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Mouse Prevention - How to Keep Mice Away

How to Keep Mice Away - Mice are small rodents that can be very destructive to your home and yard. Not only do they carry diseases, they also eat just about any and everything in and around your home including clothes, wood and garbage. They contaminate the house with their droppings, urine and hair which usually leads to a very unpleasant smell. Their constant gnawing on everything leaves holes in your walls, attic, clothes and everything else. Mice are also responsible for chewing on pipes, wires and insulation in your home which can lead to very expensive repairs. They eat away and damage the stored food materials and the grains and seeds meant for sowing. At night, you will probably hear the skittering of their little claws as they rush about throughout your house looking for food. Mice can be a huge nuisance; however, there are several ways which you can employ to help reduce and get rid of your mice problem.

Cutting of the Food Supply
The first and the most important thing to do is to cut off the supply of food. Make sure that the home is free of garbage and leftover foods. In other words, don’t leave that plate of unfinished dinner on the counter top overnight as the mice will be very thankful for the feast you’ve invited them to. Storing food properly is important; mice can and will eat through paper and cheap plastic. It is a good idea to put foods such as cereals, rice and other supplies in rubber, tin or metal containers that can be sealed securely. Do not leave kitchen garbage bags unattended; be sure to secure them and take them out of the house each night and put into a garbage can that is securely shut tight.

Repellents
There are a number of repellents available on the market that claim to repel mice. However, if you prefer a homemade repellent, you can use peppermint, moth balls, mint plants, bay leaves, onions and ammonia. Cotton balls dipped in peppermint or ammonia can be placed at various corners of the home and dropped in the holes made by the mice. Moth balls can also be used in the same way. If you choose to use onions, you will need to remove the outer layer (skin) of the onion first before placing them in various corners of your home. Mint plants can be planted outside which sometimes works to deter mice. You can also use a predator’s urine as a repellent. Repellents like onions, ammonia and peppermint oil are not, however, very effective as they lose their strength with time and you need to replenish them again and again. Ammonia and moth balls on the other hand are poisonous and can be dangerous to pets and children in the house. Also, studies reveal that mice learn to adapt to these repellents and after a while they will not work.

Keeping a Predator as Pet
It is very well-known that cats and owls are predators of mice. Owls, obviously, are not the usual type of pet; however, cats are natural mice hunters and enjoy chasing and snacking on the little rodents.

Trapping
There are various types of traps present in the market for you to select from. The single catch live trap and multi catch live trap are the most efficient types. Peanut butter is usually used as a bait to attract the mice. The single catch live trap has a trigger attached to the door and soon as the mouse touches the bait, the door shuts down. The multi catch live traps has a special door that allows the mice to come in but do not allow them to go out. Glue traps work by ‘gluing’ the mice to a pad that is full of extremely strong glue. While these traps do work, they can sometimes be cruel as the mice can get body parts stuck and even destroyed when they become attached to the glue strips.

Go back to the main Mouse Removal page for more information about mouse prevention, and more information about how to keep mice away.

Get more mouse education thought my educational guides. My years of experience means I have expert advice to share, from the most Humane mouse traps to the diseases that mice can carry. Read my analysis of inhumane glue traps and learn how to keep mice out of your garden and garbage. See the kind of damage mice cause in an attic, find out how to get mice out of your attic. Learn if mice chew on wires and how to use one-way exclusion funnels to remove mice. Learn what to do if a moust gets inside your house, as well as about the mouse's natural diet, whether or not they can climb, what might attract them to your property, and if mothballs or ammonia will help repel them. Find out what mice can chew through and if cage traps are a good option.







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