Fight mice yourself – seven tips
Mice, despite their cute little beady eyes, are anything but innocent. In almost everything that is “gnawable” they put their sharp gnawing teeth. Not only in food and all kinds of packaging, but also in cables, wood, furniture or the insulation of your home. That’s because their teeth grow continuously and they have to gnaw a lot to keep their teeth sharp and short. They also cause odour nuisance through their urine and droppings. Mouse droppings can also transmit infections to humans. Mice can therefore spread germs. Add to this the fact that they can reproduce at a furious pace.
Fortunately, you can take various measures yourself to avoid and repel mice. Below we give you a few tips.
TIP 1: how do I know that there are mice in my home?
Mice usually do not go unnoticed. The best evidence that they are present are the mouse keys. They are half a centimetre long, dark in colour and have a pointed, elongated shape. Sometimes you can smell the pungent smell of urine.
Broken food packaging is another indication. Mice also like to nest in insulation material. If you hear rustling in the ceiling or wall, you probably have a pet.
TIP 2: NO OUTSIDE THIS OUTSIDE
Mice only need a hole half a centimetre wide to penetrate. Check the outside of your house critically and seal gaps and seams, for example with a mouse stop, a special anti-friction paste or steel wool. You can use fine gauze for ventilation openings. You also need to seal holes and cracks indoors. Don’t forget the shed and the garage.
TIP 3: MARKET ETENSWARDS GOOD ON
Mice come for food. The kitchen and the pantry are favourites.
Make sure you don’t leave any food lying around. Store everything in lockable containers or cans of hard plastic or metal.
Do you have a pet, e.g. a dog? Also store your dog food in a lockable container and do not leave the daily chunks on the floor day and night.
Vacuum the floor regularly.
TIP 4: PITTENTIAL MIDDLE
Mice can be chased away with pepper. Sprinkle plenty of pepper on the places where the mice have managed to gnaw their way in. This can also be a place between the floor or ceiling.
TIP 5: CATTY MIDDLE
In addition to sprinkling pepper, you can also scare mice by placing cat hair where the mice come in. Even better is to keep a cat although this does not guarantee that the mice won’t come in. See tip 2.
TIP 6: PLACE OF MUSICS
When placing a mouse trap, you have the choice whether you want to catch the mouse dead or alive. So-called clap and pinch traps will kill the mouse instantly, while tilt or cage traps will catch the mouse alive. A live mouse can be released outside, preferably at least 100 metres away. Mice do not like to cross the territory of other species.
Use chocolate, oatmeal or peanut butter as bait and preferably place several traps.
TIP 7: Use mouse poison, BUT ONLY AS LAST REDMID
If all the above tips and measures have not helped, you can use mouse poison as a last resort. Mouse venom is poisonous, animal-unfriendly and harmful to the environment and health. To prevent other animals from ingesting it accidentally, it should only be used indoors.
Place the mouse poison where the mice come but absolutely not where pets or children come. Check daily that the bait is not mouldy and top it up if necessary.
When the poison has done its job and you find a dead mouse, pack it in plastic and throw the cadaver in a lockable bin. This way, other animals, such as birds of prey or your own cat, don’t get the chance to eat a poisoned mouse.
