with unwanted pests can quickly take away your ability to relax. As we move our cottages into the wild, we find that we come into contact with creatures that also enjoy the comfort a cottage provides. Here at PROTEC cottage pest control we appreciate the sensitive and unique environment cottage country provides. In fact, PROTEC cottage pest control has technicians that live year round in the Kawarthas, providing great service. Protec also has boats at their disposal to service island and water access properties.
With abundant food sources for them, spiders can become a huge nuisance at the cottage. The mess from their webbing and excrement becomes a cleanup chore on an ongoing basis. Chemical control is typically the best way to resolve or prevent a spider problem. However, not all insecticide treatments are the same. Many cottage pest control companies use inferior chemicals that streak windows and do not provide good residual control. PROTEC uses the best and safest insecticides available, applied by highly trained and experienced technicians.
Carpenter ants are typically the most common cottage country pest. Wood frame structures in a forest provide the perfect environment for an ant infestation, particularly as the structures age or encounter moisture problems. The potential for Carpenter Ants to inflict structural damage to your cottage also makes them a pest requiring professional elimination.
While beneficial on the outside, eating mosquitoes and other insects, Bats are a serious concern when they roost in your home or cottage. Droppings, urine, parasites, dead bats, noise and odour are all potential problems in your cottage. PROTEC technicians are bat exclusion experts and will assess your bat problem and provide expert solutions.
Mice and rats are destructive creatures when they move into your recreational property. PROTEC technicians are trained in the most effective rodent control techniques. Pest protection at your fall cottage closing is a PROTEC specialty.
PROTEC services Peterborough and the Kawarthas, Haliburton, County of Simcoe and surrounding areas. See our service area map for our complete service area.
Winterizing the Cottage Against Mice
As fall turns into winter, the inevitable closing of the cottage approaches. While you may or may not use your cabin through the winter, it’s certain that the creatures of the forest would love to have a sheltered place to spend the snowy months.
In many cottages, it may not be possible ensure that no rodents will get inside over the winter. However, you should not make it easy for them. Multiple entry points and available food will encourage mice to stay and thrive in your cottage. Protec’s experienced technicians have compiled a list of points to help with your winter preparations for rodent control.
- Exterior Clean Up
Keep woodpiles, composters and other stored materials away from the cottage and trim vegetation around the exterior. Limiting exterior hiding places near the building will limit the number of rodents living close to the cottage. Also, feeding birds will bring a number of other creatures looking for spilled seeds. Keep feeders away from the cottage. - Block Access Points
Mice are able to slip through the tiniest openings, so thorough rodent proofing of the exterior is necessary to limit their access. Blocking access points from the inside will still allow mice to live in the walls, floors and ceilings. Because mice have the ability to chew through many materials, blocking access with caulking or regular expanding foam, will only provide temporary relief. Galvanized metal mesh, concrete or stainless steel wool are better alternatives. Capping chimneys is also an important exclusion procedure. - Interior Clean up
Once again, you don’t want to make it easy for rodents to live in your cottage. If you close up the cottage for the winter, remove all food sources. Mice have the ability to chew through many types of containers to get to food. While mice may still get inside, a lack of available food will limit their numbers. Mice droppings will let you know where they have been, but their urine is less visible and just as unsanitary. Clean and disinfect thoroughly any areas you see evidence of rodent activity. - Control
Trapping mice is effective as long as someone is available to remove the carcass and reset the traps. Rodenticide offers long term control, without the need to be there. In Ontario, the more potent rodenticides are no longer available for purchase by the general public. As well, many homeowners applying pellet type baits are unaware of the potential dangers. Pellet baits can be effective if eaten by rodents, but can also be carried to areas that could be a danger to people, pets and non-target animals.
This is where Protec Pest Control can help. We offer rodent control programs that include the most effective baits applied in the safest manor. We also offer services to make cottages more resistant to rodent infestation, as well as exterior bait stations designed to fit into the landscape. Call Protec today for an assessment of your cottage rodent control needs. PROTEC cottage pest control services the Kawarthas, Haliburton, Peterborough, Simcoe and surrounding areas
