Tips for Protecting Your Home from Pest Invasions

No matter what you do, sooner or later, you can expect to have to deal with insects or rodents in your home. You might have ants, mice, raccoons, roaches, etc., you never know who might find their way inside your home. There are some things that you can do, to make your home less attractive to these unwanted visitors, so that you don�t have to deal with them, but in some cases, you may have to deal with them no matter what you do, so be prepared.

The most common household insect or pest is ants. It seems like they can find their way inside your home no matter what you do, and once they are there, can be extremely difficult to get rid of. There are many commercial products that you can purchase, which may prevent ant infestation, but you have to make sure they are safe, especially if you have indoor pets or small children in the home.

The easiest way to deal with ants is to get rid of their food source. Make certain that you have food placed in air tight containers, and that you clean up spills or messes immediately. Ants like cereal, peanut butter, certain liquid medications, suckers, anything sweet especially. If you don�t store these items properly, then you may have a serious ant problem on your hands.

Depending on where you live, you may also have to deal with stray dogs and cats, and even skunks, (yuck!). These animals love to get into your trash cans, looking for a great meal, but leaving you with a horrendous mess to clean up the next morning. How mad would you be to go outside for work at 6am and see your trash all over your yard and drive? One way to prevent this problem is to douse your cans with ammonia or bleach, as the strong fumes will often deter any midnight food raids. You may also want to soak the area around the cans, and this will also work around your porch or vehicles as well. Stray cats love to sit on cars, scratching paint and leaving footprints, which can be very annoying as well.

If you have pets, you will probably have to deal with fleas at some point. You should ask your vet to recommend a flea collar or spray that you can use, which will be safe for your pets, and effective against fleas. Your vet might also give you a prescription cream, that you can apply onto your pet�s skin, which will not only keep fleas off of your pet, but will keep them from coming into your home as well.

Flies can also be a very annoying pest to have in the home, and we all have them, especially during hot weather. No one wants to have flies buzzing around when they are trying to cook or eat, and especially not when you are trying to sleep at night. Make certain that no food gets left out, which is what flies are looking for. Like with ants, if you take away their food, they will leave. If nothing else, you can get commercial sprays and traps to use, but again, make certain you read the labels for safety precautions.

Exterminators can go along way towards keeping your home pest free, but they can be expensive. If used to prevent pests from coming into your home, it isn�t too bad, but frequent visits to try to rid you of pest invasions, can be quite expensive, so you are better off preventing invasions in the first place.

Caltrans brings traffic safety fair to Franklin High (Elk Grove Citizen)

Photos by Keri Wood - California Highway Patrol officer Michael Bradley talks to students at Franklin High School Friday about staying safe behind the wheel during the Caltrans “Street Smart” tour.

Every School Every Thursday -- Des Moines South (The Des Moines Register)

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Every School Every Thursday -- Urbandale, Johnston (The Des Moines Register)

Jensen

Every School Every Thursday -- West Des Moines, Clive, Waukee (The Des Moines Register)

Clive students had the opportunity to explore the connection between performer and academics with Penny and Lee Fugerson Nov. 10-13. Clive has used a Connecting Kids with Culture grant and a Metro Arts grant to finance this artist-in-residence where participants encountered rhythms from around the world. There was an all-school assembly to showcase this intercultural music and movement on Nov. 13.

Meeting Minutes (Yankton Press & Dakotan)

VFW Ladies Auxiliary President Dorothy Stanage opened the VFW Ladies Auxiliary meeting. District One Representatives Barb Kronaizl, Bonnie Albers, and Delores Gregg were introduced. Thank You Notes from Mary Hammond, Verna Hojem Family, Jesse Ekeren, Robert King Family and Carol Reisner were read.