Voles are very small rodents that people often get mixed up with ordinary house mice. Voles, however, are known to live primary outdoors and will rarely come inside. Outside the voles burrow far beneath the ground to create elaborate tunnels from place to place to store their food, breed, and to raise their offspring. An adult vole can be quite large, from about 5 inches to 8 inches in length, including their short furry tail. They are usually brown or black in color, have short stocky legs, tiny beady eyes, and well-formed hidden ears.
Voles are not known to bite people, however, if threatened they are capable of doing so since they do have teeth. They are not really much of a danger to people directly, but their urine and feces can spread harmful diseases, and their bodies can carry dangerous parasites. Not only that, but voles can cause serious damage to gardens, crops, fruit trees, landscaping, and lawns. They will also create “runways” across the yard from burrow to burrow and their urine and feces wastes can accumulate and cause grass to wither and ultimately die.
Since voles eat, live, and breed underground, they can be especially hard to get rid of without the help of a professional. They like open spaces and large lawns such as golf courses and they also prefer places with heavy vegetation as it can provide both food and shelter.
You should inspect your property regularly for any signs of voles and keep all lawns and vegetation well-trimmed. To make your yard less attractive to voles you clean up debris, get rid of ground cover, and weeds from around your property. However, despite your best efforts, if you find yourself with a vole infestation, you should call the professionals at Big Blue Bug Solutions in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut right away.
Big Blue Bug Solutions will thoroughly inspect your property and identify where the voles are living, eating, and reproducing. Our technicians will then form a plan to get rid of the current infestation and help you take appropriate actions to avoid future infestations as well.
Call our professionals today for more information about voles, the services we use to rid them of your property, and the benefits of a year-round pest control program.