It can often come as an unpleasant shock to discover that mice have taken up residence in your home or place of work and made themselves the most unwelcome of guests. Whether it is a single or a whole family of mouse, you will want to get rid of them before they can damage the property or spread a virus or other disease.
Thankfully there are many products available that will allow you to eradicate your mouse problem, with the only issue being trying to decide which one is right for you. To help you, we have reviewed several products, so read on to get all the facts.
Killing Mice with Poison
One of the most common ways of killing unwelcome mice or rats is the use of poison. Different types of mice poison are designed for effectiveness in different locations. Some of the products are designed to be safe to use in household applications where children’s and pets’ safety is of critical importance. Other products are designed for use in agricultural applications or other large-scale infestations where a broader application is needed.
Poisons for Household Application
If you need to kill mice in an accessible area to children and pets, you have two options when it comes to poison. The first option is to use a highly toxic poison that is locked away in a Tier One Bait Station. The second option is to use a lethal product to mice but harmless to pets and kids. There are other few options on how to make rat poison.
Tomcat Mouse Killer Bait Station
The Tomcat Tier One Bait Station contains a highly toxic mouse poison that is accessible to mice through a small entry hole. The “Tier One” designation means that the plastic housing can’t be opened by children and can’t be chewed through by dogs. These bait stations are also weatherproof and can be used in your yard if needed.
If you are dealing with a small number of mice, then a disposable bait station is the right choice, while if you are dealing with a large infestation, then you will want the refillable option.
You should wear gloves when setting up the bait station to protect you from handling the poison and keep your scent off the baits.
Each bait costs about a dollar making the Tomcat Mouse Killer an effective and low-cost way of dealing with mice, and it is certainly less costly than buying and feeding a real tomcat, albeit not as cuddly.
MouseX Mouse Killer Pellets
Your second option for using poisons around pets and children is a product called MouseX Mouse Killer Pellets.
Strictly speaking, MouseX isn’t really a poison and is completely non-toxic to pets and children. Mouse X is made of compressed corn cobs that have been sweetened with various flavorings. This product takes advantage of the unique digestive system of mice and rats.
The product actually swells and expands when it reaches the mouse’s stomach and prevents water from being absorbed by the rest of its body. The mouse eventually dies from dehydration, not from the poisonous effects of toxic chemicals.
Here is a video from the manufacturer that highlights the benefits of this product. They talk about the “RatX” product, but it is exactly the same as “MouseX.”
There are mixed reviews on how effective this product works, but it is absolutely worth trying if you are concerned about safety in a household application.
Poisons for Non-Household Applications
These poisons are lethal towards mice, rodents, and all other mammals. These products should NOT be used in areas that are accessible to pets or children. Care should be taken to note the placement of these baits so they can be removed from service once the infestation is dealt with.
Old Cobblers Farm Just One Bite
Old Cobblers Farm Just One Bite rat poison is an open bait that is designed for use around agricultural buildings. This bait should not be used in areas accessible by pets or children.
The bait is formulated to be lethal on Norway and Roof rats, so it is plenty strong enough to deliver a lethal dosage to a mouse after a single feeding. Once the dosage has been consumed, rodents should die within one to two days.
Old Cobblers come in the form of bait bars, and each packet contains two bars. Each bar can be broken down into smaller portions. Normally you should be able to get eight portions from each bar. To set the bait, place each piece up to 12 feet apart. For larger infestations, several pieces can be used at each placement.
Insects are often attracted to rodent bait, so the product is laced with an insect repellent called methoprene to prevent them from infesting it.
JT Eaton Rodenticide for Mice and Rats
If you are dealing with a large-scale mouse infestation, you will need a lot of baits. This JT Eaton product is a bucket of 144 peanut butter flavored bait blocks that can be used as replacement poisons in Tier One bait stations or openly cast in attics or other locations not accessible to kids and pets.
The active ingredient of this rodenticide is Diphacinone, which kills rodents by preventing blood clotting and which then leads to internal bleeding. Once a mouse or rat has eaten the bait, they should die within one to two days.
Killing Mice with Traps
The world has been trying to build a better mousetrap for thousands of years, and it is interesting to see some of the more recent clever inventions.
While traditional wood snap traps have a long record of effectiveness, they do have some serious drawbacks. Some limitations of conventional mouse traps include:
- Hard to Set
- Have to Touch the Dead Mouse
- Only Kills One Mouse per Night
Let’s look at some options that are better than wood snap traps.
Easy Set Mouse Traps
Here are three traps that effectively kill mice while being easy to set and do NOT require you to touch the mouse after it has been killed.
Ankace Rat/Mice Trap
The Ankace Rat/Mice Trap is a spring-loaded trap that comes as a pack of six. It is best to set them all out at once to maximize your chances of catching a bunch of mice at once before they figure out the traps.
These are easily set traps, as all you have to do is place some bait or food in the bait cup and then press the lever at the back of the trap. This negates any chance of your fingers being injured while setting up the trap. You then place the trap in those areas where there has been evidence of mice or rats showing up.
Whenever the trap is set off, the kill is instant thanks to a very powerful spring and specially designed serrated teeth. Another benefit is when removing the rodent, you do not even have to handle it, which is great for hygiene purposes. You simply open the trap and empty the dead rodent into your trash can.
Unlike many traps, which are one-time use only, the materials used and their durability mean the Ankace traps are reusable. Given this and the fact that each trap works out to be less than $3 each, this is a great value for money to eliminate a rodent problem.
Snap-E Mouse Trap
Even without seeing it or reading its description, the name ‘Snap -E’ gives you a big clue as to what sort of mouse trap Snap-E Mouse Trap is.
