Unwanted Mice Advice

[Zebra]

I have lived in this house for 11 years.   There were not any mice that I was aware of for the first 10 years.   I am not saying there weren't mice, they just didn't make themselves known.  

 

Last year, we saw a very tiny mouse in our basement, which we use as a family room.   The weird thing is we had guinea pigs for years, and never saw a mouse.   I would think guinea pigs would attract mice because of the food and hay, but that didn't seem to be the case for us.   Anyway, mouse in the basement.   Then I started hearing scratching at night, which I had never heard before in this house.  I don't want to get into an argument about whether poison is a good choice, but after much research and hand-wringing we put some poison in the basement.   I understand they can get caught in the walls and die, but this one we found dead on the floor after about a week.  We went over our entire house and found that the dryer vent was disconnected from the dryer.   So, we thought maybe it got in that way.   We found some small chewing on something that was on the floor in our basement and nothing else.    

 

Then nothing, for a few months.   Suddenly, one day I walked down into the basement and there were several baby mice all over the floor in various states of dying and rolling around like they had fallen from the ceiling, one was running around drunkedly.   This was early winter.   Earlier that day I heard some weird chirping, but didn't make the connection.    Anyway, we caught and killed them all (they were all mostly dead) and absolutely scoured the house for any signs of anything.  We came up with NOTHING.   I can't even figure out where these mice fell from.  Again, a few months after that we had the same scenario.   But these were younger mice and less alive than the first batch.

 

That was February.   Nothing since then, but last night my husband heard that famous scratching.   I simply do not know what to do at this point.  I know part of life is that mice live in houses, but the babies dropping from the sky I really can't handle.  I put peppermint soaked cotton balls around the house.  I went out and bought steel wool to try to stick in holes around the foundation this weekend.   But, everything I've read says to look for feces and chewing, and we can't find that. 

 

Do I call an exterminator, and does that even work?  Should I get more guinea pigs to repel the mouse?   Should I just give up and start a mouse zoo?   Any ideas??? 

[NorthwestMom]

Call an exterminator and they will figure out where they coming from. A mouse can get into an incredibly tiny opening. It's important to seal up their entrance, remove any nests, and then figure out how to remove or kill the live ones.

 

So sorry! I found a live rat in my house two weeks ago, so I feel your pain. (My two indoor-only housecats were thrilled!) I had the exterminator come out and inspect, and he is coming back on Monday to seal up rat entrances to my crawlspace. It's so gross.

[Carol in Cal.]

Mice are so little and can squeeze through tiny openings.  It's disheartening.  A common path that tends to be overlooked is next to pipes coming under the house.

 

I suggest mousetraps.  The good thing about mice is that unlike rats they are dumb and trap easily.  Rats are more cautious and if they ever see a trap go off and it doesn't catch them, they won't ever go near one again.  They are far harder to catch that way.  

[marbel]

We had a mouse invasion a few months ago.  It took a long time to get rid of them.

 

Everything I read by people other than professional exterminators said not to bother with exterminators. They will put out poison and traps, tell you to find the minute places the mice are getting in, and leave with your check.  You still have to deal with dead mice.  And depending on your house, it may be impossible to find every opening.

 

We set regular traps all over the place.  We figured out we had very small mice (probably a nest somewhere) when we'd find the bait taken but the trap not sprung. So we set out poison (hated to do that) and finally bought a rat zapper.   It took a few days but within 3 days we got 7 or 8 mice in it. 

 

We also cleaned the pantry out completely and made sure all food was inaccessible.  We put bags of grains and beans into plastic or glass containers.  Every night I wiped every crumb off the kitchen tables and counters, cleaned out the toaster, vacuumed the floor.  We usually left the dog's bowl with clean water in it overnight but I would put that up so there was no water for mice to get at to drink. Basically we wanted to be sure there was NO food or drink for the vermin. 

 

I'm guessing those baby mice you found had eaten poison and were in their death throes. Weird that they were all together like that.

 

We also went around with steel wool but I'm sure there are still places mice can get in.

 

I hope you are successful in ridding your home of the mice.

[Word Nerd]

Good old-fashioned traps worked the best for us when we were living in the country, as did having a cat.

[Guest]

Cat.

[Zebra]

Fwiw, exterminators have told us they can exclude rats, but that mice can squeeze through such minute spaces that there's no way to completely prevent them from getting in. Not what I wanted to hear either. The babies thing is super bizarre though. I'll be eavesdropping on your thread in hopes there is a great solution.

 

That's exactly what I am reading.    And the baby thing was BIZARRE particularly when it happened again.  FWIW we put out the poison, found the dead mouse, got rid of the poison.  Baby mice showed up months later, then again.  I don't think the baby mice ate poison, I think they fell from somewhere and died from hitting the floor and being too young maybe?

 

Okay, so traps seem like the only thing I can do.   We have thoroughly cleaned the place and don't have any open food or water.   I didn't want to get those glue traps because I have read they will chew off their own feet to get out of them.   And the snapping would scare the crap out of me in the middle of the night. 

 

I just cannot figure out the baby mice appearing from nowhere thing.   And since they showed up after the guinea pigs died, I am wondering if maybe guinea pig urine does repel them somehow.

 

We are all allergic to, but love cats.   And I have heard time and time again how cats can be hit or miss in these situations.

[Word Nerd]

And the snapping would scare the crap out of me in the middle of the night. 

 

You won't even hear it. They aren't that loud.

[Carrie12345]

 

 

We are all allergic to, but love cats.   And I have heard time and time again how cats can be hit or miss in these situations.

