For most homes, the best trap is the plain snap trap. The CDC recommends traditional snap traps for reducing rodent populations around the home and advises against glue traps and live traps, because frightened rodents urinate and that raises the risk of getting sick. Use mouse-size traps for mice and larger rat traps for rats and woodrats. Placement and checking matter more than brand.
Here is how to choose, place, bait and check traps, plus when a locked station or an electronic trap makes sense.
Snap traps
Snap traps are cheap, quick and easy to check. Wooden and plastic models both work. Plastic ones with a large trigger pad are easier for many people to set. Buy more than you think you need, since several traps along one route catch faster than one trap in the middle of a room.
- Mouse traps for house mice and deer mice
- Rat traps for roof rats, Norway rats and woodrats
- Several traps per active route, spaced along the wall
How to place and bait them
The CDC's placement rule is simple: set the trap so the baited end touches the wall, forming a T. Rodents run along walls, so they reach the trigger first.
- Bait with a small amount of chunky peanut butter, which the CDC lists as a good choice.
- Put traps where you see droppings, nesting or urine, and in hidden spots like behind appliances, inside cabinets and in attics and garages.
- Check traps every day and remove catches right away.
- Refresh or move bait weekly, and keep going for at least 15 days.
- When nothing is caught for a week and you see no new signs, the CDC treats the problem as gone.
Rats can be cautious about new objects. Leaving traps baited but unset for a night or two can help.
Locked stations
Outdoors and anywhere kids or pets can reach, put traps inside locked, tamper-resistant stations. In Texas, the Department of Agriculture's rodenticide rules require professionals to use bait stations for all outdoor, above-ground bait placements, and they must be tamper resistant where children or non-target animals could get to them. Even if you only use traps, a station keeps a dog's nose or a child's hand out.
Electronic traps
Battery-powered traps that kill with a shock are enclosed and easy to empty. They cost more than snap traps and need fresh batteries. They can work well in kitchens and garages where you want the catch out of sight. The same placement rules apply.
Traps to avoid
Glue boards and live traps are the two the CDC advises against for homes. Both leave a live, frightened animal that urinates, which increases exposure to germs. Glue boards also catch lizards, birds and pets. Live traps leave you with a rodent to release, which usually means it, or another, comes back.
Poison bait is a separate decision. Texas follows EPA rules that keep second-generation anticoagulants out of retail stores and require consumer bait to be sold in or with a bait station. Rodents that eat bait can die inside walls, which in El Paso heat means odor. Many technicians prefer traps inside homes for that reason.
How many traps and where
More traps in the right places beat fewer traps in the wrong ones. Thumbtack's cost guide notes that a small infestation in an average house may need 12 to 15 traps. Spread them along every route where you see droppings or grease marks, a few feet apart, rather than clustering them in one corner.
Good spots in El Paso homes include under the kitchen sink by the pipes, behind the fridge and stove, inside the water heater closet, along garage walls behind stored items, and in the attic near the hatch and along beams. In garages with pets, use locked stations.
When to bring in a professional
If you are catching rodents every day after two weeks, have rats in the attic you cannot reach, or keep finding droppings in new rooms, it is time for help. A technician can find the entry points and set a larger trap line. See our rodent trapping page.
Handling a catch safely
Wear gloves. The CDC says to put the rodent and trap in a plastic bag, seal it, place it in a second bag and throw it in a covered trash can. To reuse a snap trap, soak it with the rodent still in it in disinfectant for 5 minutes while wearing gloves, then rinse and dry it. Wash gloved hands, take off the gloves and wash your hands with soap and warm water.
Traps work best alongside sealing. Without it, new rodents replace the ones you catch. Our exclusion page and why rodents come back article explain why.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best bait for mouse traps?
A small amount of chunky peanut butter, according to the CDC.
Are glue traps humane or effective?
The CDC advises against them because trapped rodents urinate in fear, raising the risk of disease.
How many traps do I need?
More than one. Thumbtack's cost guide notes a small infestation in an average house may need 12 to 15 traps.
Where should traps go?
Against walls where you see droppings or nesting, behind appliances, inside cabinets and in attics and garages.
Can I use rat traps for mice?
Mice may not trip a rat trap. Use mouse traps for mice.
Sources
- CDC: How to trap up to remove rodents
- CDC: How to clean up after rodents
- Texas Department of Agriculture: Rodenticide rules
- Thumbtack: How much does rodent removal cost?