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| Things that go squeak in the night |
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As many of us are settling into our new flats, it is an unnerving discovery to find that you are sharing your home with some unwanted squatters – mice. We all have our own opinions on them; some say cute and others say vermin, but no-one likes the idea of sharing their home, and their cornflakes, with the far too common house mouse. According to Edinburgh Council’s pest control department, reports of mice infestations have risen over recent years. More than half of the students I talked to have mouse problems – and many more of you may just not know it yet! Although mice are a problem in many urban areas, Edinburgh’s dense population, historical buildings and underground vaults make it particularly mouse friendly. There is a lot to consider when deciding how to tackle an infestation. Firstly, there are cost issues. Professional extermination companies are certainly an effective way to get rid of mice, however, at a cost of around £87.50 to hire out this hit squad, I can definitely think of better ways to spend my student loan. Of course there are cheaper methods available. Walk into any bargain shop and you’ll see an array of products claiming to get rid of them. Snap traps and glue traps can be bought for as little as fifty pence (though just how humane they are is questionable). Call me soft, but I just can’t bring myself to set a trap that glues mice down and leaves them to die slowly of stress and starvation. I’m not suggesting we should adopt them, knit them waistcoats or give them cute names, but torture should not be the solution. A quick browse on the internet suggests some bizarre remedies, from peppermint and cayenne pepper to fox urine. Full marks for ingenuity but in all honesty I think I’d rather keep the mice than have my flat smelling of fox pee. The Council’s advice is to simply make sure we are not giving mice a reason to be in our homes in the first place. My flatmates and I are starting off the semester firmly resolved to keep our flat clutter-free, our food properly stored and our bins frequently emptied to encourage our mice to pack their bags and patter off in search of a new home. We’ve even come up with something we call the “poop patrol”. Once a week one of us takes on the task of patrolling the flat in search of mouse evidence – paw prints, droppings, teeth marks and holes in the walls. Not the most glamorous job in the world but it’s definitely helping to get straight to the source of the problem. Mice have collapsible skulls meaning they can squeeze through the smallest of cracks, even as small as a pen, and so to make sure they don’t return use steel wool to patch up holes to ensure that once they’re out they stay out. So, if you’d prefer not to wake up in the middle of the night to find a family of mice partying on your leftover Domino’s, grab the steel wool and get poop patrolling!
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Good for you. Keep up the good work.