A family daycare operated in a private residence in Saint-Hyacinthe, in the Montérégie region, had to deal with an infestation of field mice that directly threatened the safety and health of the children welcomed in the facility. Saint-Hyacinthe, an important city in the Montérégie region established on the Yamaska River and recognized as an agri-food hub, combines residential neighbourhoods and vast agricultural land on the outskirts, a context conducive to fall migrations of field mice. The manager of the daycare had found droppings in the service kitchen and heard noises in the walls of the living room converted into a games room. The presence of rodents in a place for young children was an intolerable situation that required immediate intervention that respected the constraints of the environment.
Assessment specific to a childcare setting
The inspection carried out by our exterminator in Saint-Hyacinthe took into account the particular constraints of a daycare: presence of young children, play areas on the floor, easily accessible educational and food materials. No chemicals were applied to the interior of the building for the duration of the children’s presence. The inspection took place in the evening, after the families had left, and identified two main entry points: a space under the kitchen service door and a passage behind the dryer panel in the laundry room. Traces of snacking were found on the rubber seal of the refrigerator door and on an unsealed cereal box in the pantry.
The presence of feces in the kitchen and food preparation areas required a health risk assessment, particularly because of the risk of contamination by hantavirus, although this pathogen is rare in Quebec. Contaminated surfaces were disinfected according to the protocol recommended by public health authorities before any normal resumption of activities.
Indoor rodenticide-free treatment
In agreement with the daycare manager, the interior treatment was based exclusively on instantaneous mechanical traps, installed in places inaccessible to the children: the inside of the locked cabinets, the space under the sink, the locked laundry room and the void under the raised floor of the living room. These devices were inspected every morning before the arrival of the children. Outside, secure, locked bait stations have been positioned along the foundation and in areas not accessible to children, such as behind the backyard shed. Our approach to this daycare reflects the high standards we apply in any facility for vulnerable people. To learn more about our expertise, visit our page dedicated to field mouse extermination.
Exclusion work included replacing the service door bottom seal with a reinforced design, sealing the dryer duct passage with a metal sleeve, and sealing two cracks in the foundation identified during the inspection. An additional check of all air intakes and ventilation grilles was also carried out to ensure that no other access was available.
Results and monitoring plan for the daycare
In less than ten days, all field mice activity in the daycare had stopped. The person in charge was able to resume her normal activities with confidence after the decontamination of the affected areas was completed. Complete rodent decontamination was carried out in the kitchen, laundry room and pantry, with neutralization of residual pheromones to avoid attracting other individuals. A quarterly monitoring plan has been put in place for the duration of the school year, including a preventive visit in September before the start of the fall migrations. To compare this approach with other achievements, see our intervention on field mice in residential settings and our mouse file in a similar context. Nova Extermination is proud to offer solutions adapted to the most sensitive contexts in the Montérégie.
Home daycare providers have few internal resources to manage this type of situation. Entrusting pest management to professionals allows you to focus on the essential: the well-being of children. In Saint-Hyacinthe, as in neighbouring agricultural municipalities, homes located near agricultural areas or natural environments remain exposed every year. A regular follow-up partnership with a certified team ensures a quick response if a problem ever arises again, without having to wait for the infestation to get worse.