Mice will enter in your home in search for food and shelter and they will expose you and your family to germs and disease. They can be a major problem if they set up a nest in your home.
Mice and other rodents prefer dark, hidden places, like duct work and crawl spaces which offer the perfect environment for mice to breed and travel throughout the home.
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Mice in epidemic proportions frequently occur the fall after a particularly mild winter. With an average litter of ten babies, one pregnant mouse with the help of her mate can multiply exponentially-faster than a chain letter. The babies start breeding at 6 to 8 weeks old and can deliver a new litter of 10, every 21 days.
Mice are rarely spotted during the day. They are nocturnal creatures, meaning they do their dirty work when the sun has set and the lights are out. A mouse problem is detected with one or more of the following signs: droppings; little holes in your cereal boxes; shredded paper in your pantry; night sounds (in the wall or attic); odor; nests.
Getting rid of these pests is a two-step process:
1) Make your home as impenetrable as possible against rodents.
2) Kill the mice in the area to prevent an infestation.
Make Your Home Impenetrable:
1/ Seal off any entry points. Mice can squeeze into spaces as small as 1/2-inch. Cover all open areas of the ducts, with a fine wire mesh. This needs to be less than 1/2 inch meshing to stop mice. Also attach wire mesh or hardware cloth to all pipes and heating system entrances in the walls and secure it with wire or duct tape.
2/ Set up lamps in the duct work. This can cost more on the electricity bill, but mice will not live where bright lights are present. That will force them to get out from their hidden places.
3/ Walk around your home and repair any holes and cracks where the home’s foundation meets the ground with concrete patching material.
4/ Eliminate grass or bushes close to the home’s foundation or cut it back. Rodents prefer to travel along walls under the cover of thick vegetation.
5/ Keep food preparation, cooking, food, (including pet food) areas and storage facilities covered and clean.
Kill the Mice:
1/ Traps: Place mouse traps and in the ducts, close to exterior walls where mice are likely to travel. Because of the stronger odor and it is easier to spread, the best baits for attracting mice is not cheese but peanut butter or creamy chocolate.
Alternatively, use glue traps. Space traps about 10 feet apart. Check them frequently and re-bait as needed.
2/ Mouse and Rat Zapper: This device powered by 4 AA alkaline batteries. When a mouse or rat enters the device, it triggers a sensor to deliver a fatal electrical shock. This device is considered safer than poisons and standard traps for pets and children.
3/ Electronic Sonic Devices: With these devices, a high pitch sound is broadcasted that drives away mice with their sensitive hearing. For the best results, install one on each level of your home.
4/ Poison: Poison is a highly effective way to get rid of your rodent problem but can be harmful to your pets and children.
5/ Call an Exterminator: professional exterminator can make your mouse infestation problem go away and they guarantee their work.
Mice Home Remedies:
1/ Peppermint and Peppermint Oil: Soak a cotton ball in the oil of peppermint and place it at a suspected entryway. Mice hate the scent of peppermint oil.
2/ Mint: Keep new mice from entering your residence by adding mint plants to the foundation of your house. Mint is known to repel mice in most cases.
3/ Bay Leaves: Sprinkle bay leaves in the kitchen, especially in the pantry.
4/ Mothballs; Onion; Ammonia: Some people have driven away their mouse by leaving small bowls filled with ammonia; also the smell of onions has helped some individuals solve their mouse problem. If you place mothballs around your garage, mice will look for other places to live.
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