The Mickey Mouse Club

I really don't want to publicize the fact that my new apartment has little mickey mice keeping me company (they were a preexisting condition when I moved in), but I couldn't resist posting this email along with the accompanying 8x10 glossy digital photographs that I received from my building manager today. Next thing you know, motion sensitive cameras and audio surveillance are going to be installed in the apartment, not so the building manager can actually get rid of the mice, mind you, just to make sure that he's tracking whatever grain of rice we leave wrapped in five layers of tinfoil and sealed in a ziplock plastic bag and tucked away in our kitchen cabinet and that most surely will be eaten by one lucky mickey mouse who managed to make his way through the plugged up holes. I'll let the rest of the email speak for itself.

Gentleman,

I wanted to show you what work we are doing in your apartment to help eliminate mice in 109.

The pictures below are of another unit but it demonstrates the work we are doing in 109. Following those pictures are pictures from an inspection I performed in 109. Serious cleaning would go a long way to help the problem.

Mouse-proofing: The surface areas around the convectors will be removed exposing any holes or channels to the walls around the convectors.

Poison will be placed in the walls.

Then all channels will be sealed with a foam:

Self help:

Apartment 109 could use an intensive cleaning. There is plenty organic material that will draw and sustain mice, as well as plenty of harborage in the apartment.

Bait is ineffective when there is plentiful other materials around.

Behind your refrigerator there is plenty of organic material:

Appliance should be pulled out.

Area should be swept and scrubbed.

Mice are attracted to fruit.

Please keep fruit and other food items sealed and preferably in the refrigerator, especially while we are battling this problem.

There is a lot of food product under the burners of your stove.

This should be cleaned out and scrubbed.

The side of your counters needs scrubbed.

A quick sweeping of your kitchen floor provided plenty of food products. A grain of rice can sustain a mouse for days.

Sweep regularly and scrub.

All the bags you keep can provide harborage for mice and bugs. They can also harbor bugs when they come from the store. Put in the recycling bins immediately after emptying.

Food items in light plastic bags should be placed in sealable containers to eliminate access and control smells.

The sense of smell for mice is many times that of humans.

Take trash out everyday. Do not leave it in your apartment.

You are steps away from the trash room.

There are plenty of crumbs under your cushions.

They should be vacuumed. It is possible mice could be nesting in your couch.

All the rags under the sink can provide harborage for mice and bugs.

A lot of food product in your toaster oven.

It should be thoroughly cleaned out after each use.

With all of us working toward the same goal we should be able to end this problem soon.

Thanks,

Your Building Manager