Officials struggle to battle mice in Cobb elementary school

A female mouse can have as many as 12 offspring every three weeks. Encourage her to raise that family elsewhere. Photo: contributed by National Pest Management Association

A female mouse can have as many as 12 offspring every three weeks. Encourage her to raise that family elsewhere. Photo: contributed by National Pest Management Association

An elementary school in east Cobb County has been battling a surge of mice since earlier this semester, officials say.

Officials suspect field mice first entered Sedalia Park Charter Elemetary after a fall decoration with hay and corn stalks was set up in September.

Health officials have not found any evidence of rodents in the school's cafeteria, according to the Marietta Daily Journal.

In order to control the mice, school officials have set traps outside the building and in classrooms, sealed visible holes and trimmed trees and bushes bordering the school, according to a letter Principal Karen Wacker sent to parents on Friday.

Despite the traps, officials noticed mice in another part of the school after Thanksgiving break.

"We are moving aggressively to get rid of any and all field mice that might stil be lurking around the school," Lauretta Hannon, communication assistant with the school district,  told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Hannon said there was additional cleaning done this past weekend, with a more chemically intensive cleaning scheduled for winter break, while students are not in school.

“We can’t use some of the aggressive methods that you may be able to use in a factory in school, some of the poison baits, for example, because obviously, you’d worry about students getting a hold of those," Deputy Superintendent John Adams said.

See all the health inspections for Sedalia Park School here.