Glue Traps And Bucket Traps For Mice Banned In Iceland

Glue trips and so-called bucket traps–which kill mice by drowning–are banned in Iceland, a reminder announcement from the Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority (MAST) states. The announcement is made in response to recent reports in an upswing of house mice detected in Icelandic homes.

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The announcement cites Article 28 of Iceland’s animal welfare law, which specifically states: “When exterminating pests, it is not permitted to use methods which cause unnecessary entrapment or pain. It must be ensured that extermination methods do not cause harm to any animals besides pests.”

The announcement states further that it is illegal to hunt house mice outside of the home, or to use poison for them in the outdoors.

MAST recommends that people employ cage traps that catch and keep mice alive. These traps must be checked daily to ensure the mouse does not suffer unnecessarily, and to ensure that the traps are functional.

When a mouse is caught, it must either by killed quickly, or released into the wild. It is banned by law to let mice stay in such traps for very long or to let them starve to death.

No criminal penalties for breaking these laws are outlined in the laws themselves, so presumably MAST is simply appealing to the better natures of the human species.