Author: Alpha Wildlife
Credentials: NWCOA Certified Wildlife Control Operators
Description: Veteran-owned wildlife removal specialists serving TN, SC, & KY since 2018
Last Updated: May 19, 2026
Quick Answer
If you’re hearing scratching, chewing, or squeaking sounds coming from your attic or finding small, black pellets around your home (especially in your kitchen or attic insulation), you may have a rat or mouse problem. Other common signs include finding chewed electrical wires, torn insulation, greasy rub marks (on baseboards, pipes, etc.), and gnawed entry holes (around pipes, rooflines, crawlspace vents, the bottom of garage doors, etc.).
What Attracts Mice and Rats to My Home?
Rats and mice are simple creatures.
All they want is a home that provides food, shelter, warmth, water, and protection. And that pretty much describes every home in America.
I mean your attic is warm, quiet, and has pipes leading to other areas of your house. Our technicians usually find greasy rub marks on those pipes too since rats like to use them as walkways.
Kinda gross right?
Well, we’re just getting started.
The only thing rodents need to get into your home is a small gap, just a tiny opening, and BAM! These little monsters are chewing up your attic, eating out of your pantry, and making babies in your insulation.
Just think of all the critters you could fit in your crawlspace, or your wall voids, or your garage.
Yes, not even your garage is off limits and it’s pretty easy to get in there as well. All they have to do is chew on the bottom of the garage door and there you have it! They are in your garage right next to your favorite tools, your kid’s soccer balls, and all the other things you have in there.
Stop these critters from ruining your home. Schedule an appointment with a rodent control expert today!
Signs You Have Mice or Rats in Your Attic
Now, this may be unsettling, but most homeowners have no clue they even have a rodent problem until it’s already become an infestation.
You see, rats and mice are like tiny ninjas. They don’t want you to know they’re there and they can sneak around your home without you even knowing it.
However, like all animals, rats and mice leave clues behind for you to find. Maybe they think you won’t notice or maybe they’re too arrogant to think you’ll care, but they leave “signs” behind of their presence.
And attics are one of their favorite places to hide.
People don’t usually go into their attics daily, so rodents can easily sneak in and take it over.
If you notice any of the signs below, there may be mice or rats hiding somewhere in your attic:
Scratching or Scurrying Sounds
This is one of the first things that homeowners notice. They’ll hear faint running or chewing sounds coming from their ceiling at night.
Easiest way to remember it: If you hear light scurrying sounds, it’s probably mice in your attic. If the sounds are heavier, it’s most likely rats.
Rodent Droppings
This one is hard to miss. If you find small, black pellets in your attic insulation, that’s a clear case of a rat or mouse infestation.
Check these areas in your attic for rodent droppings:
- On top of your insulation
- Around storage containers
- Along rafters or beams
- Close to vents or roofline gaps
Whether they belong to rats, mice, or a different pest, if you find any droppings in your attic, it’s time to call the professionals.
Torn, Damaged, & Contaminated Insulation
If your insulation is torn, shredded, or stained with urine (and droppings), mice and rats are somewhere nearby.
Now, contaminated insulation is another problem altogether. If your insulation is covered in urine and feces, getting rid of the rats and mice isn’t enough.
Depending on the severity of the contamination, you may need your insulation replaced to reduce odors, contamination, and potential health concerns. Rodents are associated with diseases such as salmonellosis and hantavirus, so any cleanup should be handled by professionals.
Chewed Wires & Other Damaged Items
Since rats and mice have teeth that continuously grow, they keep them file them down by chewing on materials like wood, plastic, wiring, etc. This means that they will chew on pretty much anything inside your attic.
Rats and mice are known to chew on:
- Electrical wires
- Wood framing
- Plastic lines or pipes
- HVAC ductwork
- Storage containers
- Insulation
Not sure if that stood out to you, but I said chewed electrical wires. This means that rats and mice can make your home susceptible to fire hazards. If a damaged electrical wire sparks into your insulation, you will have a bigger problem on your hands than rodents.
