How To Get Rid Of Mice In The House

Getting rid of mice in the house is a challenge but there are easy ways to get rid of mice naturally without toxic pest control or gruesome traps.

And I have for you here simple tips on how to get rid of mice naturally using basic kitchen supplies you already have in your home.

I hope these tips help. Let me know how you get on & what works best.

Why Do I Have Mice In My House?

The two main reasons we end up with mice in our house are :

1. Absence of predators
2. Easily accessible food.

There are mice all around us but we are more likely to end up with them in our home or garden if we don't have any predators i.e. cats, dogs.

Unfortunately, if neighbours have predator pets and we don't, the mice are more likely to move in with us.

And that means a simple daily cleaning routine to make food sources as scarce as possible.

Daily Routine To Prevent Mice

This daily cleaning routine isn't foolproof for repelling mice but sticking to it does help :

1. Clear dishes right after meals
2. Don't leave food out
3. Wipe up kitchen surfaces
4. Religiously empty bins daily
5. Sweep kitchen floor daily
6. Store loose food e.g. flours, seeds, sugars in sealed containers
7. Store pet food in sealed containers
8. Use natural mouse repellent sprays (see below) around pet food bowls.

Natural Smells Mice Hate

Mice have a strong and sensitive sense of smell. It's what attracts them into our homes but is also a great way to repel them fast.

At first sight of a mouse - or mice!! - add a few teaspoons of any of these to a small pan of water :

1. Peppermint
2. Dried or fresh lavender
3. Cloves
4. Cinnamon
5. Lemon juice
6. Citronella
7. Eucalyptus.

Then heat water gently for 15-30 minutes so the kitchen smells fragrant to us but horrid to mice.

Let the water cool then strain liquid into a spray bottle for a natural homemade mouse repellent spray.

Alternatively, mix a quick DIY spray from lemon juice, vinegar and dish soap which you can also use to get rid of flies and clean showers!!

Onion, chilli and cayenne pepper will repel mice if you don't have the others but won't smell great!

Mouse Repellent Spray

Use your natural mouse repellent spray as an air freshener and hard surface spray around :

1. Key entrance points
2. Anywhere you've seen mice
3. Anywhere you've seen droppings
4. Food cupboards
5. Pantries.

Spray with your natural mouse repellent spray daily until mice are gone and then weekly.

Mouse Repellent Herbs

You can also hang dried herbs in pantries and cupboards throughout the house to repel mice.

Simply hang up :

• Bunches of dried lavender
• Little bags of dried mint or cloves.

These mouse repellent herbs will also help repel moths naturally.

Have A Cat To Visit

If you're the only neighbour without a cat, you may spend a lot of time keeping cats out of your garden!

But inviting a neighbour's cat into your home for a short visit for a daily for a week can repel rodents.

Best Mouse Traps

You can buy all sorts of different mouse traps including :

1. Jaw mouse traps
2. Spring loaded mouse traps
3. Electric mouse traps
4. Glue mouse traps
5. Live capture mouse traps.

Having tried various fancy traps I had the most success getting rid of mice with cheap multi-packs of live capture mouse traps.

The big secret to catching mice is I reckon is not the trap itself but the :

• Best Mouse Trap Baits
• Ideal Mouse Trap Locations.

Best Mouse Trap Baits

We've all grown up thinking that the best mouse trap bait is hard cheese.

But mice are often more attracted by any of these baits you have to hand :

1. Peanut butter
2. Hazelnut spread
3. Cereal
4. Butter
5. Bacon
6. Chocolate
7. Dried fruit
8. Seeds
9. Soft cheese
10. Marshmallows

However in my experience the very best mouse trap baits are whatever food attracted them in the first place. If you see them eating pet food or bread crumbs or jam then use that.

You can mix mouse trap bait with DIY poisons using kitchen supplies.

Non-Toxic Mouse Poisons

Mix salt or baking soda with a strong smelling mouse trap bait e.g. soft cheese, peanut butter or cocoa powder to create a mouse poison. You need to use at least a tablespoon of salt or baking soda.

If you've got a big ongoing problem with rodents you could make a batch of these quick mouse poison bars.

Non Toxic For Pets

Salt and baking soda are not toxic in small quantities for cats and dogs but larger amounts could cause problems so it can be better to use poison in live capture mouse traps.

The traps will allow you to get rid of the dead mice straight away without the smell of rotting mouse!

Smell Of Dead Mice

You also need to be cautious about rodent poisons in general as if not placed in a trap, the rodents will return to their nest - often under floorboards or behind walls - to die.

The smell of a dead mouse is bearable and will often only linger for 4 or 5 days with plenty of windows open. The smell of anything larger is truly foul and will take 2 weeks to clear which may mean taking up the floorboards.

Best Mouse Trap Locations

The best mouse trap locations are :

• Next to entrance points
• On escape routes.

Next To Entrance Points

Put a mouse trap at right angles to any definite or likely entrance points. As mice come out from a hole they will instinctively turn to run alongside the wall rather than run straight into the room and so will hopefully run straight into the trap.

On Escape Routes

Over the years I have had much more success catching mice when they are running back to escape.

Mice move out of entrance points very cautiously but when running back to escape they panic. I lay out a multi-pack of life capture mouse traps with the opening facing the way they run back behind the :

• Rubbish bin
• Curtains
• Storage boxes.

How Long Can It Take To Get Rid Of Mice In House

You can typically get rid of mice in the house in a few weeks but you have to be consistent and:

1. Stick to the daily cleaning routine.
2. Keep using smells they hate
3. Setting and resetting mouse traps.

If you see one mouse, you've almost certainly got mice so don't claim victory on trapping your first one.

How To Seal Entry Points To Keep Mice Out

Plenty of pest control firms will come and charge you a small fortune to "seal all the entry points".

In my experience it's not worth it.

And I'm not convinced it's even worth trying seal off entry points yourself with wire wool etc.

Mice can get in through ridiculously tiny entry points so will find a way in if they smell food. Clearing food away, emptying bins and smells they hate are more effective repellents.

Can You Ever Fully Get Rid Of Mice?

We can get rid of mice effectively with natural repellents and well placed traps but we have to assume that mice like all household pests will try and come back.

It is horrible when we have invasions of ants, flies, mice or even head lice but they are unfortunately part of life. It is better to focus on simple habits to keep them out and quick DIY tricks to get rid of them fast than to turn over the whole house in pointless efforts to expel them for ever.

I do hope the simple tips here help you do just that and get rid of mice in your house.

For more natural pest control tips read these posts :

• Get Rid Of Flies Naturally
• Get Rid Of Ants Naturally
• Get Rid Of Clothes Moths Fast
• Get Rid Of Cockroaches
• Natural Mosquito Repellents
• Natural Head Lice Remedies
• Get Rid Of Pinworms Naturally

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