Tag Archives: parry sound

The good old days

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Well, it was almost like the good old days. One out of our typical area call, and we actually managed to get it all done pretty much as planned – so better, mostly – than some of the days we’ve had in previous years.

Yesterday was the first day of this year that we’ve had a full slate of bookings. Down to Woodbridge, one in Tiny (which isn’t, in case you didn’t know), up to Port Severn for a few, then the locals in Victoria Harbour and Port McNicoll. Still mostly rodents, but that won’t last much longer. And it’s mostly mice again, not rats, which is a positive thing (for you, not us, necessarily, but oh well. No one should have to live with rats in their home or cottage!!!)

This weekend we were mostly dealing with mice, but two skunks, as well… they’re a pain in the butt! Especially when most of the issues are skunks that are just wandering through and around in your area. They cover a lot of ground in their travels so may wander through a property frequently, but not actually den there. And of course, the more time they’re there, the higher the likelihood of a mishap, especially if there are dogs also in the area.

While we can trap and remove, unless we fix the things attracting the skunks – or other critters – to an area, they’ll be back. Not necessarily the same critter(s) – but if it was perfect for one, it’s also going to be perfect for someone – or something – else to move into. So, that tends to be our focus wherever possible: convincing the critters that ‘this’ is not a desirable place to hang out. Humanely, of course!

Anyway, much as I like to go on and on about not much in particular, it’s back to school tomorrow and one of us hasn’t finished her homework!! Need to get some assignment details fleshed out and posted so that my almost-ready-to-graduate(!!) students can work on them independently while they’re out on placement(!!). And to make the flood of emails asking for more details about this, that, and the other thing stop already.

Have a lovely spring, and do call or text us at (705)534-7863, or send email to ccpestcontrol@gmail.com; we’re happy to help solve what’s bugging you. Environmentally responsible, local pest control – and hey! We work weekends!

Lauralee

Spring 2022

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Another year already! Time flies when you’re having fun.

And I have been having rather more fun than I expected to when I took on this pest control gig. I always did like a challenge. And problem-solving. And learning.

So, in spite of the fact that I’m way too old to be crawling under houses or climbing ladders, I do it anyway (only when Jessa isn’t around to do it for me, of course)!!  Don’t know what I’m going to do when she quits on me – now that she’s fully licensed, too, she doesn’t need me for anything, really. Well, except for answering the phone, booking the jobs, ordering the supplies, and paying for everything. Okay, so she ~might~ need me for a bit longer! But it would definitely make a lot more sense for her to be finding bed bug jobs in Oshawa and/or Durham Region and skip the drive.

Anyway …. since Jessa is only available weekends, and working just weekends isn’t going to work for much longer, I’m going to have to find a weekday helper as well. Possibly more than one if the LDD moth caterpillars stick around. Which they likely will, although I think that this should be the end of it for a few years.  Lots and lots of eggs out there, just waiting for the warmer weather….. but this year we’ll be ready for them. And, hopefully, the virus that eventually wipes them out will be that much more prevalent.

In the meantime, though, if you are concerned about the caterpillars, and want to protect your trees, we can help with that – and the earlier the better. If we treat your tree trunks early in the spring, before or just as the leaves are coming in, we can use far less product in a more targeted way, and solve the problem before it starts.

And that is the way we prefer to do pest control around here: the environmentally responsible way.

We’ve already got quite a large number of jobs lining up for early spring – if you are interested in being added to our schedule, the sooner you contact me the better. I’ll try to get a sign up form added here in the next few days – but in the meantime, feel free to email me at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com, or text/call me at 705-534-7863 and I’ll pencil you in.

Not sure whether you’re going to need treatment? Have a look at any trees in your area. Do they have eggs sacs? What about your home or cottage? Some areas that we’ve seen have an alarming number.  If you’re able to reach and remove them, there’s still time to do that – but otherwise, we are happy to help.

Great weather for pest control…

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Not so great for pest control companies! This year has been a real challenge. Lots & Lots of people want outside sprays … some people to keep their home &/ cottage looking nice and clean and free of webs and some because the only good spider is most definitely a dead spider.

But with the windy, wet and generally dreary days we’ve mostly been having there just aren’t that many good days for spraying!