We’re constantly receiving calls from Tennessee homeowners regarding rats in the attic. Not only can our team remove rodents from the attic, but we can also seal the entry points to help prevent them from coming back.
If you’re hearing scratching sounds in your attic in the Mid-South, Alpha Wildlife provides professional rat and mice removal & exclusion services in Memphis, TN.
Don’t let rats and mice destroy your attic space, contact us today for immediate help!
Signs You Have Mice or Rats in Your Walls
You’ve probably never thought of your home as one of those houses with hidden pathways behind your walls, right?
Well, I hate to break it to you, but you do… and rodents could be using them right now!
Rats and mice use wall voids like perfect little highways that connect all the rooms together.
From your kitchen to your bathroom to your crawlspace, wall voids are perfect for making rodents feel invisible as they travel throughout your home.
If you start noticing any of the signs below, you may have rodents hiding in your walls:
Scratching Noises Behind the Drywall
If you hear scratching, chewing, or tapping sounds from inside your walls, it’s not a ghost. It’s rats or mice checking out your house.
Pets Suspiciously Staring at Walls or Cabinets
It might sound a little crazy, but when your pets start acting strange, something bigger is going on. If your dogs or cats start sniffing under cabinets, barking at the walls, or staring intently at random spots in your home, don’t dismiss it.
Droppings Near Cabinets or Appliances
If you find droppings near cabinets, inside the pantry, or around your kitchen, the pests might be hiding inside the walls. Rodents will try to stay as hidden as possible, so check areas that are tucked away or places you wouldn’t normally look. If droppings are there, you’ve got a problem.
Greasy or Oily Marks Along Baseboards
If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. Rodents also apply that philosophy. Rats and mice will travel along the same pathways over and over again if they aren’t caught. The problem is, when they travel, oil from their fur leaves dark smudges behind.
Look for oil stains along baseboards, on pipes, near cabinets, and possible entry points into your home.
We recently inspected a home in Nashville and found grease stains on the pipes in their attic space. This suggests that rats have been consistently using their piping system to travel throughout their home.
If you have rats in your attic or mice in your walls in the Middle Tennessee area, Alpha Wildlife offers same-day rat and mice removal services in Nashville, TN.
Signs You Have Mice or Rats in Your Crawlspace
You might not believe this, but most people don’t want to go into their crawlspace.
Crazy right?
I’m kidding. I completely understand why homeowners would rather do almost anything than go under their home.
I mean it’s dark, it’s cramped, and there could be bugs or other things down there.
That makes it a fantastic spot for rodents!
If you do work up the courage to investigate your crawlspace for rats or mice, look for the following signs:
Damaged Crawlspace Insulation
If your insulation is torn, ripped, shredded, or loaded with urine and feces, rodents are hiding down there with you.
Speaking of loaded with urine and feces, contaminated insulation is no joke, and you can’t just wipe that stuff away. Luckily, we offer insulation replacement for those types of situations.
Chewed Vapor Barrier or Ductwork
Not only will these pests tear up your insulation, but they will chew on the vapor barrier, ductwork, electrical lines, vent covers, pipes, and almost everything else under your home.
Simply, if you find chew marks in your crawlspace, rats and mice are the culprits.
Strong Odors Coming from Under Your Home
If you walk around your house and an ammonia-like smell hits you in the face, look in your crawlspace. That smell can be attributed to an accumulation of droppings, urine, contaminated insulation, and even dead rodents.
Trust me, you don’t want that stink to seep into your home, so you need to get it taken care of ASAP.
We are constantly receiving calls from homeowners in Knoxville and Chattanooga regarding rodents in the crawlspace and this is not a problem that will just go away by ignoring it.
Alpha Wildlife offers fast rat and mice removal services in Knoxville as well as Chattanooga rodent removal services to get your home back to normal!
