St. Albert’s kitchen compost baskets are attracting mice, originally attracted to houses by the green and brown garbage bins that sit just outside most city residents’ garages. Insects swarm the bottom of the green and brown bins during summer months. My neighbours in Erin Ridge have also had mice in their garages. Initially, I thought perhaps it was because during hot summer days, they left their garages open just a half a foot for cooling purposes. I thought I was immune because I did not leave my garage door open. Was I wrong.
While reading the paper one morning at the kitchen table, with my peripheral vision I caught a glimpse of something on the floor going between the cupboard and the dishwasher. The day before, a plastic bag of birdseed had been broken open and bird seed spread. Considering what our Erin Ridge neighbours had told us, we suspected a mouse in the house and we bought mouse traps.
We moved out the fridges and stove to clean, just in case. We saw a mouse scurry from under the fridge, over to the opening between the cupboard and the dishwasher. Now there was no doubt. That evening, I opened the cupboard under the kitchen sink and there was a mouse climbing on items, trying to get at the kitchen compost basket.
In any case, I placed two mouse traps in the cupboard under the sink, along the wall, since the compost kitchen bin’s smell was still in there. I placed peanut butter in the traps. I also placed two mouse traps baited with peanut butter on either side of the dishwasher, since that was the route the mouse appeared to be using to find its way into the kitchen compost bin under the kitchen sink.
I swept the dead mouse with its trap into a garbage bag and placed it into the brown bin outside. There was great relief. Just in case there was more than one mouse in the house but believing I had caught the only one, I reset the other mouse trap in the cupboard under the kitchen sink where the kitchen compost bin usually sits. Then I went to bed.
Four mousetraps caught four mice heading to or from the compost kitchen bin in the cupboard under the sink in the house. After careful consideration, we’ve decided not to use the city of St. Albert compost kitchen bin. It definitely attracts mice. The green and brown bins outside our garage also attract both insects and mice to our garage.
A review of the compost kitchen bins, green bins and brown bins used by the City of St. Albert must be undertaken. They are an attraction for mice. Green bin and brown bin locations outside of our homes must be reconsidered.
More importantly, residents must not use and store those compost kitchen bins under their kitchen sinks. Mice are not only a nuisance and but they are a genuine health concern. Food storage and disposal are at risk if compost kitchen bins are the final destination of green bins and brown bins that attract mice to Erin Ridge garages.
I’m setting four more mouse traps tonight. I hope none of them are tripped.
Randy B. Williams, St. Albert
