Rodent Control in Marana

Marana is a different town depending on where you're standing. It runs along I-10 northwest of Tucson, from Continental Ranch and Cortaro Rd. up through Gladden Farms and out toward the Tortolitas and Dove Mountain. It was farm country for a long time, and some fields along Sandario Rd. are still worked. A lot of the rest is new subdivisions on ground that was desert or farmland not long ago.

New construction stirs rodents up. When a lot gets graded, the pack rats and mice that lived there go looking for the nearest cover, and that's often the backyard of the house that just closed. So Marana calls tend to be about middens along fresh block walls, mice in brand new garages and chewed wiring on cars.

When the lot behind your wall gets graded

If the empty land behind your wall just got bladed, expect visitors. Check the wall line, the gate and the garage right away. New homes still have gaps: the garage door seal, the AC line opening, the bottom of the side gate. Closing those early, before rodents learn the way in, is a lot easier than chasing them later, and sealing a new home is usually a short job.

Field mice moving off farm ground and construction sites tend to show up in garages first, especially in the fall, which keeps mouse control a steady call out here. Up at Dove Mountain it's more like the Foothills: natural desert, cholla and saguaro left in place, and pack rats leaving cactus pieces on patios and in engine bays. Most of those calls turn into trapping pack rats and clearing middens.

Along the Santa Cruz and the old farm ground

The Santa Cruz River runs through Marana with mesquite and brush along its banks, and The Loop path follows it. Homes backing to the river see more of everything. Horse and farm properties have feed rooms, hay and equipment that sits, and those usually need barn and ranch rodent control on a schedule.

Continental Ranch and the Cortaro Rd. area sit right up against Casas Adobes and the northwest side, and to the east Marana borders Oro Valley. Pack rat pressure runs about the same along that whole edge. For small midden jobs near the river, our midden guide walks through clearing one without breathing the dust.

Gladden Farms garages in October

Out by Gladden Farms and the fields along Sandario Rd., fall is mouse season. When the weather cools, mice drift toward the nearest warm, dry spot, and a garage with a worn seal is perfect. Keep the dog food in a sealed bin, get the cardboard boxes up off the floor, and look for small pointed droppings along the garage walls. Catch it early and it's usually a quick job.

Around Marana: Continental Ranch · Dove Mountain · Gladden Farms · Santa Cruz River and The Loop · Tortolita Mountain Park · Cortaro Rd. and Twin Peaks Rd. (ZIP 85653, 85658, 85743)

Also serving Catalina Foothills, Oro Valley, Tanque Verde and East Side, Midtown and Sam Hughes, Vail, Sahuarita and Green Valley, Rita Ranch, Casas Adobes, South Tucson and West Side.