How To Get Rid Of Mice?

If you think “trap” as soon as you start talking about getting rid of mice, you are thinking right along with thousands of others. For decades, people have set those spring-loaded mouse traps, put a bit of cheese in the right place and waited for the little rodents to come searching for a meal.

Theirs is nothing wrong with this method. It has proven quite effective. There have been some changes in the mouse-trapping world in recent years, however. In addition to making new versions of the mouse trap, companies have come up with traps that capture the mouse, leaving it alive. They have also offered those sticky boards that keep the mouse from running away. Again, you have to dispose of the mouse, often while it is still kicking and breathing.

Traps, Traps
There are at least four major categories of mouse traps. First, there is the traditional wood trap with the powerful metal spring that snaps down on an unsuspecting rodent. The “better” mouse trap is similar but is often made of plastic. With this model there is less chance of catching your own fingers when setting the trap.

You might invest in a mouse “motel” that allows the rodent to walk in but not to walk out. Or you may try the sticky board that glues the mouse’s feet to the board. If you don’t get to him right away and dispose of the little rodent he will starve and die right there. You can also poison the mice by placing the powder or granules in places where the rodents often travel. They mistake the poison substance for food, nibble and eventually die.

Prevent Them
You can go a long way toward solving your mouse problem by keeping your home and property clean, not giving rodents and other pests the opportunity to come in and feast. Mice love to nest in dark, quiet places. They will seek out spaces in walls, piles of discarded materials and so on. If you provide them with food by allowing food particles to lay around the home you are inviting the mice in.

Mice like cheese. But they also like those sweet, crunchy cereals, pretzels, potato chips and almost any other snack food that find its way under the couch or behind a chair. If you allow food items to spill in your cabinets you will also be giving them a free lunch.

The bottom line with food items is: keep it cleaned up and keep food in tightly sealed containers. Mice will chew through cardboard and paper containers to get to food.

In addition to cleanliness you should focus on home repair and maintenance to prevent mice infestations. They will seek out your home when the weather starts to cool in the fall. If they find a small hole or crevice that allows them to get into your walls or into cabinets, they will exploit that opening. Prevention and good traps are probably the best ways to get rid of mice.

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