A Better Mousetrap

In my opinion, it has finally happened. Someone has finally built a better mousetrap. Now if you have had these mousetraps in your home for years, you will have to excuse me, because I don't get to town very often and these are new to me.

When we bought some sacks of grain cheaply at Orscheln because they had holes in them, we became inundated with mice. I believe that these were foreign mice who came here from Orscheln in the feed sacks. Where they came from before that, I do not know.

This theory is supported by the fact that while at Orscheln, I seen mice in several different locations scampering about. As a matter of fact, I was surprised by the fact that I didn't hear people screaming all around me but then I think we were the only customers in the store.

This may have been a good sales gimmick used by Orscheln to sell mousetraps. There was just something about the store that made you remember to pick some up. I had three choices:

1. The traditional, wooden, finger crushing traps that bring fear to my heart every time I see one.
   
2. A newfangled plastic clothespin type trap
3. A more expensive, more complicated plastic trap.

I chose number two and here it is:



All you have to do with this trap is smear some peanut butter up under the top lip and the little mouse comes along and while trying to reach the peanut butter with his tiny mouth, he steps on the metal trigger and SNAP, he is history. This trap is easy to bait, set and empty, they come two in a package.

Since I was so happy with this trap, I thought that I would try the other plastic trap the next time I was at Orscheln. So, I bought them last night and have them set but haven't caught anything yet. But I haven't seen or heard any mice in a long time, they must have all heard that I got some new, more sophisticated traps.

Here is the other trap:


Now with this trap, you put your bait of choice into the well in the center of the trap by raising the lid on the well, as seen in the second picture. Next you close the lid then pull up the spring loaded bar by the handy loop provided, this sets the trap.

The tiny mouse comes along, smells the bait, hears his little tummy growling and sticks his twitching nose into the hole on the front of the lid over the well. As he sticks his nose farther into the well the lid lifts up and springs the trap. The bar then SNAPS down onto the cute little mouse and he or she is history also.

I should be ashamed of myself, I should have compassion. Who am I, that I should judge the life of a tiny mouse as less valuable than the life of any other creature. I should get live traps and relocate the cute little mice to your house.