Texas Winter Brings New Meaning to "Snuggled as Warm As a Bug in a Rug!" January 23, 2025
Winter pests in Central Texas, like rodents, fire ants, fleas, and cockroaches, can invade your home and disrupt your comfort, health, and safety. In this blog, GGA Pest Management highlights the most common winter pests, how they get inside, the risks they bring, and the best ways to keep them out for good.
Central Texas’s warmer winter weather has been a rare treat, inviting us all to venture out of our homes to enjoy the surroundings or visit new places. Bugs, rodents, and pests are no different. In extreme Northern cold, they would hibernate, but our recent comfortable temperatures offer year-round opportunities for pests to thrive.
This winter, pests may decide to make themselves at home - in your home – and while that may conjure immediate thoughts of disgust or nuisances, it goes much deeper than that. In a time when everyone is concentrating on cleaning out their homes and making their health a priority, pest invasion can seriously derail those resolutions.
Here’s a quick rundown of Central Texas pests to be aware of and the dangers they can pose to your home and family without quality pest management services.
1. Rodents
Rodents like mice and rats are the most common wintertime intruders in Texas. Seeking warmth and food, these pests will gladly make your house their new home.
Routinely inspect your home for small torn holes along baseboards or windows, gnaw marks on food packages or furniture, and crumbs scattered on counters or shelves. Don’t forget to check for tiny black droppings.
Health Risks:
- Hantavirus: Mice and rats can carry the Hantavirus, which can lead to serious respiratory issues and even death.
- Salmonella: These rodents can spread bacteria like Salmonella, which can cause food poisoning.
- Leptospirosis: This bacterial disease, transmitted through urine, can lead to kidney damage, liver failure, and even death if untreated.
The best defense against rodents is simple: seal any openings where they could enter. Gaps or holes around doors, vents, or pipes can be as small as a dime but are plenty big for small mice. A GGA Pest Management Seal & Exclusion Package addresses those holes, gaps, vents, weep holes, cracked weatherstripping, and more. Free inspections and no-obligation quotes are available right now.
2. Fire Ants
Everything is bigger in Texas, but not always better. Texas-sized fire ants are no laughing matter. We tiptoe around mounds in the backyard, trying not to disturb them in fear of being swarmed. Did you know those tiny terrors can swarm your home too?
Like other pests, fire ants seek shelter in your home’s walls or closets. What’s worse - these ants don’t silently hide until nighttime. They can attack at any time with painful bites, leaving misery in their wake.
Health Risks:
- Allergic Reactions: People can have severe allergic reactions to fire ant stings, leading to a medical emergency such as anaphylaxis.
- Infections: The stings can become infected, creating painful abscesses and other skin issues.
Preventing fire ant attacks in your Central Texas home starts with a strategic prevention plan like the GGA Pest Management Fire Ant Lawn Prevention Plan. This once-a-year application of commercial-grade granules not only destroys existing fire ant mounds but helps prevent future infestations too.
3. Fleas
A flea circus may sound fun to see, but not if they’re performing in your home uninvited. If you have pets, fleas are a highly possible pest intruder. If you spend any time outdoors even just walking near a park or neighbor’s dog, you can carry them into your house as fleas will attach to your clothing, shoes, or bags.
Once inside your home, fleas will burrow in carpets, rugs, bedding, and furniture until they find an animal or human host for feeding. Being the host with the most, is no laughing matter when it comes to flea bites all over your skin. Besides leaving an unsightly itch, flea bites are a gateway to serious illnesses.
Health Risks:
- Bubonic Plague: Fleas are infamous for transmitting the bacteria that causes the bubonic plague. Though rare today, it’s still a potential risk.
- Tapeworms: Fleas can carry tapeworm eggs, which pets can ingest and cause digestive issues.
- Allergic Reactions: Flea bites can trigger allergic reactions in both pets and humans, leading to rashes and swelling.
A GGA Pest Management Flea Prevention Treatment attacks fleas inside and outside your home. Our commercial-grade products are pet and child safe within an hour, but the prevention benefits are guaranteed 24/7 by highly trained GGA Pest Technicians.
4. Cockroaches
Nothing sets fear in Texas homeowners’ eyes like roaches, especially when they fly! As the temperatures dip, cockroaches will come inside your home to escape the cold, often sneaking in through firewood, chimneys, or window screen gaps. Roaches can also attach to your clothing as you walk outside or inside someone’s infested home.
Once inside your home, their favorite hiding spots are dark, quiet areas like basements or crawl spaces but they will crawl into kitchen drawers and pantries as they look for food. Cockroaches are more than just gross; they can trigger allergies, asthma, and spread diseases.
Health Risks:
- Allergic Reactions: Cockroach allergens are a leading cause of asthma in children and adults.
- Salmonella: Cockroaches are known to spread Salmonella, E. coli, and other harmful bacteria by contaminating food and surfaces.
- Foodborne Illnesses: Roaches can spread various pathogens that cause foodborne illnesses like gastroenteritis.
To prevent cockroach infestation in your home, make sure food storage is airtight, counters and floors are routinely cleaned, and invest in regular pest treatment such as the GGA Pest Management One-Stop Shot Plan. Every month, hundreds of Central Texas homeowners choose this inclusive pest treatment plan to kill cockroaches and 20+ other pest invaders.
Winter Pest Prevention: Keep Your Home Cozy, Not Creepy-Crawly
You don’t have to share your home with unwanted pests this winter. With a little proactive care, you can keep pests at bay and enjoy the season in peace. Here are GGA Pest Technician’s top five pest prevention tips:
- Install door sweeps and weather stripping to seal gaps around doors and windows. Fill holes around pipes with steel wool. If you need help, a GGA Pest Technician can provide a free Home Seal & Exclusion quote to handle all tasks from attic to basement.
- Be cautious with deliveries; inspect items for any signs of pests before bringing them inside.
- Clean up and tightly seal leftover food. Wipe down counters and mop/sweep floors daily.
- Check wood piles and store near the door, not inside the home.
- Don’t leave dog food laying out all day. Keep pet food sealed tightly.
If despite your best efforts, you find yourself facing a winter pest invasion, don't hesitate to call in the professionals. GGA Pest Management can quickly address any issues and help you reclaim your space.
