Let’s talk mice…

[lil_Blue_Ford]

So once again the fight is on here. Seems in the summer around here it’s about impossible to trap a mouse. But fall and winter are an entirely different story. And every year we lose the battle, little @#$&*%=+ destroy something. Last year between my trucks that I put traps in and my box truck, I wiped out about 40 or so. Three trucks with a single trap each and one of the 5 gallon bucket traps that uses a sort of rolling pin in the box truck. Not sure how many we got out of the attic.

Have two traps out right now, need to get the rest going here soon. Dad got I think 8-10 out of the attic so far.

Pretty sure our mice have some brain damage or something though…

Anyone have good recommendations on getting rid of them or keeping them away from stuff?

 

[97RangerXLT]

a couple outdoor cats in addition to your traps. the mice will stay away from the area if they know an apex predator is skulking around. The mice will smell the cats and where they mark their territory and stay away from that area. you will likely see a drop in your trap harvest as well.

The issue with the cats is that coyote's and owls/ hawks and other large raptors can get the cats.

so build them a nice place to get a way or bring them into the garage in the evening and let them out to hunt early in the morning through the day. A friend of mine has done this for several years, and still has the same two cats. before that, they would disappear all the time.

AJ

 

[tw205]

Can’t we all just get along.

No, just foolin around. Cats. I keep two well fed and I rarely see a mouse that isn’t dead on the back porch. A gift for the cat chow. Works for red squirrels moles rats and rabbits.

Edit.... get your cats spayed or neutered. The males will stay around and won’t mark everything with their stank. The females won’t make more.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

We have had one or two indoor/outdoor cats for years. Actually saw less mice when we had a German Shepherd. They don’t seem to mind the cats. Cats are in at night and free to roam during the day. One of our current cats was a feral that made a home under the one shed and the other is her daughter.

 

[Roert42]

Have you tried more traps?

That’s all I got. I’ve started seeing mouse poop in the kitchen.

Had a stray that had kittens near the garage, mice disappeared for a while. Cats left, mice came back.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I use traps that I buy at the dollar store. They are black plastic and self setting. Face them against a wall WITHOUT bait. Mice like to travel against walls and will run over the trigger and BAMM!

 

[Roert42]

I have one of those large boxed that can catch multiple mice, leave that in the attic.

Use glue traps on the kitchen counters, black plastic trays with green goo.

 

[Shran]

I've been fortunate to have only had a couple in my house. There was evidence of an extensive problem when I bought the house so I spent a lot of time caulking small holes, filling bigger ones with spray foam, and fixed a couple large areas that bigger creatures could come through. I caught one after that in the basement, found a dead one in the furnace and a few turds in one spot but that's been the extent of it.

I don't do much in the vehicles, haven't had an issue yet, but I did buy one that sat in a field for 10 years. It had ZERO rodent damage but the owner had put these little bags of stuff under the seats, it was called "Fresh Cab" I think. Every single other vehicle that I've pulled out of a field, without exception, has had a mouse nest or 10 in it...I can only assume that those scent bags work.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

We have an assortment of traps. Not many of the old snap traps, but a pile of the black plastic version. I took to using the covered traps in the trucks. Bait everything with peanut butter. I have one of the tin cat traps (metal repeater) but in all the years I’ve had it, it’s never caught one mouse.

My parents house is solid concrete from the footer to the roof. We built it using ICF blocks, foam blocks that you fill with concrete. The exterior is clad in brick. Both myself and dad have been around the house multiple times and can’t find the tiniest hole, but somehow we always have mice in the attic. Only thing I can think of is that maybe they got in during construction and we just never managed to kill them all.

 

[1990RangerinSK]

I have one of those large boxed that can catch multiple mice, leave that in the attic.

Use glue traps on the kitchen counters, black plastic trays with green goo.

Read this: https://www.hsi.org/news-media/glue-traps-faqs/. It is written for the UK, but could be applied to the US and Canada, too. Do NOT use glue traps. Mice caught in them will suffer, and causing unnecessary suffering is, I'm sure, a criminal offense in most states, and in Canada.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I don’t like using glue traps. I hate mice but don’t particularly want to make them suffer. I have used them when all else fails though. There was a mouse at my girls place that would rob or avoid any trap. After trying for a good while, couple weeks at least, a glue trap went down. We promptly ended the suffering, but it got rid of the troublemaker

 

[Ranger850]

I have used something like these with great success.

Rodent Repellent,Mouse Repellent,Pest Reject,Mice Repellent,Natural Rat Repellent,Pest Control,Insect Repellent 4 Pcs - Walmart.com

Buy Rodent Repellent,Mouse Repellent,Pest Reject,Mice Repellent,Natural Rat Repellent,Pest Control,Insect Repellent 4 Pcs at Walmart.com

www.google.com

Every winter our house would get infested. Cats made no difference. This stuff, plus putting steel wool in the holes where they are coming, in fixed our problem. They hate steel wool because they can't chew it up, so they avoid it. The also hate the smell of peppermint. That's where the little bags come into play. Put them anywhere you don't want mice. They can smell it from a long ways and will also avoid it

"Steel wool is a great way to block the small holes pests use to enter your home. First off, steel wool is tough but flexible; it can be pushed into all shapes and sizes of cracks and crevices. Pests like rats and mice hate chewing through steel wool, since the sharp edges hurt them the more they try to chew. Sep 26, 2021
How to Use Steel Wool for Pest Control | Family Handyman"

How to use peppermint oil to keep mice away

Does peppermint oil repel mice? Some feel using peppermint oil to keep mice away is a myth, but to learn how to use peppermint oil as a mice repellant, read on.

www.chicagotribune.com

 

[Uncle Gump]

Read this: https://www.hsi.org/news-media/glue-traps-faqs/. It is written for the UK, but could be applied to the US and Canada, too. Do NOT use glue traps. Mice caught in them will suffer, and causing unnecessary suffering is, I'm sure, a criminal offense in most states, and in Canada.

I'm sure the poison you can buy at any Walmart wouldn't be considered cruel by many.

But while in the restaurant business... I had to keep a file and have a monthly log for pest control. I chose Orkin to be my vendor. They use wall traps with a glue pad in them. I highly doubt it's a criminal offence. In fact I'm positive it's not. One of the worlds largest exterminator companies certainly would not do it if it was.

I'm a hunter and a trapper... I also consider myself a very ethical sportsman. The rules change when vermin are causing or even about to cause damage to personal property. Most laws even protect you in the event that damage is occurring.

 

[Roert42]

For the glue traps I mostly used them in the kitchen, check them in the morning before work, kill any mice I find, set new ones. They also have poison in the glue so if they are there for more then a day they are dead at any rate.

I agree, not the most humane way to deal with the problem, but I have found it to be extremely effective.

 

[superj]

the bad thing about glue traps is you catch other things in them, too. our cats have stepped in them and i have a caught a few snakes in them. i don't kill snakes, even rattlers, because they have a purpose in our ecology. mice breed so much i have no problem killing them but i use those green things they eat. the negative is you have to find them once they die and sometimes they are hard to find.

since i have a number of cats now, though, i have not had a mouse issue in a few years. the female cats are the hunters so get a few fixed and let them be garage or outdoor with garage access and you will probably be good. they even take car of snakes, if snakes are an issue. i have had to save a snake or two from death by cat