Mice and Children – How to Safely Exterminate Mice

Get Rid of Mice, Rodents, ,

safely exterminate mice-mouse exterminator green bay and appleton wisconsin erdyes pest controlIt comes as no surprise that this time of year mice are looking to come indoors. It’s getting cold and they would like a warm place to rest. However, how safe is it to have a mouse infestation and children in your home together? And next, how do you safely exterminate mice without harming your children or small pets? Let’s start with some basic facts about mice.

Mice can reproduce quickly. You’ve heard it said, “if you see one mouse, you know there are many more.” It’s true, female mice can give birth as early as two months old and are able to have babies at a pace of every 3 weeks. Each female mouse can give birth to typically a dozen babies each time. That’s a whole lot of mice in one year if not properly taken care of.

Mice can carry as many as 200 human pathogens (bacteria, virus, or other microorganism that can cause disease). Pathogens are spread through touching a mouse that is infected or by breathing in the fumes  from mice urine. Even the smallest amount of mouse urine can trigger allergic reactions. Diseases from mice are also spread through bite wounds and from water or food contaminated by mice waste products and even through bites from fleas and ticks.

It’s easy to see by just these simple facts that mice and children do not mix. So how do we safely exterminate mice and keep our children safe? First off, mouse poison should not be used in your home where there are children and small pets. Poison allows the infected mouse to die in your home. Not only does a dying animal start to smell but mold will also start to grow. This will cause a host of other issues for you. What we do suggest is first find out where the mice are entering into your home. Mice are able to get into a space as small as a dime so be sure to seal all cracks and crevices around your home. Once the areas are sealed it’s time to start exterminating the mice.

We have found that the most effective way to kill the mice that are in your home is by using simple snap traps. Look for common mouse trails in your home (along walls) or where droppings are found to strategically set your snap traps. Once you start to trap the mice, be sure to discard of the mice properly. After the mice have been trapped and exterminated, be sure to cleanup and disinfect your home.

Erdyes Mouse Bait StationThe next thing we suggest is to prevent mouse entry back into your home with bait stations outside. Our bait stations are maintenance free and provide protection year round. Pets and children are not able to get into the bait stations making them safe for your family. Learn more about these bait stations here.

If you are concerned with a mouse infestation and would like to safely exterminate mice, give us a call at 920.455.0373. We are able to inspect your home for FREE, confirm the species of mouse and recommend a course of rodent control treatment to keep your children and pets safe.

Best Way to Kill Mice and Keep Them Out

Get Rid of Mice, Rodents, , , , ,

Remove mice from your homeSo, you can tell you have mice in your home. Whether you’ve heard the scratching or gnawing in the ceiling or in the walls or simply see the mice or droppings, it’s time to get rid of them. Today, we’ll look at the best way to kill mice in your home.

Traps

There are pretty much four basic types of traps; mechanical snap traps, multiple catch traps, glue traps, and electronic traps. We find the mechanical snap traps are the most reliable and best way to kill mice in your home. Why? It’s economical and quick. They are easy to set up and most (especially the wooden Victor snap trap) can be used repeatedly. We don’t typically recommend poison for several reasons. First, once the mouse eats the poison, it doesn’t usually leave your home. That means it’s still in your home. Second, the dead mouse in your house causes more issues from decomposing. A decomposing mouse smells bad and can attract other insects. This also creates a mold problem which in turn causes unhealthy air quality for you and your family. And lastly, we do not recommend poison if there are small children or pets in the home that could possibly get into the poison.

Glue Traps or Sticky Traps

We do not recommend glue traps. Glue traps or sticky traps have a sticky surface with an attractant for the mice or other rodents. As they run across the glue/sticky trap, the mice get stuck in the glue. The mice typically do not die right away. They die from starvation or dehydration over a period of several days. This is a very inhumane way to kill mice and even though we do not want mice in our homes, we do not recommend glue/sticky traps as the best way to kill mice.

Baiting Stations

Bait stations are sealed components with poison placed inside the station. These bait stations are placed outside in strategic locations around your home. These stations are safe as the poison cannot be accessed by pets or small children. These baiting stations allow rodents to enter the station through small holes, eat the poison, and then leave the station. Our bait stations are maintenance free and offer protection year round. This is one of the best ways to kill mice or rodents around the exterior of your home (not inside, remember; Do not kill anything in your home you cannot get out of your home) which will prevent them from getting into your home.

But, before you start killing those mice, take a look to see how they are entering your home. If you do not seal up your home properly, the mice will continue to enter your home. This continues the cycle of having to kill the mice. For more prevention and sealing of your home techniques, please see our blog post on “Common Places Mice Get Into Your Home.”

The Best Way to Kill Mice

1) Seal Your Home to prevent Mice from Entering
2) Set Mechanical Snap Traps
3) Place Bait Stations Around the Outside of Your Home

If you have a rodent infestation, but can’t get rid of mice, call Erdye’s for a FREE inspection of your basement, attic or crawlspace – we’ll track down your unwanted guests and come up with a safe, reliable plan to get rid of them.

Getting Rid of Mice

Getting Rid of Mice the Fastest Way Possible

Get Rid of Mice, Rodents, ,

What’s the first thing most homeowners think when they spot a mouse? “Ewww!” OK, what’s the second thing they think? “What is the fastest way to get rid of mice?”

This is certainly understandable. After all, the longer those mice hang around the more likely it is that they’ll quickly multiply, spread disease and wreak general havoc. With those potential developments in mind, it’s no wonder getting rid of mice – and fast – is such a priority.

Unfortunately, there’s no overnight solution for getting rid of mice. The process isn’t particularly complicated, but it does require the time and effort to go through the following steps:
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