BACKGROUND

It has been said that if you build a better mouse trap, the world will beat a path to your door. Maybe because of this, many have tried to improve on the traditional mouse trap device. The problem with many mouse traps are that they are messy, violent, and torture or mortally wound the animal and/or use poisons, and require contact and/or clean up after completing the task. Few people want to deal with extracting the corpse, disposing of it, and cleaning the eventual mess that occurs. What is needed is a mouse trap that is clean, efficient, humane, poison-free, and does not require contact with the animal after death. The present invention addresses these needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a mouse trap comprising a bottle or jar that can be screwed onto a trap housing to form an airtight seal. The trap includes a large hole in the jar's lid or cap through which a mouse can enter, and a plastic bag is placed inside the jar. Bait is placed in the plastic bag to lure the mouse inside. The plastic bag is placed inside the jar and the trap is provided with a pressure detector, motion detector or switch that senses when a mouse has entered the jar. The trap includes a solenoid that releases a hollow rod and suction cup to occlude the hole where the mouse entered, such that the suction cup forms a seal with the jar and the plastic bag while trapping the mouse in the plastic bag. The vacuum may come from a passage through the rod or directly through the bottle cap. The detector signals a controller to actuate a vacuum pump to remove the air from the plastic bag with the mouse inside. The removal of air from the bag causes the mouse to lose consciousness, and eventually suffocate in its sleep. The mouse does not suffer and there is no mess associated with the operation of the device. Once the mouse is dead, the vacuum is turned off, the jar is unscrewed and the mouse and bag are removed. The bag can be dropped into a waste can for disposal without the need to touch the rodent. The device is simple, efficient, reusable, and provides a humane way to eliminate the animal.

Alternately, the vacuum can be turned off and the trap is used as a non-kill catch and release device where the mouse can be released alive at another location.

