Despite the love lost between mice and cheese, the image of a mouse in desperate search of a hunk of cheese to nosh on permeates pop culture, from Shakespeare to "Tom and Jerry" cartoons. While it's unclear where this myth originated, it likely dates back to the middle ages, before the invention of modern refrigeration. Back then, food storage was much more complex than simply sticking something in the refrigerator.
Medieval families hung meat from hooks on the ceiling, stored grains in bags or bins and left large wheels of cheese out with just a coating of wax or a layer of cheese cloth for protection. During this period, it's possible that hungry mice simply dug into whatever food they could access. Meat hanging from the ceiling was tough to reach, so mice likely noshed on grains and cheese. Stealing a few morsels from a bag of grains leaves little evidence in many cases, while biting into a hunk of cheese leaves behind tell-tale teeth marks. This evidence may have spurred the idea that mice love cheese, even if they were actually only eating the cheese because it happened to be accessible.
Another theory to explain the mouse-cheese connection is based solely on image. There's just something convenient about sketching a mouse lingering near a perfectly-triangular wedge of cheddar, complete with just a few holes for decorations. It's a much more effective image than a mouse and a dab of peanut butter or a few grains of rice. Perhaps this image simply worked well for animators and cartoonists, who've helped to perpetuate this myth through the years.
Best results I've had were with acorns. Usually get two fat ones in the first day or two, then two to four or five smaller ones over the next couple of days. Then nothing for at least three or four weeks, then the same pattern. This will happen three or four times, starting in October. Empty traps from about January on. Sometimes a year without any at all. But of all the baits I've tried, acorns get the most mice. Crack open and split the acorns and tie them onto the trigger with thread or wire. Attach a piece of thin wire 12" to 16" long to the little staple that holds the bail. You can anchor the trap with this. They sometimes do travel a bit after being caught. Put out several traps. I've used the same traps for more than twenty years. Some have worn out and been replaced. No amount of blood, fur or guts on the traps keeps them away. Acorns. Stock up in August and September when they're fresh. Discard anything cracked or with small holes (worms). Scatter a few bits of acorn around the traps to get them used to the idea. Put out bits of Tomcat poison as well.
ReplyDeleteI always use peanut butter on my mouse traps.
ReplyDeleterodents in nature eat anything a bird eats. keep bird food in Tupperware. set a small quantity out for a couple of days. then make a trail to a trap
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