Mice invade homes, garages, offices, and even vehicles. Prolific reproducers, they leave disease-filled droppings and chew marks wherever they roam. Mice travel within 30 feet of their nest, up to 20 times a day, looking for food. They prefer to travel at night but will leave their nest during quiet daytime hours. To prevent the spread of disease and destruction, choose the best mouse bait and set multiple traps in strategic locations.
Identify mice nests by locating droppings or damage. Upon suspicion of a mouse invasion, inspect along walls, under furniture, and inside cabinets for mouse evidence and nests. Look for teeth marks to identify where mice have gnawed on electrical wires, cardboard boxes, and wood. Shreds of paper towels or tissues also mark mouse locations.
The best mouse bait attracts a mouse by using a sweet, sticky texture and smell. Mice prefer fresh bait so change the bait as often as necessary. Additionally, remove any additional food sources to ensure the mouse eats the bait. Store food in securely sealed containers, wipe up crumbs from counters and floors daily, and destroy any food with which a mouse has contact.
Use a variety of mouse trap bait for greater success. Soft cheese or peanut butter remains popular mouse bait. Add honey, seeds, or bacon bits for a sweet twist that attracts mice. Purchase a specialty food-based mouse bait gel as an additional bait option. Place bait indoors along mice routes or outdoors where mice may enter the building.
One may prefer to use poison as bait. While this option annihilates the mouse, one cannot guarantee the mouse will die outside. A dead, rotting mouse leaves a decaying odor and adversely affects one’s quality of life. If one must utilize poison, ensure the mouse will die away from living areas. More importantly, place poison away from children and pets. Enclosed mouse bait stations hold the poison securely isolated from anyone but the mouse.
After choosing bait, decide which type of trap to set. Popular mouse traps that normally kill the mouse include snap traps, box traps, and sticky glue board traps. Arrange snap traps perpendicular to known mouse routes with the trigger flush to a vertical surface such as a wall or chair leg. Box traps and glue board traps work best when placed parallel to the wall along the mouse route. Set multiple mouse traps to increase the chance of catching the mouse.
For mouse catch and release, set a secure trap from which the mouse cannot escape. Create a homemade trap out of household items. Place bait into the bottom of a deep bucket. The mouse smells the bait and walks up a plank after which it falls into the bucket. Once caught, a mouse could quickly die. As with all traps, check them frequently and release the mice into wooded area as far away from homes as possible.
Wear latex gloves during mouse handling, and wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after contact with mouse material. To protect children and pets, exercise extreme caution when placing any traps or bait.
Reduce the danger of disease or damage by killing or removing a mouse from living areas. Handle a mice infestation with strategically placed mouse trap bait. Attract the mouse with sweet, sticky bait. Live mice free by placing the best mouse bait on a variety of traps designed to kill or catch and release any size mouse.