It's not a dead cert that there are humane ways of keeping rodents under control

Let's not dwell on what he did afterwards, but the Pied Piper's initial pest-control mission was effective and eco friendly (just one wooden recorder). It's strange: pet mice are theoretically governed by animal welfare legislation, laboratory mice are regulated, but rodent mice you can kill at will.

It's all to do with context: pet- rescue charity recently "rehomed" 3,000 mice after things got out of control with two pet mice in a cage, but I doubt that they would want to hear about non-pet infestations.

The acknowledged expert in humane wildlife pest control is (it also offers the death-free removal of squirrels and foxes). As for DIY options, snap traps and glue boards should be banned. When animals get stuck on the latter they sometimes chew through their own limbs. Rodenticides are quick, but you're left with a decaying underfloor mouse or a poisoned one that can be ingested by other pets or wildlife. Humane traps are all the rage; however, you need to take jailed mice quite a distance to rule out repeat visits, and a house mouse won't last long in open country. Radar – "the world's smartest mousetrap" – from Rentokil is hardly mouse friendly; it kills mice but uses CO2 gas to knock them unconscious first, then sends you and Rentokil a confirmation text.

Live and let live is an ethical proposition, but undermined in this case by the fact mice carry 35 known zoonotic diseases, and two mice can become 2,000 mice in just one year.