Talk about a nightmarish scenario: A Canadian woman discovered that the $1 million house she’d just bought had a mouse infestation so thoroughly  entrenched that she’s had to rip apart the home down to the framework to get rid of it. So how did she miss it before buying the home? She says she didn’t get a home inspection.

While it’s always better safe than sorry, the woman tells CBC News that she thought everything would be fine, as she had contractors, engineers and architects walk through the 5,000-square-foot home several times before she moved in. None of them spotted anything wrong, though the infestation has probably been percolating for five years.

Now, all its drywall and insulation will be ripped out to get rid of the nasty mouse mess.

“All you see is just feces and urine, just puddles and piles,” she said of what she found when she pulled down the walls to renovate the home. “The whole vapor barrier is just filled with this nest.” She’ll likely spend tens of thousands of dollars to get the mess cleaned up and new insulation and drywall installed.

Although a pest control expert said the mouse problem must’ve been years in the making and is the worst infestation he’s ever seen, the former owners denied knowing anything about any mouse issues. The current owner says she’s likely going to sue, as the inhabitants must’ve noticed something was awry.

The previous owner said he wouldn’t have sold the house if he’d known. And since there were thick walls, who’s to know if the mice just stayed hidden.

Now would be a good time to stress the importance of getting an inspection done in a home before buying it, as doing so could’ve caught this kind of infestation. Spending a little extra in advance is well worth it if it can save you spending thousands more later to clean up Mickey’s mess.

Mice infest Winnipeg woman’s $1M house [CBC News]

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