Don’t ignore the noises in the crawlspace, contact Alpha Wildlife today for a free rodent inspection!
Mice vs. Rats: How Can You Tell Which One is in your Home?
You might think that mice and rats are one and the same, but you would be wrong. It’s easy to get these little fellas mixed up, but they are completely different pests, and they leave different clues behind.
Below are ways to determine if you have a mouse problem or a rat problem:
Signs of a mouse infestation
- Light running or scratching sounds in your attic
- Tiny chew marks on wooden structures
- Small entry holes & rice-shaped droppings
- More activity in your kitchen, pantries, cabinets, or garage
- Nests made from shredded paper or insulation
Mice are tiny and can easily squeeze through small gaps into your home. Once inside, they’ll start reproducing and making babies almost immediately. This means that a few mice can quickly escalate into a full blown mouse infestation if you’re not careful.
Signs of a rat infestation
- Large, black droppings
- Heavier (more distinct) thumping, scratching, & chewing noises
- Big chew marks and significant damage to attics, crawlspaces, etc.
- More activity in attics (roof rats) as well as around trash cans or outdoor food sources
Rats are larger and stronger than mice, which means they can cause even more damage. The two most common rats we deal with are roof rats and Norway rats. Roof rats are strong climbers and are often found in attics or upper areas of homes, while Norway rats are more likely to invade areas like crawlspaces, garages, and foundations.
Just remember, with mice, infestations can happen quickly due to how fast they can reproduce, and rats can cause more damage since they are larger creatures.
Don’t try to investigate the situation yourself! Alpha Wildlife offers free rat, mice, & rodent inspections, so we’ll determine what type of problem you have and design a custom plan to get them out.
Can I Use Rat Traps to Fix My Rodent Problem?
Quick Answer: Short Term – Yes. Long term – No.
The good news is… rodent traps will catch rats and mice. The bad news is… they don’t actually solve your problem.
If you catch some mice in your garage or a few rats in your attic, you might feel like the job is done and you are now master of your domain again.
However, that is definitely not the case.
Since there is still an opening or gap somewhere in your home, the “door” is essentially always open for them to come back.
Not only can traps only stop a few of these critters, but they might also give you a false sense of accomplishment and cause you to neglect the true problem — finding the actual entry point.
If you never seal the hole or fix the gap, rodents will continue to visit your home and eventually you’ll have an infestation on your hands.
The only proven long-term solution for rodent problems is through professional removal & exclusion services.
These services typically include:
- A detailed home inspection
- Identifying all entry points, gaps, & open areas
- Rat, mouse, & rodent removal or trapping
- Installation of exclusionary barriers and professionally sealing the entry points
- Prevention tips
We’ve received numerous calls from customers in Columbia, South Carolina, that tried rat traps but ultimately had no success with solving their rodent problems. With our Columbia rat & mouse removal services, our team was able to quickly resolve their problem and exclude the critters from ever coming back.
If you’ve tried rodent traps with no success, let us help. Contact Alpha Wildlife today!
When Should You Call a Rodent Removal Company?
Quick answer: As soon as you notice any of the classic rodent signs like, noises in your attic, finding droppings around your home, ammonia-like odors from accumulated urine, chewed electrical wires, and new, unexplained holes (entry points).
Think of rodents like those friends that never leave until you actually show them the door. Rats and mice will stay in your home until the end of time if you allow it. The only true way to get them out and keep them out is through professional removal & exclusion.
Our team constantly receives calls from homeowners in the Charleston, South Carolina, community for rodent problems. If you live in the Lowcountry area and are dealing with rats or mice, contact Alpha Wildlife for our Charleston rat removal services today!
Can Alpha Wildlife Fix My Rodent Problem?
Quick Answer: Yes. Alpha Wildlife offers rat, mouse, and rodent removal services that will remove the critters from your home and prevent them from coming back.
As a veteran-owned and nationally certified wildlife removal company, Alpha Wildlife aims to provide the absolute best removal & exclusion services to homeowners throughout Tennessee, South Carolina, and Kentucky.
