Snap, Crackle & Pop

No I am not writing about the three silly mascots for Rice Krispies cereal, rather I am writing about the three methods we have been employing for controlling the mice population in our home.

Snap refers to the tried and true method of using traps, of which we consistently have two set in different places in the house. My secret weapon in slathering the bait (usually a raisin) with peanut butter, both on top and underneath the trigger. It always seems to snap a few mice on consecutive nights before the others learn the trick and steer clear. And so I wait a week or two and hit 'em again.

Pop is a fun one, a bit more of a cat-and-mouse game where speed and reflexes win the day. To date, the score is humans 3, mice 2. The game starts when we see a mouse running along our floorboard (usually in the evenings) and hiding in what we suspect to be an advantageous corner. We then corner him in and systematically begin removing the stuff from the corner in which he was hiding. When he tries to make a run for safety, we spring into action with shoes and brooms to POP him one on the noggin'. Twice the mice have gotten away, either by slipping past our POP, or by hiding somewhere safe in the first place. But 3 times now, we've hit our target and added one more mouse to our compost bucket. 

My favorite POP was when three of us got in on the action. Having see a mouse run into a corner and hide behind a large plastic tub, Andrea, Paula (one of our summer interns) and I geared up for the fight. Andrea and Paula, each armed with brooms stood poised along both walls exiting the corner. My job was to pull the tub out and cover the middle ground. With our plan in place, I quickly pulled the tub into the center of the room leaving the little mouse exposed. He ran toward Andrea who brilliantly swept the little critter off its feet and sent it sliding across the tile floor into the middle of the room. I, still off balance myself from having pulled the tub, couldn't catch my traction any more than the mouse could which made for a hilarious tandem slip-fest like two baby Bambis playing tag on the ice. Paula, however, playing the role of sure-footed Thumper, left her station against the opposite wall and, with her broom, delivered the deadly POP that incited cheering, I'm sure could be heard across the neighborhood.

Crackle is a very unique method of killing mice, that, while very effective, is not very reproducable. One night, after the kids were in bed, we were sitting in the living room writing thank-you cards, or reading or whatever, when suddenly a power cut left us in pitch black. Nobody jumped up to find a light, I suppose we were all waiting for someone else to do it. As for me, I was content to keep rocking in my rocking chair where I often rest at the end of the day. CRACKLE! I felt a bump under my rocker, which isn't all that unusual as the rocking chair slowly shifts to the left with every rock and had there been a toy or piece of dried food left nearby, I was sure to find it eventually. I simply moved the chair over a bit to avoid hitting it again, and continued my rock. That is until about 4-5 minutes later when the power flipped on and I looked down to see an unlucky mouse who had tried to make a break for it at just the wrong time.

 Although I can't take much credit for the kill, it gave us all a good laugh and one more tally on our column of the mouse killing scorecard!