How To Determine the Best Rodent Control Methods in Your Home

Do you have kids or pets—or both? Are you looking for an indoor or an outdoor rodent control solution? Are you trying to catch mice or rats? Keep reading for more details on choosing the right do it yourself pest control option for your home.

The best rodent control for your home depends on several factors, including your personal preference. Consider:

• If you need to keep the control device away from small children, for instance, bait stations may be the best option.
• Mechanical traps, while not necessarily child- or pet-proof, have an excellent reputation for effectively controlling mice and rats.
• Glue traps also work well by holding the rodent in place when it scurries across its surface.
   

When you spot telltale rodent droppings in your pantry (gasp!) or on your kitchen counter or table, you naturally want to employ the very best method for controlling the mice or rats in your home both efficiently and quickly.

Two of the most popular rodent killing solutions, traps and baits, can help you battle the pests in your house, but which is best? According to experts, both traps and bait are effective for killing rats and mice. Again, it's simply a matter of preference.

When using traps, you'll need to dispose of the rodent once the trap does its work.When using bait, though, the rodent typically disappears to die. Both of these types of rodent control should be placed out of reach of children and pets.

No matter type of do it yourself pest control solution you choose, be sure to use the products as directed and use enough of them to control your home's infestation. If the traps or baits you choose doesn't appear to be killing rats or mice, try moving them to a different location in your home.

It's very important to take action at the first sign of rodent activity. Because both mice and rats breed quickly, you'll need to control them as soon as possible, whether you discover them indoors or outdoors.

Bait stations are a very effective form of mice and rat control. After a rodent nibbles some of the bait (which is poison disguised as rodent food), it will die within a couple of days. Mice are curious eaters and will not hesitate to try the bait. Rats, on the other hand, are more cautious, and it may take them slightly longer to make a meal of the bait. In both cases, however, the result is the same – the rodent will invariably succumb to the effects of the poison once it has eaten it.

Bait stations should be placed along walls, in corners, and anywhere you see signs of rat or mouse activity. For an easy-to-use, no-mess solution to eliminate rats, try the pre-filled Tomcat® Rat & Mouse Killer Child & Dog Resistant, Disposable Station. A single 4-oz. bait block can kill up to 10 rats*. For mice, use the pre-filled Tomcat® Mouse Killer Child & Dog Resistant, Disposable Station. Each 1-oz. bait block will kill up to 12 mice*. (Now, that’s a lot of mice!). For rodent infestations, Tomcat also offers refillable bait stations for rats and mice.

For more information on using baits to get rid of mice and rats, read Using a Bait Station.

When it comes to choosing the best way to get rid of rodents, traps have an excellent reputation. From old-fashioned mechanical (or snap) traps to glue boards, there are many traps on the market today that excel at pest control.

The Tomcat® Mouse Snap Trap and the Tomcat® Secure-Kill® Rat Trap, for instance, are designed to catch a mouse or a rat quickly. Snap traps are inexpensive and easy to use. They should be placed along base boards of walls or near rodent nests and baited with peanut butter or special bait gels like Tomcat® Mouse Attractant Gel.

Glue traps provide an option for trapping rodents without having to deal with the risk of snapping fingers or paws. They work by holding the rodent in place when it scurries across its surface; afterward, it will usually die of dehydration or suffocation. Once the rodent is caught in the glue, you'll need to dispose of both it and the trap

Whichever type you choose, it's important to set up several traps in your home if you suspect a rodent problem.

Members of your family also come into play when choosing the right method of control. While all rodent control products should be placed in low traffic areas for kids and pets, Tomcat offers several baits and traps that actively protect little ones and furry friends from harm.

Bait stations are available in "Child & Dog Resistant" and "Child Resistant" levels of security to help make sure kids and dogs won't come into contact with the bait. The stations have even been designed so they can't be punctured by a dog's teeth, and that a child's fingers can't reach inside. (Placing bait outside the station is not recommended.)

Tomcat also offers covered traps, like the Tomcat® Kill & Contain® Mouse Trap, to ensure that fingers and paws don't get snapped. There are also pesticide- and snap-free glue trap options. 

No matter which method you choose, Tomcat has the right product for you.

*Based on no-choice laboratory testing