Rodent Control Along Powers Blvd. and in Stetson Hills

Powers Blvd. is State Highway 21, the expressway that runs about 20 miles down the east side of Colorado Springs, from Interquest Pkwy. in the north to Mesa Ridge Pkwy. in Fountain. It crosses Woodmen Road, Stetson Hills Blvd., Dublin Blvd., Barnes Road and Platte Ave., and the main entrance to Peterson sits at Airport Road and Stewart Ave.

The neighborhoods along it are mostly newer subdivisions, Stetson Hills among them. Rodent calls from here are mostly mice in garages and basements, and voles in lawns that back onto open ground.

Garages first

On newer houses, the garage door is almost always the weak spot. The bottom seal wears out, the corners open up, and the garage fills with bird seed, dog food and boxes. Mice get comfortable out there, then follow utility lines into the house. Fix the seal, store food in metal cans and get boxes off the floor. If they're already inside, see mouse removal.

• Light showing at the garage door corners
• Droppings behind the garage fridge or freezer
• Chewed bags of pet food or grass seed
• Nests in the car's air filter box

Open ground and voles

Plenty of east-side lots back onto drainage ways and open space. After the snow melts, narrow runways and small holes across the lawn point to voles. Plugged dirt mounds point to pocket gophers. Vole and gopher control explains the difference.

Cars, campers and trailers

A lot of east-side driveways have a camper or trailer parked for the season. Those are easy homes for mice. Check them before a trip, and see mice and pack rats in vehicles for safe cleanup.

Landmarks and roads: Powers Blvd. · Stetson Hills Blvd. · Woodmen Road · Dublin Blvd. · Barnes Road · Peterson SFB

Nearby areas: 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.