Mice!!!!!!!!!!!

[DeLeon]

Since the weather started getting colder, I have seen more and more evidence of mice in the house. From droppings on the counter, to chewed holes in the wall. We just built this house in Dec. of 2006, and I dont recall any signs of them last year..just in the last month or so. I have traps out, but I hate to empty them, and I can catch three a night sometimes. I dont know what to do...we keep a very clean house, nothing seems to work. I could get some poison, but with a three yr old running around, i really hate to do that. Has anyone tried the electronic pest repeller that you plug into the wall? Or any other ideas?

[srwatters]

I have a 16# Bengal cat that patrols our home...

[thebeginning]

Originally Posted by srwatters

I have a 16# Bengal cat that patrols our home...

you sir have an awesome looking cat





i would recommend a cat unless you're allergic...ours takes care of our mice. i never see mice unless they have caught one.

[Big Dog]

They're (obviously) getting in somewhere! With a new house, I would bet that there is a pipe or something coming in from the outside that has a large enough opening around it that the mice can get in that way. You might look around the outside of the house and the foundation for just such an entryway. This may not help, but even critters take the easy way in.

(When we had a central HVAC unit put in a few years ago, the 1 inch pipe going to the outside unit went through a 3 INCH hole that the installer had drilled in the floor. Plugging up the excess did wonders ... )

[gardener]

The electronic pest repellers only work if the little buggers will stand still long enough for you to smack em in the head with the device.
The old style Victor snap traps work about as well as anything and they're cheap as well. Bait with raw bacon or peanut butter...

And I agree... Scott, that is one fine looking kitty.

[123canon]

meow

[DeLeon]

Originally Posted by gardener

The electronic pest repellers only work if the little buggers will stand still long enough for you to smack em in the head with the device.
The old style Victor snap traps work about as well as anything and they're cheap as well. Bait with raw bacon or peanut butter...

And I agree... Scott, that is one fine looking kitty.

We do have a kitten... maybe when she gets a little older, she will be a better hunter.

My wife says to just stop feeding her.

[Dsheree]

call a bug guy....my DH does this for a living and let me tell you I hear all the stories of "tryng to take care of it myself.

It's almost winter and if one can get in 1 million can get in...then they have babies. They can do $xxx of damage. Call a professional

[Huck]

Another option is the traps that use glue or close behind them, so the dont stick up the house when they die.

I had have a mouse in my home in Burkburnett once, he died in my washer so it was easy to take care of LOL

[tjavery]

We've recently had a problem in our attic. I observed droppings all over the place and scratching/scurrying noises coming from the ceiling.

I tried the old-style traps in various sizes (baited with peanut butter) for a long time with no success. Those little guys can lick the traps clean without setting them off.

I finally gave up and went to poison. It worked. They crawled outside looking for water and died in the yard. The biggest surprise was finding one of the dead creatures to be an 8-inch long rat (sans tail)!!!

[Dennis_H]

I had a rat in the house last year and tried several different things. I finally got a rat zapper from Home Depot and put a little peanut butter in it. Couple days later, emptied it in the garbage can. No mess, smell, etc. Thing was almost as big as a squirrel. Wasn't cheap, but I couldn't get it with Victor traps or glue traps. Runs on 4 'C' batteries and must put out a pretty good jolt. LED blinks when it has tripped.

I'm guessing it would work great for a mouse too, but you will want to make sure it isn't where a child will get it.

[kenw]

we had the problem many years ago, the pros will just come out and set traps.

try this:

take a shoebox. Use the lid to make a cover with a 1"x 3" open slot in the center so they can get in. add a ramp up one end (another shoe box lid works).

smear some peanut butter on the bottom of the inside of the box.

the mice WILL find it, climb the ramp, jump in and cannot jump out.
place the lid on the box, carry gingerly outside, open and toss the little fella out.

repeat as required.

We got rid of about 6-7 that way. of course, this was after I plugged all the holes, the worst being around pipes under sinks.

[HutchPhoto]

Nice Ken.
I would like to see photos of the shoe box trap if you have any?

[LWimages]

I have 2 cats and a Mini Schnauzer that will do just that specific duty.

[kenw]

Originally Posted by HutchPhoto

Nice Ken.
I would like to see photos of the shoe box trap if you have any?

this was like, 15 years ago, long before cameras were invented.....;)

Lunchtime KenKad: