Mice are only cute when they’re animated, wearing a chef’s jacket, and ruling the culinary world – otherwise, they can be a significant problem. They can wreak havoc on your clothes, shoes, and other household items, plus their mere presence in your home can cause diseases. Rat urine causes leptospirosis, a rare, fatal bacterial infection that affects both humans and animals, which occurs when an open wound or a break in the skin comes in contact with water or soil where the rat urine is present. Rat feces can spread bacteria, contaminate food, and trigger allergic reactions. When it dries, it can be hazardous to those who breathe it in. Some of the diseases you can get from rats and rodents include hantavirus, lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus, plague, salmonella, rat-bite fever, and tularemia, to name a few.
Setting an effective bait and choosing a mousetrap is essential in keeping your home free from mice and rodents. Here are some tips:
•Bait them with scents they can’t resist
Mice have an extra sensitive sense of smell, and they possess the unique ability to detect scents of an object nearby, as well as to detect changes in the air through the smell. This is why they’re very good at hiding whenever there’s movement around them, and find food sources even in the most unassuming places. There certain scents that they are attracted to, including the smell of cheese, high-protein foods, and peanut butter, as well as jams, syrups, and anything sweet. You can use a chunk or dab of these foods as bait.
•Consider an electric trap
Electric traps have been very popular in recent years because unlike simple traps, it utilizes advanced technology to get rid of mice. Typical models currently on the market resemble small houses with one end sealed. The bait you use for this type of trap is crucial – it must be strong and attractive so that the mouse will get lured in. Cheeses with a very strong smell, such a bleu cheese, is a good option. You can also use candies that smell particularly sweet, such as chocolate or marshmallows. Deli items, such as cold cuts or bacon, are also a excellent bait.
• Use a live mousetrap
A live mouse trap is a tried-and-tested way to catch mice without killing them instantly, which is decidedly more humane. It uses a trap with steel bars and torsion springs, and board often made of wood – the bars close in on the mice, and the springs snap to trap them on the board. The gaps between the steel bars are quite wide, so you can choose a bait that’s a little large so that it does not fall to the floor. There are many live mouse traps available in the market, but you can also choose a DIY approach – you can get the board and steel bars from the hardware, and you can get customized torsion springs in Ohio.
Once you have caught the mouse, you have the option to throw it out of your home simply. Catching mice can be difficult, but with these tips, it can surely be done.
