Humane ways to get rid of mice and rats making their way indoors to escape the cold

CapeTalk's Lester Kiewit speaks to Toni Brockhoven, Chairperson of Beauty Without Cruelty South Africa.

Listen below:

Are mice and rats getting into your home to escape the cold?

If yes, there's a humane and ethical way to get rid of them, believes Brockhoven.

Some humane ways to get rid of mice and rats are:

• Use peppermint or clove essential oils: place a few drops on cotton wool and rub them into your cupboards and entrances because the scent is too strong for rats and mice. Replenish the scent as needed to deter rodents. 
• Get a humane trap which are available at retailers: after baiting, trapping and caging the rodent, let them free (in a green belt area, if possible) in a relocated space.

Also avoid leaving food, animal food, and bundles of newspaper outside which attract mice and rats, especially at night when they are most active.

"You don't have to be vegan to be a decent human being when it comes to what we consider to be nuisance animals. What a lot of people don't realise is that rats in particular, are highly empathetic, loyal, intelligent, and clean animals... they don't bring disease, it's often the fleas they carry that bring disease."

- Toni Brockhoven, Chairperson - Beauty Without Cruelty South Africa

"There's always a kind way and when people say, 'oh, it's expensive or whatever...' One has to ask, what price is your conscience worth?"

- Toni Brockhoven, Chairperson - Beauty Without Cruelty South Africa

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation.