Mice and mouse traps?
Discussion
Evening PH
It seems we have mice (again). We had a few this time last year (when we moved in) but nothing since the spring, until 2/3 weeks ago (fairly standard with the colder weather I think)
We live in a rural location, open fields beside and behind, so I guess it's fairly likely to happen. They seem to only be in the loft and garage at the moment, I don’t think they’re getting into the main house (yet)
The garage is integral with the house and I think, but am not 100% sure, that they are coming into the garage via the gaps around the up-and-over doors and getting up into the loft via boxed in pipes which go down into the garage.
I have traps in the loft and garage and a catching one or two a week, but I’m concerned the smell of the bait in the traps (peanut butter) may be encouraging mice, who might otherwise carry on their merry way past, into the garage?
What do people think? Do you think I could creating the problem with the traps enticing mice in?
Also do people have any good ideas for discouraging them coming in? I have tried the ultrasonic mouse repellers but they don’t seem to do anything at all…
Any thoughts /suggestions welcomed
It seems we have mice (again). We had a few this time last year (when we moved in) but nothing since the spring, until 2/3 weeks ago (fairly standard with the colder weather I think)
We live in a rural location, open fields beside and behind, so I guess it's fairly likely to happen. They seem to only be in the loft and garage at the moment, I don’t think they’re getting into the main house (yet)
The garage is integral with the house and I think, but am not 100% sure, that they are coming into the garage via the gaps around the up-and-over doors and getting up into the loft via boxed in pipes which go down into the garage.
I have traps in the loft and garage and a catching one or two a week, but I’m concerned the smell of the bait in the traps (peanut butter) may be encouraging mice, who might otherwise carry on their merry way past, into the garage?
What do people think? Do you think I could creating the problem with the traps enticing mice in?
Also do people have any good ideas for discouraging them coming in? I have tried the ultrasonic mouse repellers but they don’t seem to do anything at all…
Any thoughts /suggestions welcomed
haggishunter said:
A decent cat is the only deterrent. Traps are the only alternative and certainly aren't encouraging them.
But how do you ensure you get a decent cat? My cat's a bloody mouse enabler. Brings them in live and unharmed, carefully in his mouth, and releases them indoors, then he has a sleep.Fit brush strip (draught excluder) to the base of any doors where the gap is sufficient to get a pencil through.
The skull of a mouse is flexible and they can flatten themselves down to get through these small gaps. They don't like the feel of the brush strip on their whiskers which, because they have extremely poor eyesight, they use for navigation.
Do not use a solid rubber roll type on the up and over door, they will push under it. The brush strip should be fitted so that the brush just touches the floor. As a bonus it will stop leaves and draughts.
Your pipes from the loft into the garage in a box section are an excellent way for mice to enter the house. Presumably at the garage end the box section is open. Depending on your DIY skills you might be able to make up a plate to cover the end with holes for the pipes.
Failing this get some chicken wire (as thin as possible), scrunch up a suitable size piece then ram into the opening around the pipes (the handle of a hammer is good for this).
Look around the house for any small gaps where pipes pass through, push wire wool into the gap and then sealant over the top. Mice don't chew wire wool.
If air bricks have large gaps fit a smaller mesh one over the top.
Exclusion is the first priority in pest control, followed by eradication of what's already in. Baiting with poison is good but check and refill every 3/4 days until bait take stops, otherwise mice can get a sub lethal dose and develop a resistance to the poison. As a guide in an area 12' X 12' I would have a minimum of 4 baits. Small quantities and lots of, mice only spend a few seconds eating at each one, in this way build up a lethal dose.
Forget all the jokers who tell you to get a cat, the lovely creatures bring in mice for you as a present and let them go.
I know all this after many years as a pest controller and also a cat owner (but not for their pest control abilities!)
HTH
The skull of a mouse is flexible and they can flatten themselves down to get through these small gaps. They don't like the feel of the brush strip on their whiskers which, because they have extremely poor eyesight, they use for navigation.
Do not use a solid rubber roll type on the up and over door, they will push under it. The brush strip should be fitted so that the brush just touches the floor. As a bonus it will stop leaves and draughts.
Your pipes from the loft into the garage in a box section are an excellent way for mice to enter the house. Presumably at the garage end the box section is open. Depending on your DIY skills you might be able to make up a plate to cover the end with holes for the pipes.
Failing this get some chicken wire (as thin as possible), scrunch up a suitable size piece then ram into the opening around the pipes (the handle of a hammer is good for this).
Look around the house for any small gaps where pipes pass through, push wire wool into the gap and then sealant over the top. Mice don't chew wire wool.
If air bricks have large gaps fit a smaller mesh one over the top.
Exclusion is the first priority in pest control, followed by eradication of what's already in. Baiting with poison is good but check and refill every 3/4 days until bait take stops, otherwise mice can get a sub lethal dose and develop a resistance to the poison. As a guide in an area 12' X 12' I would have a minimum of 4 baits. Small quantities and lots of, mice only spend a few seconds eating at each one, in this way build up a lethal dose.
Forget all the jokers who tell you to get a cat, the lovely creatures bring in mice for you as a present and let them go.
I know all this after many years as a pest controller and also a cat owner (but not for their pest control abilities!)
HTH
Etretat said:
So glad I spent the time and trouble to write that reply
We have just got our first mouse (well still arguing about wheter it's a big mouse or a small rat, lol), it's behind the kitchen cupboards, going to buy some traps today. After reading your post, will check outside to see where he might have got in, so thanks for that! We just assumed it was when one of us left a door open.55palfers said:
Little Nipper baited with Twix.
Push the caramel onto the spike.
Guaranteed killing machine.
Die Stuart Little, die!
Little Nippers were useless for me,little buggers just took the chocolate. The force needed to trip them seemed too much,although I may have had a duff batch or set them wrong.Push the caramel onto the spike.
Guaranteed killing machine.
Die Stuart Little, die!
Humane ones worked best for me
2lefthands said:
DO NOT block up ventilation in your house, even by covering with mesh. It is there to provide air for a reason.
Perhaps I should not have said "mesh". But as said a mouse can get through a gap high enough to get a pencil through. Obviously the mouse needs more width than a pencil. Some older air bricks have wide gaps with enough height for a mouse. A decent grille/air brick will have vertical pieces in the slots to prevent rodent entry.
Yes I think stainless pot scourers would work if you are worried about wire wool rusting. If the hole that needs blocking is not surrounding a pipe that will expand and contract then cement is the answer, remember tho check once it's dry that the little critters have not burrowed through it before it set. Some pest controller put ground up glass in the cement mix.
Etretat said:
Fit brush strip (draught excluder) to the base of any doors where the gap is sufficient to get a pencil through.
The skull of a mouse is flexible and they can flatten themselves down to get through these small gaps. They don't like the feel of the brush strip on their whiskers which, because they have extremely poor eyesight, they use for navigation.
Do not use a solid rubber roll type on the up and over door, they will push under it. The brush strip should be fitted so that the brush just touches the floor. As a bonus it will stop leaves and draughts.
Your pipes from the loft into the garage in a box section are an excellent way for mice to enter the house. Presumably at the garage end the box section is open. Depending on your DIY skills you might be able to make up a plate to cover the end with holes for the pipes.
Failing this get some chicken wire (as thin as possible), scrunch up a suitable size piece then ram into the opening around the pipes (the handle of a hammer is good for this).
Look around the house for any small gaps where pipes pass through, push wire wool into the gap and then sealant over the top. Mice don't chew wire wool.
If air bricks have large gaps fit a smaller mesh one over the top.
Exclusion is the first priority in pest control, followed by eradication of what's already in. Baiting with poison is good but check and refill every 3/4 days until bait take stops, otherwise mice can get a sub lethal dose and develop a resistance to the poison. As a guide in an area 12' X 12' I would have a minimum of 4 baits. Small quantities and lots of, mice only spend a few seconds eating at each one, in this way build up a lethal dose.
Forget all the jokers who tell you to get a cat, the lovely creatures bring in mice for you as a present and let them go.
I know all this after many years as a pest controller and also a cat owner (but not for their pest control abilities!)
HTH
I have rats, I live in a georgian house that is mostly cob, I have done the wire wool thing, my problem is large voids I cannot access and suspended floors on part of the ground floor. I have put loads of poison down in areas that are inaccesible to humans and the dog. It must be working as most of the ground floor stinks of decaying rodent. As I cannot access the areas how long will the smell last and will it attract more rats.The skull of a mouse is flexible and they can flatten themselves down to get through these small gaps. They don't like the feel of the brush strip on their whiskers which, because they have extremely poor eyesight, they use for navigation.
Do not use a solid rubber roll type on the up and over door, they will push under it. The brush strip should be fitted so that the brush just touches the floor. As a bonus it will stop leaves and draughts.
