Here’s how to use a tea bag to keep insects and rodents away.

The uneasy feeling of spotting mice or spiders exploring your living space is a universal discomfort that many seek to avoid. Especially for those with arachnophobia or musophobia, finding a solution to deter these unwelcome visitors is paramount. Here’s a natural, harm-free tip that ensures your home remains a critter-free sanctuary!

Despite various available traps and poisons designed to eliminate spiders and mice, many of these methods pose potential hazards for both humans and pets.

The Gentle Power of Peppermint
Here’s a gentle, yet effective way to naturally deter these small intruders without resorting to traps, toxic sprays, or poisons: utilizing peppermint tea or essential oil.

Peppermint Tea:
Simply brew peppermint tea and strategically place the used tea bags in areas frequented by spiders and mice, like corners of rooms, to keep them at bay.

Peppermint Essential Oil:
Alternatively, combine 10-15 drops of peppermint essential oil in a water-filled spray bottle and spritz around baseboards. Not only does this prevent the critters from invading, but it also leaves your home smelling fresh. (Note: If you have pets, opt for the tea method, as essential oils can be harmful to them.)

Additional Techniques to Maintain a Critter-Free Home
Discourage Spider Homesteading: Prevent spiders by ensuring your home surroundings do not harbor spider-friendly environments, like plants, woodpiles, or undisturbed dark areas.

Seal Entry Points:
Keep both spiders and mice out by identifying and sealing potential entryways, like small cracks or gaps around doors and windows.

Eliminate Food & Shelter Sources:
A clean home, with minimal hiding spots and available food, discourages persistence from mice and spiders alike.

Remove Webs:
Regularly clear any spider webs with a vacuum or an extendable broom to deter their return.

The Importance of a Critter-Free Home
While the presence of mice in a home carries potential health risks due to their capability to spread diseases like lymphocytic choriomeningitis via their urine and feces, spiders generally pose a smaller threat. Most spiders do not bite humans unless threatened, and most household spider bites are harmless. However, maintaining a critter-free home not only ensures peace of mind but also safeguards against possible health concerns.

900-Pound Horse Trapped in Mud – Owner Stays by His Side for Three Grueling Hours

A Mother’s Love and Determination Save a 900-Pound Horse from a Muddy Trap

How far would you go for someone you love? For Nicole Graham from Melbourne, Australia, the answer was clear: as far as it takes.

Nicole, an experienced horse owner with 10 horses, was out for an afternoon ride with her daughter Paris when their peaceful outing took a terrifying turn. Both horses unexpectedly became trapped in thick mud. Nicole managed to free her daughter’s horse, but Astro, her 900-pound, 17-year-old companion, remained hopelessly stuck.

As Astro struggled to free himself, he sank even deeper. With no other option, Nicole stayed by his side, keeping him calm and comforting him as they waited for help. For over three exhausting hours, Nicole clung to Astro, refusing to leave him alone in his distress.

When rescue teams finally arrived, a veterinarian administered sedatives to Astro, allowing the team to attach a harness and carefully pull him out using a tractor. After an intense effort, Astro was finally freed.

Reflecting on the harrowing experience, Nicole told The Geelong Advertiser: “It was terrifying. It was heartbreaking to see my horse exhausted and struggling. I’ve been riding here for 20 years and never had an issue. I never realized it was so boggy.”

One firefighter described the mud as behaving like quicksand, highlighting the dangerous conditions. Veterinarian Stacey Sullivan, who treated Astro for dehydration and sore muscles, praised Nicole’s dedication: “A lot of horses don’t make it in situations like this. Without the owner’s presence, the chances of survival would have been much lower.”