^{Freshly scented enough to  rid your home of odors and keep the mice away, too? That's Fresh Cab, the latest in soon-to-be mouse-be-gone products that is in the final stages of attaining Environmental Protection Agency-approval to be labeled as a botanical rodent repellent.
Fresh Cab is the creation of Kari Warberg, a North Dakota farmer’s wife who used to work at the cosmetics counter at a local department store.
“One day while I was sitting in my then boyfriend’s truck, I looked down and there was a mouse sitting by my foot.  After letting out a big scream, my first instinct was to grab a bottle of perfume out of my purse and start spraying.  That mouse was so turned off by the smell, he jumped out of the truck and took off running,” said Warberg.
After making the realization that scents people like are repulsive to mice, she started spraying pinecones she had gathered around the yard with perfume and putting them in places she knew mice liked to hide. “It worked for a couple of months, but once the scent wore off, they started coming back.”
Warberg knew that if she wanted to keep the mice away for good, she’d have to come up with a scent that would last a long time. She did a little research and then started experimenting with the same essential oils she had used to turn wildflowers into potpourri. Once she found the perfect mix, she began marketing it as Fresh Cab.  
That was in 1998. This year, her company, Crane Creek Gardens, will sell its 1 millionth pouch. Independent lab testing shows the all-natural repellent performs as well as, and in some cases better than, chemical-based products on the market. It is said to be 76 percent successful in keeping away mice.}