How to Keep Critters Out of Campsites & Cabins

When your customers get ready for a big camping trip – or to head out to their cabin – they may want to visit your store before setting out. There’s no better place to gather supplies than a fully stocked store!

With that in mind, you can try to cater to these customers by reminding them of the issues they need to prepare for as they set out into the great outdoors!

In Your Store

Set up an area that caters to outdoor enthusiasts. Gather all the typical supplies a person may need, including:

Portable cooking supplies
Small, portable propane tanks
Camping knives, shovels and other tools
Animal repellents, including options from Safer^® Brand and Victor^®
Insect repellents
Sunscreen
Bottled water
Storage containers
First aid kit
Tick removal kit
Tarps
Rodent traps, including traps from Victor^®
Insect traps, including sticky traps from Safer^® Brand and Terro^® and Mosquito Magnet^® CO₂ mosquito traps
Live animal cage traps, including humane traps from Havahart^®
Flashlights
Batteries
Trash bags
Rope and/or twine

At the Campsite

Site maintenance is especially important to keep animals and insects away from a campsite. Advise your customers to:

Keep unused food sealed and away from the main campsite
Use sprays/lotions to repel insects
Check after hikes for ticks
Take precautions to avoid attracting wild animals and insects that may bite or sting
Remove garbage and discarded food
Cook at least 20 yards away from the campsite
Clean fish in an area away from the campsite

Pests in Cabins

For cabins, the same rules apply concerning keeping the area clean and free of smelly garbage. But since a cabin isn’t as exposed and offers more opportunity for protection, your customers should be advised to keep things sealed. Keep doors closed and sweep up inside, outside and in front of entrances.

For cabinowners, advise them to make sure that there aren’t any holes or cracks that can be exploited by critters or insects. Caulk can be used on spaces they find. Be sure to advise them to pay special attention to doors and windows. Weather stripping and a self-closing door hinge will add to the security of any retreat.

For customers working at their cabin, you may want to point out these helpful products:

Brooms and other cleaning supplies
Trash bags
Rodent traps, including Victor^® mouse traps
Insect traps, including sticky traps from Safer^® Brand and Terro^® and even Mosquito Magnet^® CO₂ mosquito traps
Insect spray, including aerosols from Terro^® and Safer^® Brand.
Live animal cage traps, including traps from Havahart^®
Padlocks (to secure doors)
Caulk and the tools to apply it
Wire mesh screen

Common Cabin & Camp Critters

Chipmunks – These tiny critters may find a home underneath a cabin structure or chew a hole in a tent.
Mice – These pests can squeeze their way into openings the size of a dime and carry diseases that may be spread through their droppings or from a bite.
Mosquitoes – Besides leaving behind bites that are itchy and sometimes painful, they are also able to transmit diseases through these bites, making them a more serious pest than you may expect.
Opossums – A nocturnal garbage raider, the opossum has a strange defense method of dropping unconscious, as if dead, giving birth to the term “playing possum.”
Raccoons – These disease-carrying critters are known to knock over trash cans in search of anything edible while you try to sleep.
Skunks – Aside from carrying diseases, skunks are famous for shooting a powerfully foul-smelling spray which is extremely hard to remove from your clothes, hair or skin.
Squirrels – These rodents are not skittish about approaching people and love to raid your food stores.
Wasps – These insects can take up residence in a cabin, in wood piles and in outbuildings. Their painful stings can wreck a weekend.