Having rodents, such as mice, take up residence in your home can be extremely worrying and inconvenient. Not only do they pose a health risk but also they are liable to cause structural damage to your property. However, there are many ways you can control them.
The majority of people don't have the qualifications to exterminate these vermin professionally and aren't sure even how to guard their home against them, let alone get rid of mice once they are firmly ensconced in their home.
Prevention is the first step to dealing with any pest problem. Small animals can get through the tiniest of openings, and you should never underestimate a hungry, determined mouse.
Mice can chew through, wood, plastic or rubber in order to get in. They will make their home almost anywhere, in boxes, behind furniture and between walls. You firstly need to prevent them from making it indoors. You cannot close all openings but by walking around the exterior of your home to check gaps you can certainly reduce the risk of an infestation.
Pay particular attention to the gaps between the bottoms of doors, places where pipes and vents penetrate and ground level windows. You can use foam rope, foam sealer, steel wool, caulking or better yet steel wool combined with caulking to plug any visible gaps.
Scale down plants and weeds that grow up exterior walls. Mice are shy creatures and are always on the lookout for cover and cutting greenery back will reduce their protection making it unappealing to them.
Always move your bin far away from your garage or the side of your property. These pests are constantly on the hunt for food and the scent of rotting detritus will only serve to attract them.
There are a few signs you can look for to detect a mouse invasion. Small droppings will be the first one. They are usually rod shaped, black and between three and six millimetres long.
Another sure indication of mice is gnawed furniture. You may also find their nests in sheltered areas around the house, made from finely shredded paper or similar. These rodents also have an unmistakeable musky odour.
It is unusual to have just one mouse invade your property. They normally move around in pairs and can breed at an alarming rate. A female adult can have up to seven litters a year, with around five pups in each litter. Baby mice reach maturity within eight weeks and will live for approximately a year. Therefore a vermin problem can escalate rather rapidly.
Should you discover you have a problem, you can attempt your own mouse control by trying to catch them yourself. Poison traps can be toxic and dangerous to humans and pets so it may be safer to use a traditional spring trap first.
You should place the traps wherever you think the mice are most active, in particular anywhere you have spotted droppings. Make sure other household members will not disturb the traps.
Try using a sweet bait to attract the creature. Sultanas, raisins, chocolate or peanut butter are all very tasty foods to a mouse. Avoid touching the trap too much as you could overpower the bait with your own scent and this may put the animal off.
Once caught, to dispose of a dead mouse, it is best to wrap it carefully in a plastic bag and place it in your outside bin.
If you are a quite squeamish, you may want to use a humane trap that won't harm the rodent. It is best to set it free a great distance from your home. By letting it go in your back garden it will inevitably find its way back inside.
You may decide to use poison to rid yourself of your mouse problem. Do take care to place it where it won't be accessible to children or pets, as it can be extremely dangerous if eaten.
There are some chemical free poisons available on the market. Their composition relies on the nature of the mouse's body to take effect and cause dehydration. The animal will retreat, fall into a coma and eventually die.
You could try sonic control to purge your rodent guests. Ultrasonic waves disturb mice until they give up and go elsewhere. A good model will cover an area of 400 square metres and will not harm cats or dogs. Do be aware though that smaller domestic pets like gerbils or hamsters may be affected.
In extreme cases of infestation, it is always best to seek professional help. Not only will a pest controller alleviate your problem but will also offer advice on how to avoid future influxes.
There are various measures you can undertake when it comes to mouse control. It is just a case of finding the one that is most effective for your own situation.
