Is it ethical to exterminate mice living in one's house to avoid disease? Some family members had mice in their house and wanted help and I was wondering about it. I would prefer they use live traps but I guess they want to be certain they get them all out.

Yes. Your health is paramount above animal's (especially pests) lives. It's not ideal though (poison can screw with your health too) and they should look at alternatives first. Have they considered adopting or fostering a cat? They will obliterate the mice without the need for poison.

HailVictory88 said:

Is it ethical to exterminate mice living in one's house to avoid disease? Some family members had mice in their house and wanted help and I was wondering about it. I would prefer they use live traps but I guess they want to be certain they get them all out.

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Jes, like flys there are many bodys for the mice to reincarnate, poisions (life traps are favorabel if it make sense) who do damage the wild life and could also end via eat and get eaten life cicles end up in our food chain should be avoided. One should store thear food etc so mice etc can´t eat them (good storages).

HailVictory88 said:

Is it ethical to exterminate mice living in one's house to avoid disease? Some family members had mice in their house and wanted help and I was wondering about it. I would prefer they use live traps but I guess they want to be certain they get them all out.

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You can try live traps, but if the mice are getting back into the house somehow then you would have to release them far away. Also, as you said, there could be many of them.

Yes, exterminating them would be ethical because you have to mix ethics with practicality. As our world evolves, then we can put more care into these things, but for now, that is not always reasonable.

Another example would be someone who does not drive to protest the pollution, but now that they don't drive, they don't have enough time to continue their activism. In this way, they have to fight until a more ideal situation arrives.

Thank you all for your responses, I appreciate your input. I will try to get rid of them in the most efficient way with no excess cruelty. I don't want the mouse droppings in the house to make anyone sick. But I also don't like to be flippant with the taking of any animal life even when necessary, so these responses helped me put the problem in perspective.