The traditional mouse trap design with a very strong spring is activated whenever a mouse tries to grab the bait that has been placed on the activator. The design means that it is also activated from all angles and that the kill is instantaneous. Removing the dead rodent does not involve having to touch it, which should allay any concerns you may have about how hygienic this trap is.
Snap-E mousetrap is not made from wood, which normally means a trap can only be used once. It is made instead of durable polystyrene, which makes it more hygienic and better value for the money.
On the subject of money, rather than just getting one mousetrap when you buy this product, you get six of them. This means they can be set up at various locations around your home or office. The low price is also good news if you need to deal with a large infestation and need to purchase a significant number of traps.
Victor Electronic Mouse Killer
The Victor electronic mouse trap works by electrocuting the mouse with a quick but powerful electric shock.
The trap can be baited on the inside with peanut butter or other attractant and has some air vents to help the mouse smell the bait.
Once the rodent enters the trap, its feet make contact with two metal plates, and a voltage of 8000v is instantly applied. This quick, high-intensity zap instantly kills the mouse with no pain to the animal (humane rat traps).
Once the mouse has been killed, you can empty the dead mouse or rat into the trash can by simply tipping up the device. This means your health is not to be put at risk, as there is no need for you to touch the dead rodent. The trap is reusable with an advertised kill rate of 100 mice per set of four AAA batteries.
As there are no poisons or toxins involved, the Electronic Mouse Trap can be used around the home, your garage, outhouses, sheds, offices, and industrial premises such as workshops and factories, as long as there is a power supply available.
Here is a look at how this trap electrocutes mice.
This trap is very similar in design to a Rat Zapper but has been miniaturized to be more effective on the smaller body of a mouse.
High Capacity Mouse Traps
While the three traps listed above are great for killing mice, they still have one of the original limitations of a standard wood snap trap; they can only kill one mouse per night.
If you want to kill as many mice as possible as fast as possible, then you will need to invest in a bucket trap. There are two styles of bucket traps listed below, and either of them can easily kill 20 mice per night if you properly secure the bait.
Walk The Plank Mouse Trap
This is certainly an alternative solution to a mouse problem, which works on the assumption that mice will be more guarded about going anywhere near a traditional trap.
Walk the Plank Mouse Trap is set up using a bucket filled with a few gallons of water, onto which you place a plank on opposite sides of the rim. There is a hinged plastic see-saw at the top of each plank, where you place food as bait for the mouse.
As a mouse becomes attracted by the food, it will walk up the plank and onto the see-saw in an attempt to grab itself a tasty meal. Unfortunately for the mouse, when it does so, the see-saw will tip, and the mouse will fall into the water and drown.
Although it sounds like a macabre circus act, it is actually a very effective method of getting rid of mice, especially as with each ‘plunge’, the see-saw resets itself. If the bait is adequately secured to the plank, then you can catch tons of mice in a single night.
This trap is suitable for locations such as the home, office, garage, barn, or warehouse. It is also very competitively priced, so if you buy multiple traps, they can be used in several locations around any property.
StarRoad High-speed Rolling Mouse Trap
StarRoad High-speed Rolling Mouse Trap is another mousetrap that works on the principle of the mouse falling into a bucket of water and drowning, but instead of them walking the plank, this time, they are going to go for a spin!
The set-up begins by placing bait on flat pieces of wood or plastic and leaning them against a bucket’s edge on opposite sides. The sort of bait can be anything from bits of biscuit, peanut butter, cheese, or even nuts.
Once the mouse decides they fancy having themselves a free lunch, they climb up, and then when they get there, they also see a piece of bait on the roller. The roller has spring-loaded pins on each end, which are placed on the inside of the bucket to keep the roller in place.
The mouse will start to make its way across the roller, but as it does so, its weight will cause the roller to spin round, and with that, the mouse falls off and into the water below.
Again, it is a very easy solution to set up and one that does not require the use of poisons. It is also priced low enough that you can use several of them around your house or workplace.
One Mouse Killer to Never Use
Glue Traps
Our final product is different from all the rest as although it is a trap, it does not work mechanically, nor does it kill the rodent instantly.
It works on the principle of having a very sticky adhesive that is spread across a rectangular piece of card. The adhesive is scented so that mice and rats are attracted to it.
Once they step on the card in the hope of finding the source of the smell, their paws and fur get stuck, and they are unable to escape.
While it seems effective, there are some negatives to using this method. The first is if you have any pets, they may inadvertently step on the glue trap, and you then have the very difficult task of unsticking it from their paws or fur, which can be very painful for them. Small children are also at risk of getting their hands or legs stuck too as they crawl about.
The next issue is whether or not you consider it humane to deal with a rodent in this way. As we said, they are not killed instantly, and even though they are vermin, they should not have to suffer a prolonged and painful death.
Summary
As you can see, there is a great range of options available to you if you must deal with an infestation of mice.
The poison options are very effective, albeit they do have to be used with a great deal of care and caution, not only as you handle them and set them up, but also after they have been placed in position. This is especially true if you are using them at home and have children or pets.
Traps using buckets containing water may seem quirky, but they do work, and a big plus is although they require bait, no poisons are needed.
If you have pets or children, it may be safest to consider the options where the mouse is trapped or electrocuted, simply because there is no need for any poisons or chemicals, nor does the possibility of a bucket of water being knocked over exist.
The other advantage of these fast-acting rodent traps is that the rodent is killed instantly, which is surely the most humane way of dealing with mice.
If you have a serious rat infestation in your place, consult now with an expert rodent control company near you!
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