Problems with mice!

[strath44]

We are renting a fairly old farm cottage just now after selling our house.

We have a bit of an issue with mice.

They were in the bathroom which I solved with expanding foam around the waste / water pipes.

But one has now appeared in the dining room and I can't see where from.

We are both fair animal lovers and I don't fancy putting traps or poison down (dues to kids going about also).

I've heard that the trap and release traps don't really work as the mice come back?

What are the ultrasonic replellents like that you plug into the wall do they work?

many thanks for any help!!

ps a cat isn't an option as we aren't allowed pets!

[wdfifteen]

Those ultra sonic things don't work well. I have one and the ground squirrels still camp out in my cars. The only things I have found to work are poison and traps. The catch and release traps I tried (D-Con brand) didn't work. The mice were in the trap intact, but dead. Don't know why.

[GH85Carrera]

Put out the traps. You have to go Terminator on them.

Long long ago I dated a lady that just kept trapping mice and releasing them in a field 1/2 a mile away. I convinced her to put a little hydrogen peroxide on one of them to bleach the hair. She released it and the same mouse was back the next day. She went medieval on them after that.

They really really do carry deadly disease and can destroy a lot of expensive property.

[FLYGEEZER]

Best to get a female cat. They are killers ! It's natures way. I too live in a farm house & country livin' has it's problems with varmits. Don't get a male cat, they just eat,crap & piss all over the place. Get the female spay'd or you'll be covered up with pussy in a very short time.

[stomachmonkey]

I have the Ultrasonic plug ins in my garage.

Had a minor mouse issue before.

Have not had one since.

Been 4 years.

They are cheap enough to give a shot.

The other remedy is you are renting.

Why is this your problem?

What does the landlord say?

I'm sure he does not want to have to worry about your kids getting Hanta virus from rodent poop or the fleas they may be carrying.

Tell him to fix it or let you get a cat if he does not want to pay an exterminator.

[t-tom]

This will take care of it.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by FLYGEEZER

Best to get a female cat. They are killers ! It's natures way. I too live in a farm house & country livin' has it's problems with varmits.

Mine likes to hunt outside and bring her successes in. Apparently she thinks I'll be more impressed if they aren't dead yet. I think she's brought more vermin into the house than she's cleaned out.

[porsche4life]

A Jack Russell Terrier is a way better mouser than a cat... Albeit slightly less patient about it. They will destroy anything in their trail once the get on the trail of a mouse... But they get the mouse!!

[LeeH]

I'd think mice would have limited range. Those we've relocated from our yard or garage have never returned and we only put them 1/4 mile away.

[scottbombedout]

Kill them, seriously.

Once they have chewed through your wiring and set the cottage on fire you will wish you had.

They will chew through the expanding foam. Mortar with broken glass mixed in will make a far better barrier.

[cstreit]

I keep getting them in the house. Using snap traps but I hate cleaning them and they have had a tendency to drag them back behind walls.

Thinking of poisons but worried about dead mouse smell inside my walls. Is this an issue? I have heard that they dehydrate and leave the house in search of water?

[porsche4life]

Glue your snap traps to a bucket lid or a 1' square of cardboard.... They don't drag the trap aways and easy mess cleanup..



I think we are over 50 mice between all of our buildings this year...

[FLYGEEZER]

A dead mouse ain't got much smell. And what little there is, don't last long. Now a dead rat is an other story. Amen on the Jack Russell. I love dogs but they are insane! Yea, better than a cat for killin' varmits AND they kill cats too!

[JAR0023]

Originally Posted by cstreit

I keep getting them in the house. Using snap traps but I hate cleaning them and they have had a tendency to drag them back behind walls.

Thinking of poisons but worried about dead mouse smell inside my walls. Is this an issue? I have heard that they dehydrate and leave the house in search of water?

We live in the country. No real mouse infestation but we'd occasionally see one in the garage. We also have a duck camp that stays closed up 2/3 of the year. Mice in a share cropper's house in the middle of a bean field is a never ending war.

I used poison once. It's amazing how bad one mouse can smell, and how far that smell can carry.

Before we had cats I had the best luck with glue boards. The big ones. Little ones they hop right over. 100% glue boards at the duck camp. Once they are stuck you'll hear it and have to deal with it. Channel locks to the skull and drop it in the trash. Relatively mess free.

Haven't seen a live mouse at home since the cats arrived. The poster above is dead on about females. We have a male/female pair of litter mates. The male is alright but the female is a stone cold killer. -J

[cstreit]

Originally Posted by FLYGEEZER

A dead mouse ain't got much smell. And what little there is, don't last long. Now a dead rat is an other story. Amen on the Jack Russell. I love dogs but they are insane! Yea, better than a cat for killin' varmits AND they kill cats too!

I beg to disagree. I had one drag a snap trap back behind a wall and made my office uninhabitable for 2-3 days even after I removed it. Now I tie strings to all the traps so they can't go far.

Want something that doesn't require me to reset it and have stinking mouse carcass inside.

Oh, I'm allergic to cat dander.

[GH85Carrera]

We had a mouse drop down a inside wall in the house. Our Dachshund wanted to eat the wall to get to the scratching. It got real stinky for a week or so.

[Rick V]

This is what I use for mice, she will kill anything and everything including the neighbors dog if I would let her out. If the landlord insists on no pets tell him to get rid of HIS pet mice.

[jcommin]

Killing them is one thing, find where they are coming in is another. Find the entrance(s), the traps will take care of the rest - problem gone.

[Bugsinrugs]

I live in the country and had mouse and field rats in the garage. Two female rescue cats and the problem is solved. They live in the garage and do not come into the house. Female cats are serial killers. They will kill anything they can catch. Birds, lizards, frogs, gophers..........

[Heel n Toe]

Originally Posted by jcommin

Killing them is one thing, find where they are coming in is another. Find the entrance(s), the traps will take care of the rest - problem gone.

^^^ This.

Strath44, look thoroughly in all your kitchen cabinets (mostly the ones under the counter), especially under the sink around the pipes, and you will probably find most access holes. Stuff 1/4" mesh hardware cloth in the hole and add insulating foam to that.

Also look behind/under the fridge and stove.

Check the pipes under the bathroom sink/s, too.