I also hate the idea of poison or anything that doesn't kill them easily but they can be virtually impossible to get rid of once they find you. Our last house was over 100 years old and I am sure had so many entry points for rodents. When one came into our bedroom it was the last straw. We tried traps but they were evasive. Very clever creatures although not good at listening to my threats. Apparently those who took over our house when we sold it had a massive infestation everywhere which I attribute partly to the fact that they acquired chickens in the small yard. It took quite a while for them to get rid of the problem and in the meanwhile their two teenaged girls were beside themselves with rats in their underwear drawers. Not fun at all.