They are so tough to get rid of. Like you, I'd be concerned that a rat/mouse would ingest one of the mixtures, crawl out, and the dog get the mouse. I've been using Shake Away granulated fox urine to repel skunks. Just read some more on it and one site says it repels mice. Hey, it even repels cats. It's all natural, won't hurt the dogs or any of your plantings. Been using it for several years now and no skunks in the yard. Come to think of it, we didn't have mice in the garden shed this winter. In past years bought it of Amazon but happened to find it at our local feed store this spring.