Mice typically look for quiet areas where they can hide from large animals and other predators, especially during the day when they are most likely to be asleep.
As mice are nocturnal creatures, they are most active during the early evening and night, but where do they hide during the day?
In this post, we will answer that question and give you 8 common places where mice hide during the day!
Where Do Mice Hide During The Day? These 8 Common Places
It is essential to understand where these places are so you can check them often. To get rid of mice, you should arm yourself with this knowledge.
If there are signs that mice have been in one of these places (droppings, urine, gnawing, etc.), you should begin your mouse control process to ensure it doesn’t result in a mouse infestation.
Attics
Areas that are visited less frequently by humans are the most common hiding places for mice. One of these areas is your attic.
An attic is a place that people rarely visit, where you’ll often come across dirty garments and old decorations. Perfect items for nesting!
The attic is also perhaps the best place where mice set up a nest that can go unnoticed for long. The mice often get to the attic via openings along the roofline where there’s no insulation.
For this reason, it would be wise to seal any entry points that a mouse will use.
Inside Walls
Perhaps you’ve experienced a gnawing sound but didn’t know where it originated. This can signify that the mice have invaded your house and are hiding in an unlikely area, inside the walls.
Since there’re many escape routes and hiding places inside the walls, the mice ordinarily find it a very convenient hiding place.
Inspect the baseboards for openings and listen for scratching and scurrying to identify whether there are rodents in your walls. Once they get in your walls, you will have mice in your home in no time!
Basement
Mice love hiding in dark and warm locations, where they can easily reach food and water. With this in mind, mice end up setting up a nest in crawl spaces and basements since there’s easy access to water.
Although mice may seek residence around your heater or in a dark crawl space, or even near the foundation’s cracks, it is essential to keep in mind that a basement is a perfect hiding place for mice during the day. It is somewhere to set up some mouse traps!
Cabinets
The kitchen cabinets and pantry are some places that you need to check when you suspect that there are mice in your house.
Although these areas may seem imperfect since people often visit them, cabinets offer easy access to food, which makes them an ideal place for a house mouse to hide.
Failure to detect that mice live in your cabinets can spread mouse-based diseases to your family members.
Ducts
When the outside is cold, mice typically hide in the ducts to take advantage of the heat.
When you start noticing nasty smells (one of the common signs of mice) emanating from the ductwork, know that there’s an unwanted visitor inside.
It would help if you considered using mouse-proof mesh over the ducts to stop mice from getting inside.
Garage
A garage may not be the quietest area in your home, but it’s an ideal hiding place for mice due to the low traffic of people that visit it during the day.
With summer toys, beach bags, untouched potting soil bags, and vehicle used parts, garages happen to be one of the best places to fins mice hiding during the day.
And the fact that most of you store trash bins in the garage, the area seems to offer plenty of food options too! Especially if the trash bins are not sealed correctly.
Storage Areas
Mice tend to hide in storage boxes containing clothes, decorations, sheets, or paper. With this, it’s possible to find mice hiding in Christmas boxes.
Usually, mice are smart creatures that destroy cardboard and other materials to make a mouse nest when they are about to give birth. You may notice shredded paper or garments close to a mouse nest area. House mice will chew anything!
Consider checking the cardboard boxes and storage areas where you keep your gifts and clothes to see if there is evidence of mouse activity. If you have noticed these signs of mice activity, you should set up some mouse traps in that area.
Sheds
Examine the base of the wooden doors for gnaw marks and gaps.
Field mice prefer entering sheds and outbuildings in search of any food leftovers, preferably vegetables and fruits.
If a shed is not somewhere often visited by you, a mouse may choose to use it as a hiding place during the day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do mice come out during the day?
Although most people say that mice can appear during the day and night, seeing mice during the daytime is a sign that you either have a mice infestation or you are in danger of having one.
Generally, mice are nocturnal in nature, but since they sleep for short hours, it’s possible to spot them eating during the day.
Mice are primarily active thirty minutes before sunrise and thirty minutes after sunset. If safe movement is guaranteed during the day, it’s possible to see some mice moving around.
Will keeping lights on keep mice away?
Many homeowners allege that mice will not come out from their hiding place if they leave the lights on.
If you fall under this category, you’re mistaken.
The phrase that mice will not come out when you leave lights on is just a fable. With the help of biological clocks, mice use light to know the perfect time to search for food and sleep. Thus, although lights, to some extent, affect their activity levels, it’s essential to note that the pests are still active when the lights are on.
Mice are scared of extremely bright lights, but when super hungry, they will search for anything to eat. Thus, the best method to eliminate mice is to search for permanent solutions.
If you want to know how to get a mouse out of hiding, leaving the lights on is not a good option.
Do mice leave on their own?
Potentially, mice can leave on their own. It is unlikely, but it is possible. If your home does not have any food sources, has a cat, or you have sealed all mouse entry points, then what is the attraction for a mouse?
Mice need comfort, safety, and easy access to food and water. The mice may leave on their own by taking these things away.
Conclusion
Where do mice hide during the day? I have identified 8 of the most common places in this post.
Some of these places are also identified in the post that shows you the places mice like to hide in your home; however, this is specifically where mice hide during the day. There is an important distinction because there are also places outside your home that a mouse will hide during the day.
You can use this information as part of your mouse control process, putting you on the front foot when tackling these pests.
Ultimately, if you have issues with mice, you should begin by closing up those common entry points for mice!
It is the best way to keep them out of your home. It is much easier to prevent mice from getting in than wait until they get inside a house to start your pest control war!
Good luck!
