SANFORD (NEWS CENTER Maine) -- It is said that if you build a better mouse trap, the world will beat a path to your door.
"That has not happened yet," muses Dennis Theriault an animal control specialist in Sanford.
"It's a better mouse trap system," he says. "I haven't changed the mouse trap."
His product is designed to make the mouse trap more efficient. Theriault believes that mice will sometimes eat the bait without springing the trap or somehow spring the trap without being caught. Bring on his invention.
The basic Mousestopper comes as a flattened cardboard box. As you fold it into shape, two channels emerge into which traps can be placed.
The back and sides of the box are sealed. The front has a lid which sticks out straight. It is a measuring device that insures the user is placing Mousestopper the proper distance from the wall.
The traps are baited and placed in the Mousestopper facing out. A mouse moving along a wall will smell the bait and turn into the trap. The channels of the Moustopper keep the mouse on the proper course because of their narrow width.
"I use sunflower seeds in my traps along with peanut butter," said the heavily bearded outdoorsman who made his living as a taxidermist until recently. He says peanut butter dries out and needs to be changed more often. Sunflower seeds attract mice for longer periods.
He also baits the traps "in the back." A mouse entering Mousestopper would have to go over the lever twice increasing the chances of a catch to close to 100%.
His basic model which includes two traps costs $2.99. His most expensive trap which contains four traps is made out of wood and costs $29.99.