Bugs, Critters, Creepy Crawling things common to Colorado Springs (Denver: houses, scorpions)

[Mike from back east]

Don't sweat it. Mice are common everywhere. Rats roam big cities at will, like that KFC in NYC that was on the news last year. We had rats in the Pentagon big enough to use for gun platforms.

Our new house here had mice in it when we moved in, to be expected as the doors are open during construction - it's safe and warm in here for them. We took possession in early Nov 2005 and got about 8 of them the first winter, mostly that December. Last one in the trap was Oct 2007, none since. I use the trap, death is quick, then I flush them down the "flume ride" in the bathroom. To me, it's ugly to watch them struggling on sticky paper. See if you can find how they get in the house and caulk it up. If mice are getting in, so is cold air.

Some mice can carry fleas with Lyme Disease, or worse, best to get some traps out and get rid of the mice.

[YoYoSpin]

I you are a bird watcher, you'll love it here.

Best regards,
Ed D.

[Minz]

Originally Posted by Mike from back east

Don't sweat it. Mice are common everywhere. Rats roam big cities at will, like that KFC in NYC that was on the news last year. We had rats in the Pentagon big enough to use for gun platforms.

Our new house here had mice in it when we moved in, to be expected as the doors are open during construction - it's safe and warm in here for them. We took possession in early Nov 2005 and got about 8 of them the first winter, mostly that December. Last one in the trap was Oct 2007, none since. I use the trap, death is quick, then I flush them down the "flume ride" in the bathroom. To me, it's ugly to watch them struggling on sticky paper. See if you can find how they get in the house and caulk it up. If mice are getting in, so is cold air.

Some mice can carry fleas with Lyme Disease, or worse, best to get some traps out and get rid of the mice.

I feel better now. I just didn't want to have a "mouse problem". I definitely won't use the sticky stuff...I've heard cats and other animals get stuck on those and is impossible to get it off.

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by Minz

I feel better now. I just didn't want to have a "mouse problem". I definitely won't use the sticky stuff...I've heard cats and other animals get stuck on those and is impossible to get it off.

Just a couple of the usual Victor spring traps will do, found at most grocery stores.

[sacramento_native]

I have lived in Colorado Springs for a month now. I have been bitten by mosquitos many times, we have tons of red fire ants, I found a tick on my dog within the first two weeks, and we have some kind of spider that crawls in through the basement. The property manager recommended Spectracide (that's the brand name). It's a insect killer you spread on your lawn that you can find at Home Depot for less than $10. We just bought that and spreaded it yesterday, so I can't speak for its effectiveness, but we're told it works great. This obviously won't help for mosquitos, but it takes care of the creepy crawleys. If you have an outside pet, I would definitely recommend buying Frontline (make sure it's the kind that kills ticks and their eggs). It probably depends on the area you live, but why take the chance if you care about your pet? It's not fun trying to remove a tick and they can be very deadly to animals.

We've seen two foxes, but they run when they see humans. If you have small pets, though, this should definitely be a concern for you.

If you spend any time at Fort Carson, scorpions can be seen there; they are medium sized.

[fumanchu41]

Is there any problems with spiders and creepy crawlies in Colorado? Spiders scare the bejesus out of us. Is there such thing as a spider free state? LOL. We can deal with tiny ones, but that's it. Please help answer this post. Thank you.

[Bob from down south]

We have both black widows and brown recluse spiders here. Scorpions and rattlesnakes, too.

[otowi]

We have spiders. In general, at least in my opinion, bugs and creepy crawlies tend not to be a huge deal here. In colder parts of the year you might not see any at all. Fewer bugs than wetter, warmer climes - but yes, of course we still have them and occasionally they can be a bit of a problem, but that is not the normal case.

[Terytee]

I don't think there is such a thing as a spider-free state.... Yes, there are spiders and creepy crawlies here, but what we don't have is a lot of bugs or mosquitoes.

If you're camping right on the shore of a lake, you will have them because they breed in water. But if you're around the house you don't get eaten up if you're outside in shorts. Sitting outside at night is great! A citronella bug candle is all you need.

We also don't have tons of flies. I've become so accustomed to that, if one makes it's way into my house, I'm surprised and freak out......and I'm always looking at it like.....what the heck is that? Is that a fly?! We don't have tons of swatting bugs.

The occassional spider in the garage or basement is no big deal. It's an easy tradeoff.

[little city max]

Get yourself a cat. In the 7 months I lived in Oklahoma mine killed 8-9 Brown Recluse spiders in our house. Granted, they were juvies but still! I hate spiders too.