Natural and Chemical-Free Ways to Get Rid of Mice

Let's face it, nobody wants a rodent in their house. Why would they? They leave their droppings everywhere, they chew through things and just make us feel icky. Most of us are trying to also eliminate chemicals and unnatural substances from our homes. Here's how you can get rid of mice from your home and make yourself, your pets and children safer using natural and chemical free methods.

Don't leave food out. Put anything edible away from their reach, which isn't easy. Store things in your fridge or freezer if you can, or purchase air tight containers to store your food in. They eat through card board boxes so don't think your food is safe just because it's in a box.

Keep your house clean. Mice love crumbs, so as often as you can, sweep and mop your floors, wipe down all surfaces and vacuum underneath furniture, in corners and under cushions.

Get trash cans with lids. If you have an open trash can, even if it's underneath your sink, you are inviting the mice into your home. They can smell the food either way, but if there's a lid then they can't get in.

Fill in holes. Go around your home and try to fill in any hole, crack or crevice that they can find their way into. Get aluminum foil and crumble it into a tight ball or any shape that will fit what you're trying to fill. The mice can't eat through the aluminum foil and this will prevent them from entering your home.

Put away newspapers, magazines, clothes, etc. In the winter time especially, mice try to find their way into your home for warmth. If you collect magazines, books or anything that a mice can tear up and use as bedding, buy some large air tight storage containers and put them in there. This will keep the mice from ruining these items and creating a nice warm bed in them.

Get some peppermint oil. The stronger the better! Nice do not like this smell, so get some peppermint oil and put it anywhere you might suspect the mice are coming in or hanging around.

Get a cat! If you don't mind your cat eating the mice or killing them, why not get a nice pet for the family and some rodent control at the same time.

Buy some traps. If nothing else works and you find the mice are still finding your way into your home, buy some traps. Put some peanut butter inside the trap to lure the mice and check them regularly for the mice. They sell traps that kill and ones that don't. This decision and how you feel about killing the mice is up to you.

Good luck in removing these pests from your home and remember that even if you do manage to get rid of them, they can always come back. So persistence is the key here!