Mice Removal and Information

Mice may not look particularly scary animals, you may even find them quite cute, but in actual fact Mice are one of the most intrusive pests a home can bear witness to. There are a variety of species of Mouse but the common Mouse you find in your homes is known as the ‘House Mouse’. These are extremely destructive to property and they also carry the risk of diseases.

House Mice are small creatures with a slightly pointed nose and they weigh just less than 1 ounce. They are usually a greyish brown colour, with small beady, black eyes which protrude from the side of their head. Their ears are quite large and their tails are lengthy and bald with scale rings all the way along it.

Mice breed at quite a fast pace and female mice can produce as many as 10 litters per year, with each litter containing 5 or 6 baby mice. The baby mice mature very quickly and are ready to reproduce themselves after only 6 to 10 weeks.

Newborn mice are hairless and have their eyes and ears closed for the first two weeks of their existence. Most mice are nocturnal so you don’t tend to see them very often through the day.

House mice can be found in and around residential properties, businesses and farms. Their favourite foods are seeds and grains, so they are most at home on farms, but they are quite adaptable and will eat pretty much anything if they are hungry and are particularly partial to high fat foods such as bacon, butter and sweets or cakes.

House mice can survive without water because they get all they need from their food. The house mouse is considered to be the most common mammal in cities after humans.

Mice make nests for themselves out of loosely woven materials such as shredded paper and card, cloth or wood shavings and are about 6 inches wide. These nests are usually hidden in the ground or in a safe and secluded area where they are unlikely to be damaged. One of the biggest problems with mice is that they often choose to build their nests within large electrical appliances, where they then go on to chew away at the wiring and insulation, which can cause short circuits or fire hazards.

Unfortunately Mice can cause a lot of damage within a home, mostly due to the fact that they spend most of their days nibbling and gnawing on things before discarding them. They also cause further damage and risk of disease by urinating or leaving hair and droppings in their midst; on or around foodstuffs, pet food, items stored away in boxes, clothing and bedding.

Mice are also carriers of many diseases which can be passed on to humans including Salmonella Food Poisoning, Rickettsialpox, Weil's disease, Ratbite fever, tapeworms, and organisms that can cause ringworm and Benign Lymphocytic Meningitis.

If you are concerned you may be infested with mice, you can usually tell quite quickly from the presence of mice droppings which are black, rice-shaped and 3-6mm long. You might see their tiny little footprints in damp soil or dust and you will no doubt hear them scurrying about in the night as they busily search for food. You can also identify their presence by the discovery of gnawed clothing, boxes, foodstuffs or personal effects.

If you do discover an infestation of mice it is vital that you try to eradicate them as quickly as possible, to prevent the spread of disease and any damage to pipe cables which could become a fire hazard.

The traditional way to get rid of mice was by using traps with a chunk of cheese to entice the mouse and snap shut on its back, killing it painfully. There are now more humane mousetraps available and a number of other options available to you for getting rid of mice from your home. Traps should be set near to walls and baited with chocolate, biscuits or cereal. Traps should be handled carefully and dead mice should be disposed of immediately.

Mouse Mesh Grills can be placed over air bricks around the home to stop Mice from squeezing through the holes.

An alternative method to getting rid of mice is to use mouse poison, which can be purchased from the Intrnet, a local hardware store or garden centre.

To pevent future infestations of mice you should try not to build up piles of waste and rubbish around your garden, which can be a very attractive prospective home.

Although there are do-it-yourself methods for getting rid of mice, as with most pests, it is always a safer and better option to call in the professionals. Pest Control experts know the best and most efficient ways to get rid of mice and discourage them from returning.