House mouse

Appearance

• House mice are brown/grey in colour all over (including their undercarriage) and are 7-9.5cm long.
• Their relatively large ears and eyes distinguish them from juvenile brown rats.

Biology

• Females give birth to anything between 3-16 young per litter and have 5-10 litters per year.
• The gestation period is around 21 days with sexual maturity reached after 8-12 weeks.
• Mice will breed throughout the year given the correct conditions.
• This species will generally live for around a year in the wild, but can live for 2-3 years.

Habitats

• House mice will often live in burrows, in nests above ground and will also climb to access roof spaces and the walls of properties etc.
• The preferred food is generally cereals, seeds etc and will eat around 3-5g per day.

Treatment

• Initial clearances of Mice/Rats can be carried out using rodenticides or non chemical methods.
• Multiple visits are generally required to achieve effective control and programmed routine visits enable preventive action in selective environments.
• Proofing measures against the entry of Mice/Rats to buildings will prevent repetitive or potential ingress.