They're small, but mice can transmit disease through their urine and feces and cause serious damage like chewed electrical wires that can start a fire, warns the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, or UKAG. You may only hear them gnawing, squeaking and scampering while you’re lying in bed, but that’s because mice are nocturnal creatures. If you were lucky enough to see one scurry under the dishwasher, start your eviction process there.
Mice don't forage far from their chosen refuge, so focus wherever you've spotted a mouse or their droppings. To a mouse, the area below the dishwasher -- or under any appliance or in almost any crevice -- is a refuge where tasty crumbs can accumulate. Bait a live- or snap-type trap with cheese, peanut butter, a piece of bacon or a raisin, and slide it under the dishwasher or place it near any area you suspect mice are nesting. If you have pets or young children in the home, ensure that they can’t reach the trap, or only put it out at night while youngsters are in bed and the dog or cat are outside or restricted to another area of the home. Check the trap each morning. Release a mouse from a live trap at least a couple of miles from your home. Place a dead mouse in a plastic bag, and put the bag in the trash. To avoid disease, wear gloves to handle a mouse carcass, recommends UKAG.
After you’ve evicted your furry, unwelcome guests, keep them from getting back inside. Seal gaps around vents, pipes, windows and doors. Fill cracks in the foundation or exterior walls. Even if a hole, crack or gap seems too small for a mouse to squeeze through, plug it with the appropriate material, such as wire wool, plaster or caulk -- a mouse can wriggle through an opening the diameter of a dime, explains UKAG.
A clean, crumb-free home is less alluring to future mice that happen to find their way in. Pull out appliances to clean underneath them. While you have them pulled out, unplug them and check all wiring for damage or fraying. Vacuum regularly, and clean inside cupboards and closets as needed. Use plastic containers to store foods, such as nuts, seeds and grains, to keep mice from contaminating them. If possible, don’t allow anyone to eat anywhere except in the kitchen to keep food particles restricted to a smaller area.
Rodenticides -- if they’re available in your area -- offer an alternative to standard live and snap traps. These typically anticoagulant products kill mice by causing internal bleeding, but not always before they hide themselves in hard-to-reach places like inside your walls. Another form of trap is the glue board. The sticky board entangles a mouse on its gluey surface, and the mouse soon suffocates. For obvious reasons, rodenticides and glue boards are less appropriate in homes with small children or pets. If a person’s skin or a pet’s fur comes in contact with a glue board, release it with vegetable or mineral oil, suggests UKAG. The smell of a decaying mouse carcass is putrid; check any trap often.
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