Your pipes from the loft into the garage in a box section are an excellent way for mice to enter the house. Presumably at the garage end the box section is open. Depending on your DIY skills you might be able to make up a plate to cover the end with holes for the pipes.
Failing this get some chicken wire (as thin as possible), scrunch up a suitable size piece then ram into the opening around the pipes (the handle of a hammer is good for this).
Look around the house for any small gaps where pipes pass through, push wire wool into the gap and then sealant over the top. Mice don't chew wire wool.
If air bricks have large gaps fit a smaller mesh one over the top.
Exclusion is the first priority in pest control, followed by eradication of what's already in. Baiting with poison is good but check and refill every 3/4 days until bait take stops, otherwise mice can get a sub lethal dose and develop a resistance to the poison. As a guide in an area 12' X 12' I would have a minimum of 4 baits. Small quantities and lots of, mice only spend a few seconds eating at each one, in this way build up a lethal dose.
Forget all the jokers who tell you to get a cat, the lovely creatures bring in mice for you as a present and let them go.
I know all this after many years as a pest controller and also a cat owner (but not for their pest control abilities!)
HTH
Its been suggested they can gain access via the dog flap....likely or not? The scrabbling sound under the floors has stpped now but I suspect a temporary reprieve
Rangeroverover said:
I have rats, I live in a georgian house that is mostly cob, I have done the wire wool thing, my problem is large voids I cannot access and suspended floors on part of the ground floor. I have put loads of poison down in areas that are inaccesible to humans and the dog. It must be working as most of the ground floor stinks of decaying rodent. As I cannot access the areas how long will the smell last and will it attract more rats.
Its been suggested they can gain access via the dog flap....likely or not? The scrabbling sound under the floors has stpped now but I suspect a temporary reprieve
I learned that the hard way that many years ago -NEVER use poison bait in a house -you can guarantee the little sods will crawl into the most inaccessible spot to die -under floor boards, in wall cavities, gaps around pipes etc and even a decaying woodmouse will stink the house out for weeks with the vile smell of rotting rodent! Stick with traps and empty them regularly. A 2ounce mouse will stink for about three weeks, but a rat is half a pound or more so how long that will last is anyone's guess. As a thought, gruesome as it may sound, how about tipping a handfull of maggots ( from an angling shop) roughly where you think the rat is an letting them crawl to it -at least they'll strip it faster than just leaving it to rot? Its been suggested they can gain access via the dog flap....likely or not? The scrabbling sound under the floors has stpped now but I suspect a temporary reprieve
Rangeroverover said:
I have rats, I live in a georgian house that is mostly cob, I have done the wire wool thing, my problem is large voids I cannot access and suspended floors on part of the ground floor. I have put loads of poison down in areas that are inaccesible to humans and the dog. It must be working as most of the ground floor stinks of decaying rodent. As I cannot access the areas how long will the smell last and will it attract more rats.
Its been suggested they can gain access via the dog flap....likely or not? The scrabbling sound under the floors has stpped now but I suspect a temporary reprieve
RangeroverIts been suggested they can gain access via the dog flap....likely or not? The scrabbling sound under the floors has stpped now but I suspect a temporary reprieve
Sorry not sure what you mean by "cob"? Also can you be a bit more specific about the inaccessible voids? Is the house detached.
As regards the smell from dead rodents it is most unpleasant, you can try to disguise the smell with air fresheners etc, but probably the best thing is open windows, I know, I know....
As a general rule of thumb a mouse will dehydrate in 24/36 hours whereas a rat (being larger can take a week/10 days. If the temperature is higher it will dehydrate quicker but the smell will be worse. Once dehydrated the smell will stop.
You are doing the best thing in killing them because rats breed rapidly with 7-8 in a litter (4-16 for mice). Eventually they die one by one and will smell so better to hit the problem hard and suffer the short term smell.
The smell will not attract other rats/mice. However they both follow scent trails of others so doubly important to seal entry points.
Is there any possibility of a break in a soil pipe? Rats live in sewers.
Rats need a supply of water as they need to drink daily so think about this one. Mice get sufficient moisture from the food they eat and do not need to drink. Where you are putting the poison (presumably a blue grain based one which is an anti coagulant can you put some in something like a take away food tray with water, this will make it more attractive to the rats.
I have never hears of rats entering via a dog/cat flap but I guess its possible. Can you sprinkle talc on the floor (indoors), their foot prints will soon give the away.
When you put down bait remember that rats have neophobia (a fear of new objects) so it may be a few days before the take the bait.
If you let me know the answers to my questions above I'll do my best to help
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