Can’t spray when it’s too windy – can’t control the spray well enough to be sure it’s only going where you want it to and not where you don’t. Especially near water; most of the products we use are highly unlikely to damage anything on land, but aquatic life just can’t…. And anyway, it’s illegal and we’re kind of sticklers about that. Partly because we don’t want to pay fines, but also because we care a great deal about our environment. We would miss our heron if it stopped showing up!

We also can’t spray when it’s raining. …. sort of. We actually CAN spray while it’s raining….but so few people believe us about that that we have pretty much given up on trying it for the most part.

Ross would never spray in a typhoon, or even just in torrential downpours. But light rains like we’ve had this spring really aren’t problematic at all. We use water, after all, to mix the product 🙂 Once the product is on the walls, it’s not going to go anywhere because of the rain. What causes it to break down over time is direct sunlight!

Which means there’s not much to worry about this year! At least not so far 🙁

I can’t believe that my summer is halfway over! It can’t have gone by so quickly; I haven’t even been kayaking yet!! I’ve accepted a 7 week contract at Georgian College so will be juggling between Ross’s calendar and so on, and that. Which means that there may be a bit of a delay in returning your phone calls. For the fastest response, please do use email if at all possible. Thanks!

Lauralee

Spring is coming

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woodpecker hole in houseReally it is!!

I sure will be happy when the ice on the lake breaks up and I can get my kayak out! Not teaching this summer, nor working at the group home (long story there!) so unless something changes, will be here most of the time to take people’s calls. Well, when I’m not out on the lake anyway.

It could be worse though! The year I moved to Barrie we had a horrible snow storm on April 3 – and some jerk stole my shovel right out of my yard. I wasn’t amused.

Anyway, even though the weather is not cooperating, seems like the critters know that spring is coming. We’ve already been getting calls about critters where they don’t belong, and carpenter ants. Lots and lots of carpenter ants. We actually had several calls about them over the winter, too – every time the weather warmed up even a little, the ants would get busy.

Did you know that the ants you see are generally only a very small percentage? And that, while they don’t actually eat your wood or your insulation, they do damage it by tunneling through it to build their nests.

First sign people usually notice is a few ants…eventually, things progress to ‘raining’ sawdust (or insulation/building foam dust) – that’s called frazz. After that, things can get so bad one can hear them in the walls. And if you ignore all that long enough…? The woodpeckers come!! Woodpeckers love carpenter ants – whether they are in trees, or buildings. Fortunately most people get on top of the problem before that happens – but it does happen!

Early intervention saves the structural integrity of your home or cottage!

No matter where you are in Simcoe, Muskoka, Tiny, or Tay, or even beyond, and we will be happy to help you to solve your pest problems – or better yet, prevent them!

Our phone number is 705.534.7863, or you can email me at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Lauralee

And so it begins…

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Even though I have yet to send my annual email  (my bad – BUT I got through a condensed semester with all my marks done & submitted early AND got my gall bladder out last week, so…. yeah… )  I’ll get there!

But it was a beautiful day and a whole bunch of people decided the time was right even without that. Lots of phone calls and emails today. I THINK I have everything sorted so that Ross can deal with things while I work at the group home tomorrow. We shall see 🙂 I might need to print off calendar pages for him… hmmm ….

Anyway, we are here and we are getting sorted so please do feel free to give us a call at 705-534-7863, or email me at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com. Oh, and we’d love it if you followed us on Facebook as well, if you do that Facebooking thing 🙂

Happy Canada Day

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Hope you all have a safe and happy long weekend wherever you happen to be. From calls so far it sounds like a lot of people are going to be at the cottage all this week.

Ross’ calendar is already starting to fill up, so if you do happen to run into pest problems that you’ll need help with, might want to call or email us sooner, rather than later. No need to wait until Monday; we are here all weekend. Well, except I’m taking grandkids to the zoo tomorrow (yes, I know how dumb that is – it’s the zoo’s fault, as they clearly didn’t take the long weekend into consideration when they rescheduled the members only event they have on today and tomorrow!)

Sure are getting lots and lots of carpenter ant calls, still. But not termites, so far – so if you happen to spot piles of sawdust-like material, and or ants with wings, not to worry. In every single case so far this year, they’ve been carpenter ants. They do the same sort of damage as termites, but they are a LOT slower at it, and they’re easier to treat. Ross has lots & lots of practice doing it and will be happy to solve your carpenter ant problem.

