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Does Living in Your House Feel More Like a Game of Mouse Trap?
In the winter mice want to make their way into your home for shelter, warmth, and food. In this quest, they can chew through walls, destroy your food stores and affect your health. But if you’ve never dealt with mice before, you might think it’s hopeless to get rid of them.
That isn’t the case though! Keep reading for our guide on how to get rid of mice in your home.
Cut Off Their Entry Points
Rodent-proofing your home is the first step you should take to address your mice problem. It’s effective in stopping infestations from getting worse. Or, it can stop an infestation from occurring in the first place if you catch it early.
This can be difficult though, as mice can fit through holes as small as 1/4 of an inch. In general, if you can fit a pencil through a crack or hole then a mouse could get through it and you want to seal it up.
Seal any foundation cracks too and opening in your walls. Make sure vents and utility pipes have a good seal around them too as they’re a popular entry point. Don’t use wood, rubber, plastic, or anything a mouse can get through.
Use Traps
Once you find a mouse you want to deal with the issue right away. One of the best ways to stop an infestation in its tracks is using mouse traps. You might only have seen one mouse, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a population explosion. Don’t underestimate the problem.
Use many traps and use different types too. The best kinds of traps are the bait traps and multiple-capture traps that keep the mice alive. In this modern-day, there isn’t a real reason to cause unnecessary harm. Instead, rehome the critters in a more rural location away from your home.
If you don’t want to do this yourself, then call in a pest control company like greenpestservices.net. If you do want a humane plan, make sure you talk to the company and make this clear so they can find the right traps.
Get the Trap Placement Right
For mice control, getting the placement of the traps right is crucial. Place them perpendicular to the walls with the trigger area towards your baseboards. This encourages the mouse to go into the trap, not run around it or avoid it as it scurries down the side of the room.
In general, mice won’t go more than 10-20 feet from their source of food and nest. So, where you see signs of mice (droppings, etc.) and mice themselves, place your traps down. Change the trap locations after a few days to keep increasing their curiosity.
Avoid Poor Sanitation
Good sanitation won’t get rid of mice in your home but poor conditions do attract them. Mice only need 3g-4g of food a day to survive, so a few crumbs are sure to suffice.
Make sure you vacuum regularly and wipe your countertops down. Keep access to food stores tight and sealed off. You want to avoid offering an open invitation to the buffet table.
Keep your garbage secure too. To get rid of a mouse you need to remove the food source, but they aren’t fussy about dumpster diving. If the mood takes them, mice can chew through almost anything. A plastic bag isn’t enough.
If you have a cat you might have gotten a present or two in the form of dead mice at the bottom of the stairs (or in your bed!). Pets can help keep rodent populations under control, and farmers use semi-feral cats to keep the mice at bay. Not every pet wants to chase mice though, so don’t force it.
Get Rid of Mice the Right Way
So, there you have it! Now you know how to get rid of mice the right way they won’t be a problem for you much longer.
If you cut off the food source and make the effort getting inside too much, the mice will move on. But for more serious infestations where they’ve taken root call in a professional.
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