Four things YOU can do to keep pests away

1. Remove their food! Pests such as ants, mice and cockroaches need food, water and a place to live. In order to make sure they don't get food in your home or school:
   • Always put food away.
   • Seal all food containers tightly. Use rubber bands or plastic containers.
   • Wipe down counters to remove all crumbs and spills. A crumb to you is a feast to a cockroach!
   • Do the dishes as soon as possible.
   • Empty garbage cans frequently.
   • Get rid of clutter. Organize or get rid of the things you don't need, so mice or rats won't make a nest in the mess.
   
   
2. Keep them out! Even very small holes can act as a doorway for insects to come inside your house. Use barriers like window screens to keep out flies and mosquitoes. Try to:
   • Put screens on all windows and repair any screens that are torn.
   • Sprinkle cinnamon or red pepper at point where ants enter the home. They won't come in.
   • Keep ants away from dog food or cat food, by placing the food bowl in a pan filled with half an inch of water. This barrier acts like a moat around a castle and prevents ants from eating the food since ants cannot cross water.
   
   
3. Be old fashioned! Our great-grandparents used to control pests the old fashioned way. Let's follow their example:
   • Use a flyswatter or sticky fly tape to control flies and mosquitoes. Just make sure you don't swat flies once they've landed on your ice cream sundae!
   • Use a mousetrap instead of a rodenticide. You might even want to consider getting a cat that likes to hunt mice! Mice are perfect food for a cat.
   • Pull all weeds from the garden. This removes the food and shelter some pests need to live in your garden.
   
   
4. Learn more about the safer way to keep pests away!