Tips To Make Sure Your Cat Is A Proper Mouse Hunter And Detterent

If you have mice in your home, and you also have one or several cats, then it may be confusing to understand why the feline has not taken care of the mice or why the rodents are not scared away. Fortunately, cats are natural rodent deterrents because mice are prey animals that work diligently to make sure they stay away from predators. You can help to make sure that your cat is the deterrent that he should be with the following tips and you can also learn how to help your car be an effective hunter.

Do Not Be So Diligent About Cleaning

Mice do not have very good eyesight, and this means that they rarely use their eyes to sense whether or not predators are near. Mice do use their keen sense of smell and hearing though. You can use a mouse's sense of smell to help keep them away from your home. Mice use their smell to detect predators by investigating areas for ammonia-laden urine scents. If these scents are strong, then this means that predators are close or they use the area for a home. This will deter a mouse from searching for food or building a nest in the space. However, if you clean your cat's litter box every day or if the box is located on the second level of your home, then mice may not be able to detect the scent as a strong one.

It is not healthy for your cat to continually use a dirty litter box due to the potential for urinary tract infections, so you still should clean the boxes about every three days. However, you can spread the urine smell more throughout your house by making sure there is one litter box on every floor of your home. Uncovered boxes are best to ward off mice, and you also should make sure that one litter box is placed in the basement. If this is not possible, then think about purchasing a new cat bed for your feline and placing the old one in the basement. Mice like to live in dark areas like basements, but the strong scent of the oils from your cat's body that have transferred to the bed will be a good deterrent.

Help Your Cats Hunt

Unfortunately, some mice may still enter your house, even if they smell cat urine, and the constant smell of the urine may actually make mice more combative and aggressive over time instead of more timid. This means that your cat will need to catch these mice, since they may not be driven away.

If you have a female and a male cat in the home, you should expect the female to catch more mice. Female cats have better hunting instincts because they need to teach their young to catch food. Also, cats tend to catch more mice when their hunger is satiated. Hunting is then completed as a form of entertainment. If a cat is hungry, then they may stop to eat the single mouse they catch instead of continuing to hunt for pleasure. Make sure your cat or cats are fed properly. Make sure to keep food off the ground though, because mice will steal the food from easily accessible dishes. 

Open Up Cabinets

Once your cats are ready to hunt, consider moving all food items in lower or bottom cabinets to higher ones. Also, move chemicals, cleaning supplies, and any other items that may hurt your cats into a single cabinet in your bathroom or kitchen. Open up all cabinet doors, except for the one containing chemicals before you go to bed at night. This will help to reduce or completely remove any and all hiding spaces where the nocturnal mice can get away from your cats. Once your cats start catching mice, try to get rid of them soon after you find them dead in your home. Mice can transfer parasites to your cat. It is also wise to provide your felines with a deworming medication once a month to prevent these issues.

If you find that you still need help with your rodent problem, despite your cat's best efforts, contact a company like Garrie Pest Control.