So, in other words, it could be worse! So – even if you’ve arrived at your cottage and found unwelcome visitors, give us a call and then get on with enjoying your time off 🙂

 

Weather Watch

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Wish it would just RAIN already!!! This constant feels-like-it’s-gonna-but-doesn’t is aggravating. Do I send him to Tiny, first, or Parry Sound?  Constantly checking weather apps these days; too bad they hardly ever agree! I keep thinking I maybe don’t need to water my garden because it feels like it’s going to rain – but then it doesn’t; at least not here. It should rain already!!! And then stop so we can get on with our day.

Fortunately we do have some work that can be done even in the rain  – indoor stuff like fleas and mice, anyway. Never had SO many mice calls through the summer as we do this year -usually that’s a winter thing. Not many bedbugs in cottage country this year though; that’s a plus … well, for you guys, not so much for us 😉

If you have pest problems of any sort – well, aside from those you brought into the world yourself – please do give us a call at 705-534-7863, or email me at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com and I’ll be happy to book a time for Ross to come and solve them for you.

 

 

Ross’ boat

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Ross' boat

June 10 and it’s still in the yard! And filling up with tree gunk too.

Well, we’re off to a very busy start this season.

So busy, in fact, that Ross’ boat is still sitting in the yard. He had time to remove the tarps. And he’s got it serviced.

And – well, since then, he’s been on lots & lots of other people’s boats. That should count for something right?

This week has been all about the Honey Harbour area. Lots of carpenter ants, mice and of course spider sprays. Have had him up there several days already, and today he’s out with Big Red Works all day. That works great – they run him around so that he can fit a whole lot more into one day by skipping the time spent waiting at marinas.

Already got more island calls set up for next week as well, both in Honey Harbour and the Parry Sound area. Oh yeah, and Mactier. Haven’t heard much from Go Home Lake cottagers yet. Hmm… maybe they don’t like us any more?!  Or maybe they’ve just been spared the invasion of the carpenter ants, I don’t know.

Anyway, given how busy we are, and the fact that it doesn’t seem like he’s going to have time to get our boat in the water any time soon, I guess I won’t complain. Too much!

If you’re having problems with birds, carpenter ants, mice, spiders, etc etc, do give us a call or email us and we’ll do our best to fit you in somewhere. Even though we’re hopping, we’re still managing to get to most within a day or two. On land, anyway.

Rainy days & spider sprays

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Darn rain!!!

Got Ross’ calendar filled and then some – and the bleeping rain just messed that all up.

Truth is that it doesn’t actually have to bring everything to a standstill; rain doesn’t actually wash the product we use away once it’s set (about 20 minutes) …. so he COULD still spray and as long as it doesn’t pour immediately afterwards, it would work just fine.

BUT, we have discovered, people just don’t believe that 🙂

And since we want our customers to be happy and believe, yeah, we delay or reschedule exterior spider sprays on rainy days.

Fortunately for today, we had some carpenter ants and wasps we could move into the freed up space…. we’ll try again for sprays tomorrow if the weather cooperates…. weather network isn’t exactly being encouraging though!

If there’s anything Ross can help you with, give us a call at 705-534-7863, or email me at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com …. we’re pretty busy this time of year but we will fit you in one way or another. And yes, weekend appointments are available for you cottagers.

Shoo Fly Don’t Bother Me!

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cluster flyIt’s that time of year and flies are coming out of the woodwork…literally.  In cottage country the most common fly we see is the Cluster Fly

Cluster Flies are about 8 to 10 mm (.31 to .39 inches) long. They are dark grey, with black and silver (non-metallic) checkered stomachs. You can tell them apart from house flies in a couple of different ways:

  • their wings overlap when they are at rest.
  • they are larger, darker and slower-moving
  • tend to “cluster” in groups
  • give off a sickly-sweet odour when disturbed.

They are most commonly found in houses that are surrounded by large lawns or open parks.  Cluster flies hibernate in wall voids, attics, closets, and empty rooms. They tend to leave stains on walls and curtains and if they die in areas that can not be accessed – can attract other pests like larder beetles which will feed on the dead flies and then work their way through the rest of your home.

If you have a problem – it will present itself in the most obvious way as the days become warmer and the flies become more active.  You will see them gathering in windows or around well lit areas.

Prevention and control can be an arduous task as these little pests can access your house through the tiniest places.  Give Ross a call at 705-534-7863, or email us at ccpestcontrol@gmail.com  – and he’ll be happy to give you a hand.