Appearance
This mouse species has a light brown to dark grown back; the abdomen is lighter. The are a lot of colour varieties; white mice (albino) are often used as test animals. The house mouse has a thin build, with a pointed head, larger ears and clear beady eyes. The body is very hairy, the tail is almost bald, long and thin. The adult mice are about 8 cm long (head + body) and weigh about 25 grams.
Lifestyle
House mice are very common, mainly in buildings, but in the summer outside as well. They can easily adapt to the circumstances they are great climbers, due to which they can get to any part of a building. They feed on all kinds of products, with a slight preference for grains, bacon, cheese etc. They live as families in their own territory. Their development is very rapid; the females are sexually mature after 2 months and have 8 to 10 reproductive cycles in a year of about 6 young each.
Damage
As with all rodents, the chisel shaped front teeth of house mice grow throughout their lives. This means that to keep their teeth sharp, they must constantly gnaw. And they do. Electrical wiring, water pipes and woodwork are preferred objects and they can cause short circuit (fire), leakage and machine failure. In addition, house mice can transmit diseases and their presence form a hygiene hazard. Due to the damage and contamination they cause, they are very undesirable.
Prevention
Good architectural provisions at the exterior and inside buildings, the house mouse is prevented from finding a good living environment. Cavities in walls exceeding 5 mm are big enough for them to crawl through. Good hygiene (cleaning, inaccessible storage and removal of waste) and the prevention of long-term, uncontrolled storage of raw materials and end products contribute to the prevention of mice infestation.
Control
After a thorough inspection of and around the object, bait depots are installed at strategically chosen places. In these bait boxes or crates, toxic bait is placed. The rodenticides used, approved by the Dutch College Toelating Bestrijdingsmiddelen are so called anticoagulantia (anti-clotting agents). These baits should be offered at least several weeks to cause death. After 3 to 11 days of absorption, death occurs after 7 to 14 days. The house mouse is resistant (insensitive) to various rodenticides. If the result of a rodent control action takes too long (for instance 4 to 6 weeks) the control technicians will use other products.
Recommendation
A wide range of preventive measures linked to fast and effective control methods and frequent inspection of buildings and products stored, allows the Dutch Plagen Preventie Dienst (Plague Prevention Service) to prevent house mouse issues.