Rodent Control in Colorado Springs

This is a phone line for rodent problems around Colorado Springs and the rest of El Paso County. You call, a person asks a few questions, and we put you through to a licensed pest control company near you. They come out, figure out what you've got and quote the work. We don't send anyone ourselves and we don't set the price.

The Pikes Peak region has an odd mix of rodents because it has an odd mix of ground. The city sits around 6,000 feet on the edge of the plains, with pine forest to the north and rocky foothills to the west. House mice and deer mice come indoors every fall. Pack rats live in the rock and the pines. Voles and pocket gophers work the lawns. Norway rats hang around creeks, compost and feed. Each one takes a slightly different approach.

Rodents at 6,000 feet

Colorado Springs sits at about 6,035 feet in a semi-arid climate, with roughly 16.5 inches of precipitation a year and a lot of sun. Chinook winds can warm up a winter day fast, and nights can drop hard. KOAA's weather team puts the city's first freeze around the start of October, and that's when mouse calls pick up. A house with a worn garage door seal and a gap at the gas line is the warmest thing around for a field mouse.

The ground changes as you cross the county. To the east, Falcon and the newer subdivisions along Powers sit on semi-arid grassland, where voles and field mice live in the grass right up to the back fence. To the north, Black Forest and Monument are pine and acreage, with barns, sheds and cabins that deer mice move into. To the west, Rockrimmon, Manitou Springs and the slopes around Broadmoor have the rocky, broken ground that Colorado Parks and Wildlife says woodrats prefer.

• Grassland on the east side: field mice and voles
• Pines and acreage up north: deer mice and outbuildings
• Rock and foothills out west: pack rats
• Older neighborhoods: settled foundations and old gaps

Deer mice are the reason careful cleanup matters here. They can carry hantavirus, which spreads when people breathe in particles from droppings, urine or saliva. Don't sweep or vacuum droppings. Wet them with disinfectant first, wear gloves, and air out sheds and cabins before you go in. The hantavirus cleanup guide walks through it.

Older parts of town have their own issues. Old Colorado City dates to 1859, and Security-Widefield has plenty of homes from around 1960. Decades of settling and remodeling leave gaps at foundations, sill plates and old utility holes. That's where entry sealing earns its keep.

The rodent year in the Pikes Peak region

September and October

First freeze, usually around the start of October. Mice head indoors. Seal the garage door and utility gaps before then. The first freeze guide has a checklist.

November through February

Mice settle into basements, attics and garages. Voles run under the snow, chewing bark and cutting runways you won't see until spring.

March and April

Snowmelt shows the lawn damage: vole runways and gopher soil tubes. Sheds and cabins get opened for the first time in months, so air them out before cleaning.

May through August

Pack rats are busy in sheds and parked vehicles. Rats work compost and feed. Good months to seal the house while the gaps are empty.

Rodent services

• Mouse Removal. House mice and field mice that come inside once the nights turn cold along the Front Range.
• Deer Mouse Control. Deer mice in houses, sheds, cabins and garages, handled with hantavirus precautions.
• Pack Rat Removal. Woodrats that build stick nests in sheds, garages, engine bays and crawl spaces near the foothills and pine.
• Rat Control. Norway rats burrowing under sheds, slabs and along creeks, plus the occasional rat in a building.
• Vole and Gopher Control. Voles that cut runways and girdle shrubs under the snow, and pocket gophers that push up dirt mounds.
• Entry Sealing and Exclusion. Closing the garage, foundation, vent and utility gaps so mice and rats don't come back next fall.
• Attic and Nest Cleanup. Removing droppings, nests and soiled insulation from attics, crawl spaces and sheds, done safely.
• Mice and Pack Rats in Garages and Vehicles. Nests in engine bays, air filter boxes, campers and garage storage, and how to keep them out.
• Barns, Sheds and Outbuildings. Mice, pack rats and rats in barns, tack rooms, hay storage and workshops on El Paso County acreage.

Three steps, one phone call

1 Tell us what you found

Droppings, a nest, a noise, holes in the lawn. Where you live and what kind of place it is. The call checklist has the rest.

2 We connect you with a licensed local company

One that handles rodents where you are, whether that's a townhome off Powers or five acres in Black Forest.

3 They look, quote and do the work

Trapping, sealing the gaps and cleanup if you need it. Price, timing and any warranty come from them.

Places we cover

• Briargate
• Rockrimmon
• Black Forest
• Monument and Tri-Lakes
• Falcon and Peyton
• Broadmoor and Cheyenne Cañon
• Manitou Springs
• Old Colorado City and the West Side
• Fountain
• Security-Widefield
• Powers and Stetson Hills

Plus the rest of El Paso County. If your neighborhood isn't listed, call anyway.