Specifically for rodent issues, our team will evaluate and inspect the following areas for signs of rodent activity:
- Attic
- Walls
- Crawlspace
- Garage
- Roofline
- Foundation
- Vents
- Exterior entry points
We know how stressful it can be dealing with rats in your walls or mice in your crawlspace, so we offer free inspections and free quotes to our customers. If you’re worried about the cost, we have partnered with Wisetack to offer flexible financing options as well.
Once we expanded to the Louisville, Kentucky, area, we started receiving calls from homeowners experiencing significant rodent problems. From rat infestations in the attic to mouse damage in the walls, we’ve seen it all. Our team is proud to offer professional rat and mouse removal services in the Louisville area.
Call us today to schedule a free inspection!
Rodent Removal Near You
Alpha Wildlife provides rat, mice, and rodent removal services in and around:
- Memphis, TN
- Nashville, TN
- Knoxville, TN
- Chattanooga, TN
- Columbia, SC
- Charleston, SC
- Louisville, KY
- Bowling Green, KY
No matter what type of issue you have, if it’s rodent related, we can help.
Don’t let rodents tear up your attic, walls, or crawlspace, give us a call and we’ll get your home back to normal!
Signs of Mice or Rats in Your Attic, Walls, or Crawlspace – FAQs
What are the first signs of mice or rats in your home?
At first, you’ll notice strange sounds (thumping, scratching, scurrying) coming from your attic, walls, or crawlspace. You might also find droppings or gnaw marks on various things, but typically you’ll hear them first.
What do mice or rats sound like in the attic?
Mice make light scratching, scurrying, or tapping sounds, while rats sound heavier and create louder scratching, thumping, or chewing noises. Homeowners usually notice these sounds at night.
How do I know if rodents are in my walls?
You may have rodents in your walls if you hear scratching, chewing, or movement behind drywall. Other signs include droppings near baseboards or cabinets, pets staring at walls, small holes, gnaw marks, and odors.
Can mice or rats live in a crawlspace?
Yes. This is one of the most common areas where rodent activity occurs. Mice and rats may nest in crawlspace insulation, damage vapor barriers, chew ductwork, and enter through gaps around vents, pipes, and foundation areas.
Are rodent droppings dangerous?
Yes. Rodent droppings can spread diseases like hantavirus or salmonellosis, so we don’t recommend getting too close to them. Their droppings can also contaminate your insulation which can also lead to health issues.
Will mice or rats leave on their own?
No. If there is an open entry point or gap that allows access for these critters into your home, they will not leave on their own. While you might have success catching a few of them with traps, it is recommended to use professional rodent removal services, like Alpha Wildlife, to get rid of the pests and keep them out.
What is the best way to keep rodents out?
The best long-term solution is exclusion. That means identifying and sealing entry points, removing food and shelter sources, addressing current rodent activity, and making the home harder for mice and rats to re-enter.
What do you do if you have rats and mice in your home?
Well, first off, don’t ignore it. This problem will not go away on its own. Mice and rats will continue to chew, gnaw, and reproduce until your home becomes their home. Contact a professional rodent removal company (like Alpha Wildlife) to get rid of the rats and mice and exclude them from coming back. Alpha Wildlife is veteran-owned, locally operated, nationally certified, & located in several cities across Tennessee, South Carolina, and Kentucky.
Quick Recap
- Scratching, scurrying, and chewing sounds are common signs of mice or rats.
- Rats and mice are known to hide in attics, walls, crawlspaces, garages, and storage areas.
- Droppings, urine odors, gnaw marks, grease marks, and damaged insulation are major warning signs.
- Traps alone may not solve the problem especially if the entry points are still open.
- Long-term rodent control should include inspection, removal, exclusion, cleanup, and prevention.
- Alpha Wildlife offers professional rodent removal services in Tennessee, South Carolina, and Kentucky.