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How to catch a mouse without a mousetrap in a house or apartment

This WordPress post provides an insight into the various methods of capturing a mouse without the need for a mousetrap. It outlines the importance of good hygiene, food storage, and sanitation measures such as sealing entrance holes to prevent the entry of mice in the first place. Some distinctive methods include setting up DIY glue traps, using a wire strainer to corner and catch mice, and using humane live traps. You’ll also be misguided with additional knowledge on how to identify entry points, the signs of a mouse invasion, and even how to remove a dead mouse. This post provides an easy to follow guide on safely and humanely catching a mouse in your house or apartment.

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A harmless and fragile rodent brings a lot of trouble. House mice and rats feed on food supplies, spoil them, gnaw wallpapers, furniture, books, and suffer a variety of diseases. Due to the size, they can climb through the gap, which does not exceed seven millimeters. Catching mice at home requires the use of a mousetrap.

What are the traps for mice

Conventionally, all devices are divided into several categories of mousetraps:

  • traditional – standard traps with a spring mechanism;
  • cells – also called live-traps – differ in the way they catch, in which the animal is not killed;
  • electrical – fully automated modern mechanisms that operate on mains or on battery;
  • glue – the pest sticks to the trap, cannot escape;
  • home-made – devices for catching mice, made from improvised means.

Mousetrap clothespin

Clothespin mousetrap

The principle of operation is simple. The bait is placed in the center of the device, the device is “refueled” and placed next to the hole. This class includes modifications of standard mousetraps with spring systems. Their advantages:

  • Plastic products do not rot and do not rust, which increases the service life;
  • due to the shape of the trap are safe for children and pets;
  • the plate on top of the body hides the caught animal;
  • simplicity in operation – installation takes place in seconds at any desired location.

Disadvantages:

  1. The difficulty of cleansing.
  2. Need to “start” the design after the capture of one pest.
  3. To catch a large number of animals, you need several traps or one that can catch several individuals.

Mouse trap

Mousetrap cheese

This is the name of an ordinary trap with a spring lever. The principle of operation is the same as that of clothespins. In the center, on a special stand, a treat is placed and a mechanism is started. The trap must be installed against the wall so that the mouse does not pick up the bait from the other side. If the house has small children or pets, place the trap in a place inaccessible to them.

Benefits:

  • low price – does not exceed 300 rubles;
  • simple and clear working principle;
  • suitable for installation in a garage, in the attic.

Disadvantages:

  • in a humid room, the base of the wood rots and the metal rusts, because of this the life of the trap is reduced, the installation works from two to five years;
  • children and pets can get injured while studying the mechanism;
  • a very smart rat can get the bait from the other side;
  • it’s not easy to fill the structure – you need to apply force.

Noose

Mouse catch

The mechanical device has the form of a bar with tunnels, it has a metal ring (loop) and thread. A piece of food is placed at the bottom of the tunnel. In the center is a thread that drives the loop. The mouse, making his way to the feed, gnaws the thread fixing the stranglehold, and dies of suffocation by a noose. A block can have one or several tunnels.

To install the circuit, thread the thread into the hole of the thread. To simplify the work, use a long needle. The stranglehold is bent and fixed with a knot. The system is suitable for catching several individuals at a time. There is no need to constantly inspect the device. Enough 1-2 checks per day, so as not to leave the corpses of pests that decompose over time and smell bad.

Benefits:

  1. Suitable for installation anywhere (garage, office, apartment, private house, basement).
  2. Within a few days, significantly reduces the rodent population.
  3. Safe for children and pets.
  4. Affordable price – 200–250 rubles.

Automatic

Electric trap

Electric traps look like a rectangular container. It made several small stairs to get inside the trap. The electrical device is suitable for mass capture, installed in places where rodents are most often seen. To attract the attention of pests, in the middle put a treat.

The system works automatically – as soon as the “stranger” touches the bottom of the container, an electric discharge will destroy it.

Benefits:

  1. The device is safe for children and animals. If children or pets notice the device, they certainly will not touch the mechanism with their hand, paw or nose – the hole is small. When the cover is open, the circuit is de-energized.
  2. The device is designed to capture several individuals at the same time..

Disadvantages:

  1. High price. The minimum cost is 3 thousand rubles.
  2. Before installing, an auto trap needs to be assembled and set up – this can take up to an hour.
  3. Battery powered devices must be charged before use..
  4. Mains powered products do not need to be charged, but are only installed near a power outlet..

Glue devices

Glue bait

There are finished products that, after purchase, you can simply unpack and place, putting goodies on the substrate. The sticky base tightly fixes a live mouse. Glue for catching mice can be purchased in tubes separately from the installation – the price of the consumable is slightly lower.

As a platform use cardboard, plastic or plywood. The size of the substrate is at least 8×8 centimeters. The scheme is ideal for placement in a garage.

Instruction:

  1. When placing Velcro, updating the adhesive layer, be careful not to soil yourself or the floor. Hard-to-wash product – you need gloves and clothes that you don’t mind stain.
  2. Apply glue to the substrate in thin strips, leaving a distance of 1 centimeter.

