As the winter chill creeps in and snowflakes begin to fall, you bundle up in layers of clothing to keep warm. This is also the time to crank up your furnace for additional warmth. While in warm clothes in your cozy home, pests will be scurrying to seek refuge from the cold in your house. These unwanted guests can destroy your home, not to mention transmit life-threatening diseases. Here are three pests that may take up residence in your home during winter and why you should call pest control experts ASAP.

1. Rats

When the temperature starts dropping, rats will take every opportunity that comes their way to enter your home, where it is warm and cozy. They may do so by squeezing themselves through chimney gaps, roof and wall holes, and crevices in ventilation. Once inside, the rats can damage your carpets, crucial documents, and electrical wires. Worst of all, they can contaminate your food with poop and urine, leading to diseases like leptospirosis and Hantavirus. Therefore, you should call pest control experts if you notice signs of rats to keep your home and loved ones safe.

2. Cockroaches

Winter is a torturous time for cockroaches too. Besides the freezing weather, food and water are scarce. In most cases, their only chance of survival is to enter your home. In a place where they can eat, drink, and sleep comfortably, they will start reproducing, and soon, you will have an infestation. Cockroaches may be creepy, but their effects on your health are even worse. Their shedding, saliva, and excrement trigger allergic reactions. And they can spread diseases such as cholera, salmonella, dysentery, and diarrhea. Do you struggle with cockroaches crawling everywhere in your house? Get a pest control company to eliminate them to keep your family healthy and happy.

3. Squirrels

Like rats, squirrels can find refuge in your home during winter and build a nest in your eaves, attics, or walls. To them, this is survival, but they can damage your ceilings, drywall, and electrical wires. Even worse, the squirrels can transmit salmonella bacteria, tularemia, and leptospirosis. To keep your property and family safe, contact a pest control specialist right after spotting squirrels in your home.

Now that you know the types of pests that may seek refuge in your home during winter, you can be on the lookout for them. If you spot any of the above pests, engage a reliable pest control company before they make themselves comfortable and damage your home.  

For more information about pest control, contact a local company.