Yes, mice are pests. But you don’t have to kill them. You can just capture them, and then later let them go (preferably far away from your home). After all, they’re just trying to survive on their own.
The good news is that you can always buy a mouse trap that doesn’t kill the mice. There are quite a few commercial mouse traps out there. But humane mouse trap DIY solutions can work just as well. Most of these traps don’t take a long time to do, and they generally make use of items that are already in your home.
Check out some of the best DIY mouse traps that won’t kill the mice:
Bucket and Soda Can Mouse Trap
For this, you’ll need the following:
- 5-gallon bucket
- Metal rod (you can just cut apart a metal coat hanger for this)
- Soda can
- A bit of peanut butter
- A scrap piece of wood
- Drill and drill bit
Making your mouse trap will involve quite a few steps, but it will be worth it. You can always reuse the trap, and you may be even able to trap several mice each day.
So, once you’ve gathered your materials, here’s what you need to do.
Drill 2 holes near the top of the bucket, with the holes on opposite sides. The holes should be about the same diameter of the metal rod you’ll use later.
Then drill a hole on each end of the soda can. The holes should be big enough so that the soda can easily roll on the metal rod.
Insert the metal rod through one hole in the bucket, then through both holes of the soda can. Then get the metal rod through the other hole in the bucket. So, you end up with the soda can on the metal rod hanging on the top part of the middle of the bucket.
Spread some peanut butter around the diameter of the soda can.
Take the piece of wood and set it up as a ramp for the mouse to reach the soda can. If the wood piece tends to fall off the bucket, set a screw into the end of the wooden piece. Then place the screw just inside the bucket, to secure the ramp in place.
How this works is that once the mouse reaches the top of the ramp, they usually jump onto the soda can to reach the alluring peanut butter. But since the soda can rotate on the metal rod, the mouse just ends up into the bottom of the bucket.
Bucket and Toilet Paper Tube Mouse Trap
This is a lot simpler, and you won’t need a drill. All you need are:
- A tube of toilet paper
- Some tape
- A few coins (or something similar)
- A deep bucket
- A bit of food for bait
You set this up by the end of a table, with a part of the toilet paper tube protruding from the edge. Tape several coins on top of one side of the tube, so the weight secures the tube in place.
Now place a bit of food at the tip of the protruding end, with the bucket right under it. The mouse will then go through the tube to get the food, and its weight will get it to drop into the bucket.
Bucket and Cardboard Mouse Trap
This concept is again simple here. You have a large bucket, and then a trap to lure the mice to fall into the bucket.
In this case, you will need:
- A large 5-gallon bucket
- A metal rod from a coat hanger
- A drill and drill bit
- A piece of wood for a ramp
- A piece of cardboard that can fall into the bucket
First, you should cut a straight metal rod from the coat hanger. Then drill 2 holes at the top end of the bucket. This time, the holes should be closer to one side. If the top of the bucket was a dial of a clock, then you’re drilling at 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock.
The cardboard should be circular as well, and smaller than the top of the bucket. Set the metal rod through one hole of the bucket. Then set the metal rod through the cardboard, going through the thin edge of the cardboard. Like with the bucket, the metal rod should go through 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock of the round cardboard piece.
Once that’s done, set the metal rod through the other hole of the bucket. The cardboard should stay in place covering the top of the bucket.
Now put a bit of food as bait on the cardboard, on the other side of the metal rod. That means when the mouse walks on the cardboard, its weight should drop the cardboard down and the mouse will fall into the bucket. Set a ramp on the side of the bucket so the mouse can reach the bait.
With these simple mouse traps, you should be able to capture the mice in your house without any problems!
