One of the most popular methods to eliminate mice is to use traps. It offers a quick and easy way to eliminate mice inside your property. However, some people may make mistakes when using these, causing more problems since they end up with ineffective mouse traps.
So what are some of the reasons why your mouse trap is not working? There are several reasons why you might be encountering this problem. Some of these include handling your bait with bare hands, placing the traps in the wrong places, and underestimating mice activity.
Why Your Mouse Trap Isn’t Working
1. Handling Bait With Bare Hands
Mice have a sensitive sense of smell which means that they can detect the scent of humans on the bait you’re putting on the trap. Handling bait with bare hands can prevent the trap from working effectively because you are “contaminating” the bait’s smell with human smells. To prevent this from happening, you may use gloves when setting up the trap. Gloves that are used for washing dishes, health care, and preparing food are good options.
Remember to also use gloves after handling a trap that has caught a rodent to prevent contamination and further problems. Using thick gloves can also protect your hands in case your fingers get accidentally snapped in the trap.
2. Using Ineffective Bait
One of the most effective baits you can use is peanut butter. Peanut butter or hazelnut spread is a byproduct of nuts, which is a kind of food that rodents usually feed on when they are in the wild. Putting a small amount of peanut butter on the mouse trap helps you catch mice more effectively.
Likewise, mice also love strongly scented food so you can use anything with a sweet or salty smell. Examples of these are gumdrops, soft candies, and strong-smelling cheese. You can also use some meat like bacon and jerky, to attract the rodents to your trap. If the food seems to be an ineffective bait, mice are also attracted to nesting materials so you can place cotton, dental floss, or string on the trap instead to attract more mice.
3. Placing Traps in Open Spaces
Another mistake that people tend to do when setting up traps is placing them in open spaces. Mice tend to stay in dark areas of your home, which means that they likely scurry near your house’s walls. Setting up the traps facing the walls helps you with this problem because the mice explore the trap instead of avoiding it.
It is also important to set up more traps that are spaced around 2-3 feet away from each other. You can also put more in areas where there is increased rodent activity. This increases your likelihood of catching mice and eventually eliminating the pests from your home.
4. Putting Too Much Bait
Putting too much bait on your mouse traps can be ineffective as well. This is because the rodents can get some of the bait without triggering the trap, so they aren’t caught. If this happens, you’re just providing more food sources for the pests and making your problem worse. It’s important to only put a pea-sized amount so that the mouse is forced to step on the trap.
5. Using the Wrong Trap
Another reason why your mouse trap isn’t working is because you’re using the wrong trap. Some traps are simply more effective than others. You may want to try different kinds of traps to see which ones are working out for you. There are a variety of traps available on the market, so there’s surely one that can help you deal with the infestation.
6. Not Changing the Bait Regularly
Not changing the bait regularly can also affect the trap’s effectiveness since rotten food can be unattractive to some mice. To prevent this problem, change the bait every 4-6 weeks to keep it fresh and avoid it from rotting and decaying.
7. Underestimating Mice Activity
Mice are smart creatures, so they will likely avoid the traps for the first few days. A smart thing to do is to place unset traps with bait, so the rodents get used to feeding on it. After the mice are used to feeding on the bait on unset traps, you can start setting it up to catch them.
This method is helpful, but it would not catch all of the mice in your house just yet. The first rodents to be caught on the trap are the inferior mice. Superior or alpha mice are more cautious of the said traps, so it’s best to think of other methods to eliminate them.
Pest Control at Midway Pest Management
Though mouse traps can offer temporary solutions to your pest problem, the best way to effectively eliminate mice and other pests in your home is to still call for professional help. Here at Midway Pest Management, we offer customized pest control programs for your home and business needs.
We promise to deliver excellent services and offer you customized solutions to any pest problem that you may have. Our team at Midway Pest Management promises 100% customer service warranty. For more information about us and the services that we offer, you may give us a call.
Read more: What Diseases Can You Get From Rodents?
