Mice

Originated from central Asia and is a worldwide pest of buildings. Nocturnal creatures are extremely inquisitive, there eye sight in not very good, it eats 3-4g of food a day and produces up to 80 dropping per 24hrs. It will drink water if available but can live without drinking water when the moister in its food is about 15-16% they carry diseases the worst being salmonella, diarrhoea via their droppings and urine. They have large ears, small eyes, the tail is slightly shorter than the body length, and adults weigh an average of 15g, sexually mature 8-12 weeks, gestation period lasts for 17-20 days long, average litter size 5-6, litter per year is 5-8 and will live up to a year. They have the ability to gnaw which will cause structural damage of a wide range of materials and property and will also cause damage and contamination of stored and processed food.
To control mice it can usually be achieved by a combination of methods like:

• High hygiene standards should be maintained particularly around food and refuse areas
• Access to properties should be restricted using suitable proofing material
• Use of suitable rodenticides and sometimes in combination with traps and sticky boards