Benefits:

  1. Easy operation.
  2. Cost – from 200 to 600 rubles.
  3. Reusable by purchasing tubes.

Disadvantages:

  1. Ready-made adhesive base for single use.
  2. Velcro is not suitable for placement in rooms where there are children.
  3. For installation you will need special clothes and gloves.

House trap

Plastic house trap

To catch the pest, they use a trap-house – in the form of a bent pipe with doors. The design provides a mechanism for raising and lowering the doors. The bait is placed on the side of the rear door, and the front is fixed by the mechanism in the raised state.

As soon as the animal falls in the middle, the system works and the animal cannot get out.

Benefits:

  1. A simple and effective method for catching.
  2. Safe for households.
  3. Does not kill the animal.
  4. Easy installation.
  5. Reusable application.

Disadvantages:

  1. Requires regular inspection for the presence of a rodent (4-5 times a day).
  2. Capturing only one individual.

Zhovolovki

Cage with bait

The design of the mechanical apparatus is simple: a trigger, a lid and a box. There are different models in the market, but the principle of operation is the same. A hook is placed inside the container. The bait – “safety lock” fastens on it. The animal, grabbing the goodies, starts the mechanism, the lid closes, preventing the box from leaving.

Benefits:

  1. A humane way to get rid of rodents.
  2. Safety for children and pets.
  3. Simple construction.
  4. Cost – from 100 to 1000 rubles, depending on the appearance.

Disadvantages:

  1. Direct contact with a rodent.
  2. It is necessary to decide where to put the caught animal.

How to make a mousetrap at home

If mice appear in the house, instead of a rat trap, home-made designs are suitable for catching. Methods do not require special costs, safe for households, effective in work. Catching a mouse in an apartment without a mousetrap is easy. You will need:

  • buckets;
  • boxes;
  • bottles;
  • cans.

Plastic bottle for catch

Plastic bottle device

To catch a mouse in a bottle, no special knowledge or tools are needed. The device from the bottle eliminates contact with the caught animal. The simplest option is a gravitational mouse trap from a plastic bottle. Only a bottle and a strong thread will be required.

Step-by-step instruction:

  1. Cut the neck.
  2. Make a hole for the rope, thread it and secure the other end on any weighty object.
  3. Place the product inside and place the bottle on the table so that the portion with food hangs over the table.
  4. If a mouse appears inside, under the weight the bottle capsizes and hangs on a rope.

From a glass jar

An ordinary glass jar is placed on the edge of the coin, creating a gap. A piece of bread or another product is placed inside. As soon as the mouse creeps in, the coin drops, closing the exit. To avoid direct contact with the rodent, it is better to place the system on cardboard or plywood.

Glass jar fixture

From a bucket and ruler

The trap is simple. Set up a bucket of water. Using double-sided tape or another method, fix the ruler. At the free end is a slice of bread or lard. Upon reaching the feed, the rodent will fall under its weight and drown in water.

If you do not want to kill the animal, it is not necessary to draw water – use an empty high bucket of 5-10 liters.

Bucket and Ruler

From a flower pot

If there is an old flower pot, use it as a rat trap. The scheme is primitive, but effective. They install pots on the same principle as cans, but the coin will not work – it is better to take a small sliver of wood. The optimum gap between the floor and the flowerpot to catch the mouse is up to 8 mm. For convenience, it is better to put a trap on a piece of plywood or cardboard. So you can quickly get rid of the animal.

The best bait for mice

When wondering how to catch a mouse, you need to decide on the bait. To attract the attention of a rodent, a delicacy is selected. This is not cheese, as is commonly believed. Although it spreads a strong odor, rodents eat it only in cases of severe hunger. If this happened, the mouse will not crawl into the cage after the cheese, but will manage with the available options – paper, soap, wooden thresholds.

In nature, mice eat plant foods, and cereals are considered especially tasty. Rats feed on eggs and meat..

If you want to lure a rat, use a small piece of meat or egg, put grain for mice.

If you don’t know exactly who wound up in your house, it is better to put a slice of bread, nuts, dried apples.

A universal tool for catching is fat, but not every product is suitable. It is important to put a fresh and soft bait. So that the lard has a pronounced aroma, warm it over an open fire. If this is not the case, take a slice of bread soaked in butter (it attracts sesame seeds well, but sunflower seeds will do).

Liver products used as bait:

  • an Apple;
  • pear;
  • plum;
  • peach;
  • nuts
  • corn;
  • buckwheat or rice groats;
  • sunflower seeds.

Important! When using an adhesive trap for mice at home, additional lure products are not needed. The product is already saturated with flavors that attract pests. For another type – trap – seeds, flour or wheat grains are suitable.

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Comments: 2
  1. Marlowe

    Are there any effective alternative methods for catching a mouse in a house or apartment besides using a traditional mousetrap?

    Reply
  2. Lincoln Bennett

    How can I effectively catch a mouse without using a mousetrap in my house or apartment? I’m looking for alternative methods that are safe, humane, and won’t cause any harm. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

    Reply
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