5 humane critter catchers
As temps fall, you may notice tiny, tailed boarders taking up residence around the house. Here are five humane devices that send mice packin'.
Tue, Oct 06 2009 at 5:27 PM EST
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For those of us without vigilant kitties, fall and winter are the times when mice escape the cold by making themselves at home … in our homes. While hosting four-legged, tailed houseguests isn’t exactly dangerous, it's certainly annoying and quite unsettling: the poop, the chewed-up food packaging, the fact that you scream (or at least I do) every time one scurries across the floor. Too bad we can’t just round ‘em up and ship them off to a Boca Raton for rodents for the winter.
In my own apartment, mice sightings are mercifully scarce thanks to a colony of feral cats that live behind my building. Last winter, however, I did briefly host an unwelcome chocolate-loving lodger who eventually disappeared on his own (maybe my guttural shrieks scared him off?) but has left me wondering, what if he comes back?
Since I do kind of like the little guys (when not in my apartment) I’ve been thinking of easy, cruelty-free ways to trap and release any mice that may decide to move in over the coming months. However effective, sending them the way of a rodent guillotine of glue trap isn’t for everyone, particularly animal lovers and the easily grossed out. Here are a few ways to send ‘em packing that don’t rodent slaughter.
A bit pricey for a mousetrap, yes, but judging from the user reviews and the PETA seal of approval, this temporary holding cell for mice gets a cruelty-free gold star. Just put bait inside the "house" and when a mouse saunters in for a snack, the door snaps shut behind it. Can be cleaned and reused over and over again.
Although not as spacious as the above mousetrap, the Tip-Trap is cheap, effective, and cruelty-free. It uses a trapdoor-type of entryway to quarantine mice, shrews, and voles. Reusable.
Victor Tin Cat Mouse Trap @ Ace ($18.49)
The Tin Cat from Victor is ideal for folks dealing with roving mouse house parties since this super-sized, humane device can trap up to 30 vermin at once.
Victor PetChaser Sonic Rodent Repellent @ Home Depot ($15.99/2 pack)
Here's the thing with most trap-and-release mouse traps: you have to feed the critters and then handle them. If you're like me, you may not want to do either of those things. This is where the Victor PetChaser — the Yoko Ono of mouse control — comes in handy. It's a plug-in device that uses noise that's inaudible to humans but drives mice nutty, keeping them out of your home.
Want to incorporate recycling into your mouse catching? Attach a regular plastic bottle (even 2 liters will work!) to this clever mousetrap that looks like a giant piece of cheese. After a mouse wanders through the cheese "entranceway" and into the bottle, an access gate activates, trapping the critter in the bottle. To free the mouse, simple take the device outdoors and rotate it upside down to release it.
If unwavering in your "if a rodent enters my house, the punishment is death" stance, perhaps consider these respectful and stylish ways to send vermin visitors to the rodent afterlife.
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Comments
Silly Cow
07/15/2011 12:42 PM
Great products!!!
Angeline
04/20/2010 02:22 AM
Nice traps! I still consider some lethal traps humane, such as Victor's Multi-Kill, since it shocks mice and kills them instantly.
Mike Hare
10/11/2009 20:49 PM
I am sick to death of PETA. I am diabetic and would probably be dead if PETA was in full swing 50 years ago. The first insulin was beef and pork based and that is animal exploitation if you listen to PETA. Also, quite a lot of drug research relies on rats and other lab animals. Humanely killing disease carrying vermin is not cruelty, it is just common sense. And no, my diabetes was not obesity driven so skip the moral high horse on that issue.
deandome
10/09/2009 11:12 AM
But not us?
Pretty warped...cats cause mice MUCH more stress & 'terror' than a snap-trap, and they rarely EAT them, negating the "they do it for food" nonsense & creating a rotting corpse that can breed even worse icky-stuff.
Even live trapping causes more 'emotional pain' on mice than guillotine traps...and you have to do it to the same ones over & over again, because...being HOUSE mice...they come back to you....THEIR, homes to be trapped again.
Mike
Today 17:56 PM
" However effective, sending them the way of a rodent guillotine of glue trap isn’t for everyone, particularly animal lovers and the easily grossed out."
But I love that part! It's so satisfying, especially seeing the shocked look in those little monsters' face. This would be excellent for catching pet rodents, though, I remember the ridiculous effort it took me to track down and catch my sister's hamster.
Lucy
Today 17:09 PM
My office in DC caught 2 rats humanely and released them in the woods.
mamakate
Today 16:55 PM
live with them - especially in older buildings.
Mickey
Today 14:26 PM
Boca Raton = Rat Mouth. & Yoko Ono, right, send your critters out 'walking on thin ice'. ya got me laughing on those two. Seriously now, mice can carry hantavirus which is no laughing matter, it's lethal and found from Arizona to Pennsylvania. So get my little buddies out of your house any way you can, seal up foundations & walls to keep em from getting back in. That's what I did & no mice for 12 years, well except for Minnie...
jhill
Today 14:07 PM
Enter your comments here Obviously the writer has never coped with a serious infestation. We couldn't live-trap fast enough, and when we reluctantly shifted to death-trapping we killed 36 mice in a week. In those numbers, they are really, really disgusting and it was definitely a case of them or us.
Jean Richardson
Today 11:15 AM
So you release the little mice into the outdoor environment and you think that is humane? It is not only not humane, it is actual cruelty! Why do you think the common name is HOUSE MOUSE? These creatures have evolved to live in close cntact with humans. The great outdoors is not thier home and they are not safe or comfortable there. They are plopped down with no territory or shelter and little defense from predators such as cats, raccons, and hawks. If they are lucky, they will make it.... More
Barbara
Today 11:11 AM
Thanks, Matt! We've got a "tin cat" with a transparent lid, so you can see if there's anybody in. We do need guidance on where to release them (is a mile away enough? field mice versus house mice?). I've heard a rumor that the sonic things don't work, and would love to hear more info about them. Also, at least here in the Southwest, some mice could possibly carry some zoonotic diseases, so there's a good reason to encourage them not to settle in. Thanks!
Robin May
Today 11:00 AM
Where do you release them? Seems like if you release them in your yard they'll just come back in your house. I guess you could put them in the neighbor's yard :-)
Judy Shid
10/09/2009 07:32 AM
Mice are well known for their ability to find their way home! You need to take them quite far away, otherwise they will also tell their friends about the accomodations.
Grey Garvin
Today 10:27 AM
why do the mice get the best stuff?
You Know Who
11/11/2011 05:51 AM
GREY GARVIN FUNNY THING BOUT THEY GET GOOD ACCOOMAADTAIONS BUT TINK ABOUT IT THEY GET KIKD OUT AND THEY COME BACK IF U LIKED THEM AND KIKD EM OUT THEYD COME BACK AND U KEEP PET FOR FREE MAN WHY NOT RELEASE EM LIKE ANOTHER POST SAID THEY COUDNT SERVIVE IN THE WILD THATS WHY THERE CALLLED HOUSE MICE
