Integrated Pest Management

House Mouse

Mus musculus

Mice Fact Sheet: English, Spanish.

House mouse

House mouse (Wikimedia Commons)

House mouse

House mouse (Xocolatl, Wikimedia Commons)

House Mouse

House mouse (Jack Kelly Clark, UC Statewide IPM Project)

Identification

  • brown to gray colored fur with a lighter colored belly and large ears
  • tail is naked and about the same length as the head and body combined
  • 5 to 8 inches long, including tail

Nesting Habits

  • prefer to nest in protected areas near a food supply and and heat
  • indoors: dark corners, especially behind appliances that produce heat

Diet

  • stored food products, human food, seeds

Significance

  • contaminate food, damage property and spread disease
  • scare people

IPM Recommendations

  • Install tight-fitting door sweeps.
  • Seal exterior cracks, crevices and areas around pipes and electrical conduits that enter buildings through walls.
  • Reduce clutter indoors and outdoors.
  • Minimize nesting habitat around property.
  • Move dumpsters at least 50 feet from buildings.
  • Keep all exterior doors closed.
  • Store food in pest-proof containers.
  • Monitor with non-toxic bait blocks in tamper-resistant bait boxes.
  • Use snap-traps placed with triggers toward the baseboards, especially in dark corners.
  • Use multiple baits: peanut butter, hotdogs, floss, etc.
  • Train kitchen and custodial staff to clean thoroughly.

Additional Resources:

IPM for Rats and Mice: Integrated Pest Management in Sensitive Environments (University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension)