Mice are the pest we get called about most across York Region, and clearing them takes two jobs done at once: removing the mice already inside, and closing the gaps that let them in. Put down bait and nothing else and you clear this month's mice while the door stays wide open for next month's. A typical York Region mouse job runs $200 to $500, takes one visit plus a follow-up, and carries our two-month guarantee. Scratching in the walls after dark, or droppings behind the kitchen sink in a Markham or Richmond Hill home, means mice, and autumn is when they show up.
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Why the mice arrive in fall, and why York homes get hit
When the overnight temperatures drop, roughly September through December, field mice leave the fields and hedgerows and look for somewhere warm. York Region gives them plenty of targets. A house mouse only needs a gap about 6 millimetres wide, the width of a pencil, and even a newer subdivision home has them: the weep vents in the brick, the gap where the gas line or hydro enters, a garage door with a worn sweep, a soffit corner. Homes on the outer edge of the newer developments, the ones backing onto the Oak Ridges Moraine or onto the farm fields in King, East Gwillimbury, and north of Stouffville, take the heaviest pressure because the mice are already living right at the property line. Once one is in a warm wall with food nearby it stays for winter and breeds the whole time, and a single female can throw five to ten litters a year. That is how "I only saw one" becomes a wall full, and why the early fall call is the cheap one.
A mouse problem is an entry problem. Kill the mice without sealing the gaps and you have bought yourself a monthly subscription, not a solution.
The signs it is mice, not something else
- Droppings the size of a grain of rice, dark and pointed, usually along walls, in the back of cupboards, or under the kitchen sink.
- Scratching or scurrying inside walls and ceilings, loudest at night when the house is quiet.
- A musky, ammonia smell in an enclosed space like a pantry or a closet.
- Gnaw marks on food packaging, baseboards, or wiring, and small piles of shredded paper or insulation where they nest.
- A greasy smudge along a baseboard or entry hole, from the oil in their fur on the same path run night after night.
Mouse droppings are small and pointed; rat droppings are three times the size and blunt. If the droppings are big, read the rat control page instead, because the plan is different.
How we actually clear them
- Inspection (free). We find the runs, the nest areas, and every entry point, inside and out. This is the step that decides whether they come back.
- Trapping and treatment. We place traps and, where appropriate, tamper-resistant bait stations that keep the product away from pets and children. Health Canada's rules require rodenticide near homes to be used in these locked stations, and we follow them. See the PMRA guidance on rodenticide safety.
- Exclusion, the part that lasts. We seal the entry points with steel wool, hardware cloth, and sealant that a mouse cannot chew through. This is what turns a treatment into a fix.
- Follow-up. We come back to clear traps, confirm the activity has stopped, and check the seals held.
What mouse control costs in York Region
A standard York Region mouse job runs $200 to $500. Three things move the number: how many entry points need sealing, whether the mice have reached the attic or stayed on the main floor, and the size of the home. A one-bedroom condo in Markham Centre or the VMC with a single entry sits at the low end. A large two-storey detached in Aurora or Woodbridge with attic activity and half a dozen gaps in the exterior lands high, because the sealing on a bigger house is real work.
| Job | Typical York Region range |
|---|---|
| Condo / single unit, limited sealing | $200 to $300 |
| House, standard trapping + entry sealing | $300 to $450 |
| Larger home / attic activity / extensive exclusion | $450 to $600+ |
| Follow-up visit (included in most jobs) | usually no extra charge |
Waiting costs money here. A handful of mice in October is a $250 job; an established colony in the walls and attic by February is a $600 one. The full cost page breaks down every pest.
Do you need a pro, or can you do it yourself?
One mouse caught in a trap, with no droppings and no scratching, is often a one-off you can handle with a few snap traps and a tube of sealant. Call a pro when you are seeing droppings in more than one room, hearing activity in the walls, or catching mice faster than you can reset traps. That means they are breeding inside, and store-bought traps alone will not out-pace them. Our honest do-I-need-an-exterminator guide walks through the line.
Do not use poison bait in an open dish if you have pets or young children. Health Canada requires rodenticides around homes to be in tamper-resistant stations for exactly this reason. If a mouse dies in a wall it can smell for a week, which is another reason trapping plus sealing beats bait-and-hope.
Keeping them out for winter
The mouse-proofing that pays off on a York Region home: a fresh door sweep on the garage, steel wool packed into the gap where pipes and wires enter, quarter-inch hardware cloth over the brick weep vents and exterior vents, and food kept in glass or hard plastic instead of the cardboard boxes mice chew straight through. Sealing is worth doing on its own terms, too. Each York municipality, Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Newmarket, Aurora and the rest, runs a property-standards bylaw that requires a home to be kept free of rodents, and exclusion is how you meet that standard without leaning on poison.
Common questions
How do I get rid of mice permanently in York Region?
Trap the mice already inside, then seal every entry point they used, from the weep vents to the garage gaps, and keep food sealed and clutter down. Bait on its own will not do it, because it never closes the door they walked through. A proper job includes exclusion, which is why ours does.
How long does it take to get rid of mice?
Most homes are clear inside one to two weeks. The first visit sets traps and seals the entries, and the follow-up confirms the activity has stopped. A heavy attic infestation in a larger home can run longer.
Are mice dangerous?
They foul food and surfaces with droppings and urine, can carry salmonella and hantavirus, and their habit of gnawing wiring is a genuine fire risk. Treat them as a health and safety problem, not a nuisance.
What attracts mice into a house?
Warmth and a meal. Cold fall nights push field mice toward any building with a gap and a crumb, and that pressure is heaviest on homes bordering the Moraine or open farmland. Pet food left out, an open pantry, and clutter to nest in all keep them once they are in.
Do I need to leave during mouse treatment?
No. Trapping and sealing do not require you to clear out. If we use any product, we tell you which area to stay off and for how long, following the label.
Is one mouse an infestation?
Not always, but mice seldom travel alone once the cold sets in. One caught with no other signs may be a stray. Droppings in two or more spots, or scratching in the walls, points to more.
Does the guarantee cover mice?
Yes. If mice are still active within two months of the treatment, we come back once at no charge.
Reviewed August 2026.
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