by Billy Sunshine

Created on: February 11, 2007   Last Updated: April 18, 2007

What exactly is meant by a "better mousetrap"? Is it one that is more efficient and reliable in killing the mouse? Is it one that enables the mouse trapper to deal with the dead rodent with a minimum of contact? Is it one that humanely traps the mouse without killing it?

There's more than one way to catch a mouse. How you'd prefer to do it depends on your feelings towards the mouse. Many people associate rodents with the flea-ridden rats which spread the Black Death in the 14th Century, and have very low empathy for the animals accordingly. Others are more compassionate and prefer to remove the rodent by non-violent methods.

Cats have been the sworn enemy of mice for longer than anyone can remember, a relationship made into humorous slapstick by cartoons like "Tom and Jerry" and and "The Itchy and Scratchy Show"(The cartoon within a kids show within the Simpsons). The difference is that the mouse rarely triumphs in real life. Cats have been employed for this duty in barns and houses for centuries. With a cat, you probably don't have to deal with it yourself. However, a cat is not a good option if you're allergic to their dander, as I am.

Spring-loaded traps are inexpensive and have been popular for a long time, but their drawbacks are the reason people keep searching for something better. As I'm sure everyone knows, these traps work by the mouse taking bait off of a trigger and disturbing it, which releases the catch, allowing the bar to snap shut, breaking the animal's skull or neck. This leaves a fairly disturbing corpse for someone to scoop up. Sometimes, mice are able to steal the bait without triggering the trap. Perhaps you've heard that peanut butter or meat is better than cheese for baiting mice, but here's another suggestion: Glue a half of a peanut to the latch where you put the bait. This will take considerably more effort for the mouse to remove it.

Strychnine-based poisons like D-Con are effective, but they pose a danger to pets as well. Another worry is the poisoned rodent dying and rotting inside your walls. No one wants this.

Electrification traps are effective and use a more enclosed design that minimizes the risk of touching the mouse corpse, although they do seem a little twisted to me.

Other store-bought traps capture the mouse in a containment unit which you can take far from your home to release the mouse.

Another old method is to put bait at one end of a paper towel tube and balance the tube on a counter, with nearly half of it hanging off the edge. Under the tube, you put a bucket which the rodent will fall into as it makes it's way across the tube. In the old days, the bucket would be filled with water or antifreeze to drown the creature, but an empty bucket could be just as effective, as long as it is heavy enough not to be knocked over by the frantic animal as it tries to escape.

Good luck.

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