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House Mice Control Video

I recently gave a presentation on house mice control that was recorded as a narrated PowerPoint video. This House Mice Control Video was created to help property owners and professionals improve their management of house mice in structures. Stephen M. Vantassel is the Vertebrate Pest Specialist for the Montana Department of Agriculture. His presentation was given as part of his role in that job. Stephen is responsible for providing training on vertebrate pest control topics to pest control operators, wildlife control operators, home owners and producers.

This House Mice Control Video details key elements of house mice biology, damage they cause, diseases mice help to spread as well as specific recommendations and tactics to control house mice like a professional pest control operator. Stephen explains that too many property owners do not take house mice seriously enough. He shows the damage that mice can do to structures, in particular building insulation, as well as to vehicles.

The House Mice Control Video runs for a about 1 hour.

 

 

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Mistakes with Mouse Control

Ask someone about trapping mice and they will tell you about their experiences trapping the vermin. Mice are so common that everyone has likely encountered them. The problem with this sort of familiarity is that people overlook how easy it is to make mistake with mouse control. This blog posts lists the common mistakes with mouse control. I do this in the hopes that you won’t make these mistakes yourself.

Mistakes with Mouse Control

The following mistakes are not in any particular order. All of them are important. Have a look and see how many you have made.

Gap in a garage door that can allow mice to enter.
Inspecting properly is the difference between seeing sign of rodent presence and missing it.
  • Failure to confirm the problem is mice. Mice often make their presence known by scratching sounds on the ceiling or in the walls. Pets spending close attention to walls or heating vents is another common sign of mice. The problem is that sometimes these noises are caused by flying squirrels. So if you didn’t confirm that the problem was mice, you may have poisoned flying squirrels which is an illegal use of poison. In addition, some states have legal protections for flying squirrels. So before you control, be sure the problem is actually caused by mice.
  • Failure to thoroughly inspect. Cutting corners on inspecting structures for the presence of mice is a significant error. Too many pest control operators assume scratches on the ceiling must be mice. While the sounds could be mice, they could also be caused by flying squirrels, a species protected in some states and a species for which no toxicants may be legally used.
  • Failure to use enough traps. I suggest using 24 traps for a 1,200 square foot home. Sometimes more, sometimes less. But you have to use enough traps or you end up harvesting mice rather than controlling them.
  • Failure to pre-bait. Don’t set traps immediately. Instead, place them unset but baited. Condition the mice to interact with the trap. Then when you have you good action at the traps, then set them with the goal to catch all the mice at once.
  • Reliance on glueboards. Do glueboards catch mice? Yes. But they often catch juvenile mice. Glueboards should only be used when other techniques are not working.
  • Failure to perform exclusion. You must close holes and gaps in a home to prevent and reduce the likelihood of mouse entry.
  • Failure to modify the habitat at the structure. This requires modifying bird feeders, removing cover, and removing food sources.
Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Quick Facts on House Mice

For this week’s blog post, I thought it would be helpful to write up a list of quick facts on house mice. Quick facts on house mice consists of practical information that is useful for technicians and homeowners that will guide control methods. You must know your enemy to defeat your enemy and that is no less true for the management of house mice.

Quick Facts on House Mice

House Mouse Biology

  • Incisors grow at an approximate rate of 0.4 mm per day.

    Adult house mouse (Mus musculus) as shown by its total length of 6 inches.
  • Eat about 10 to 15% of their body weight per day.
  • Can can survive without access to free water if food sources have 15% moisture.
  • Mice are omnivorous, eating seeds, insects even meat.
  • In good habitat, a sexually mature female can give birth to 101 young a year.
  • Young are born deaf, blind and hairless.
  • Young start exploring beyond nest in 3 to 4 weeks.
  • Young are sexually mature in 5 to 6 weeks but can extend out to 12 weeks.

House Mouse Physical Abilities

  • Can jump vertically almost 12 inches.
  • Can climb vertical brick walls.
  • Can hear sound in the ultrasonic range.
  • Can live in environments as cold as 30 degrees below zero Fahrenheit.
  • Can fall 10 feet without injury.
  • Can see in the ultraviolet range.

Stay tuned for additional blogs containing Quick Facts on House Mice. If you want more now, get a copy of Frishman’s Vertebrate Pest Handbook. It is presently undergoing revision but it is still a worthwhile publication at an affordable price.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

 

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Are Glueboards Efficient Mouse Traps?

Glueboards and Mice

Common house mouse (Mus musculus), wild type.
Common house mouse (Mus musculus), wild type. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Lots of people and pest control operators use glueboards to control house mice (Mus musculus). But have you ever wondered if they are very efficient at catching mice?

Glueboards not the Most Efficient Mouse Traps

Dr. Robert Corrigan performed some research at Purdue University and discovered that glueboards really aren’t that good at catching mice.  In a publication entitled “The Efficacy of Glue Traps against Wild Populations of House Mice, Mus domesticus, Rutty” in the Proceedings of the Eighteenth Vertebrate Pest Conference (1998), he says that while mice do get caught in glueboards, the fact is that the one’s that get caught are like young mice or mice that were travelling according to muscle memory and therefore were not paying attention enough to avoid the trap.

Corrigan also explained that house mice frequently learn to avoid the devices as proven by the number of observed accounts where hairs of mice are found on the boards (suggesting escapes).  Furthermore, mice eat insects (e.g. cockroaches) caught on glueboards and thereby become educated to their effect.

Bottomline

If you wish to control mice on a property, glueboards are just not that good at getting the job done. You are much better off using snap traps or other devices to capture mice.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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New York City Rodent Academy, Nov 2011

New York City Rodent Academy, Nov 2011

Common house mouse (Mus musculus), wild type.
House mouse (Mus musculus) Image via Wikipedia

I recently returned from the New York City Rodent Academy run by rodent control expert Dr. Robert “Bobby” Corrigan. Dr. Corrigan is a legend in rodent damage management and that reputation was fully justified during my time at the Academy.

Essentially, the Rodent Academy is 3 days of detailed information on how to control rodents, specifically Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) and the house mouse (Mus musculus).

Rodent Control Training

Dr. Corrigan doesn’t waste participant time detailing basic information you could easily find in pest control book, such as trap and toxicant descriptions, bait stations, etc. Rather he spends the majority of time discussing how to inspect properties using scientific information on rodent behavior. Corrigan regularly reminded us that placement of bait stations every 15 feet (or other distance–read the toxicant label) is less important than placement of stations where the rodents actually are. Sure the regularly spaced bait stations look pretty, but the placement of many of them will actually be a waste.

The training culminated on field day, where we were broken down into teams and assigned to inspect assigned areas of the Lower Manhattan for rodent sign. Each team inspected the same locations (at different times). Corrigan wanted to show that no two inspections will see the “identical number of things.”

Highlights of the Rodent Academy

Dr. Corrigan included a number of speakers to add breadth to the program. Dr. Edgar Butts of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene explained the process for registering pesticides and understanding pesticide labels.

Dr. Robin Nagle of N.Y. University is an anthropologist who studies refuse (what we throw away). She gave an interesting talk about the history of public sanitation in New York City. Ironically, the city had a recycling program in the late 1800’s, which after a few years was eliminated only to be reinstated in the past decade.

Summation

I understand that approximately 2000 people have completed the Academy. I am glad to have joined their ranks. This course is worth the time and the money. It is unclear how much longer this Academy will continue. If you are interested, sign up before it’s gone.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

 

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