 

Oh, that stinks.  :(

We had two mice.  The cats got one. The other went back and told his friends.  :001_tt2:

[MEmama]

I'm so sorry. Ugh.

 

We've lived in houses with mice despite 2+ cats a dog. Like, mice living under our bed. *shudder*

 

We've also had a house that had rats, but AFAIK only in the unattached garage. I lived in absolute fear after we discovered them (that is, after one ran over my foot as it jumped out of the hole it had chewed through our recycling container that I was taking to the curb). The mousey houses were rentals, but this one we owned so we called the exterminator immediately. Several visits and many hundred dollars of later, we still had rats. Interestingly, that summer we also starting seeing snakes.

 

I *think* mice are easier to get rid of than rats. I say try everyone's suggestions plus get more guinea pigs. There can't be enough prevention IMO!

[AuNaturel]

Exterminator have the ability to repel instead of poison. It's more expensive but worth it, especially if you have pets, kids, or health concerns.

 

The main issue is where they are getting into the house. You have to seal that off. Sprinkling flour on your basement floor and around walls will help you to find their entry points. You can do similarly outdoors if you have flat ground. I don't. I found my mouse problem entry points outdoors when it snowed. Their tracks were prominent. Seal all gaps and spaces in you basement too, and plug up drains when not in use. Check around pipes. Mice only need a dime size hole to fit through. Especially if you have fields or woods in your area, new mice will smell the old mice trails and come back year after year. The holes must be eliminated!

 

Rodents don't like each other. Usually any large rodent will deter mice. But at this point, you have an infestation, and they may not care.

 

Killing mice doesn't help because mice are territorial and will smell the dead mouse and move into the now vacant territory. That's why it always seems like it's a never ending battle.

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

[Zebra]

I'm so sorry. Ugh.

 

We've lived in houses with mice despite 2+ cats a dog. Like, mice living under our bed. *shudder*

 

We've also had a house that had rats, but AFAIK only in the unattached garage. I lived in absolute fear after we discovered them (that is, after one ran over my foot as it jumped out of the hole it had chewed through our recycling container that I was taking to the curb). The mousey houses were rentals, but this one we owned so we called the exterminator immediately. Several visits and many hundred dollars of later, we still had rats. Interestingly, that summer we also starting seeing snakes.

 

I *think* mice are easier to get rid of than rats. I say try everyone's suggestions plus get more guinea pigs. There can't be enough prevention IMO!

 

Ugh, you guys are not telling me what I want to hear! 

 

I am really starting to wonder if the guinea pigs scared them off....

 

I am also ready to ask my neighbor if I could have her dirty kitty litter to spread around my house, under my bed, etc.   That wouldn't be weird would it :lol: ???

[Zebra]

Exterminator have the ability to repel instead of poison. It's more expensive but worth it, especially if you have pets, kids, or health concerns.

 

The main issue is where they are getting into the house. You have to seal that off. Sprinkling flour on your basement floor and around walls will help you to find their entry points. You can do similarly outdoors if you have flat . I found my mouse problem entry points outdoors when it snowed. Their tracks were prominent. Seal all gaps and spaces in you basement too, and plug up drains when not in use. Check around pipes. Mice only need a dime size hole to fit through. Especially if you have fields or woods in your area, new mice will smell the old mice trails and come back year after year. The holes must be eliminated!

 

Rodents don't like each other. Usually any large rodent will deter mice. But at this point, you have an infestation, and they may not care.

 

Killing mice doesn't help because mice are territorial and will smell the dead mouse and move into the now vacant territory. That's why it always seems like it's a never ending battle.

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

 

I spread baking soda around the basement when we had the mouse before and nothing.   I couldn't find ANYTHING.  

 

Your post is so informative, but so depressing, lol!

[Mimm]

I thought this was going to be about unwanted advice regarding mice. ;)

 

We had the same situation. Lived in this house for years and year and never had mice till a couple years ago. Kind of weird. But we kill them in traps. And by we, I mean my husband.

 

[MercyA]

Regarding the baby mice: I would guess that the mother mice were poisoned and died out of sight, and the orphaned babies crawled out of the nest and fell. However, baby mice can start to eat solid food as soon as their eyes are open at 2 1/2 weeks, so they could have eaten some poison, too.

 

You said you don't want to argue about the poison. I will just tell you what I know and leave it at that. Poison causes death by internal bleeding. If the poisoned mice make it back outside and are eaten by owls, cats, or other predators, those animals can also die from internal bleeding.  It is a long and painful death for any animal.

 

I think it's great that you're avoiding sticky traps. Those things are horrid and cruel, and yes, mice will either chew off their own body parts to try to escape or starve to death.

 

I've used these live traps many times with great success. However, they *must* be checked at least once a day, or they will end up being almost as cruel as a sticky trap. You must have a good place to release the mice (fields or woods with some cover) at least a half mile away from your home.

 

If you're determined to kill the mice, I believe snap traps are the most humane option.  They usually kill quickly and efficiently.

 

Good luck!  I know it's a frustrating problem.

 

p.s. I don't think the guinea pigs scared the mice away. Mice still came around when we had a cat. He took care of the problem for us, though.  :(

[dirty ethel rackham]

I thought the title was about unwanted advice, not unwanted mice.  Not many people really want mice.  :lol:

 

I feel for you.  We had a mouse problem about 10 years ago.  I had never seen a mouse in a house ... just in cages in a lab.  Due to the fact that I taught a class in the room where we first saw the mouse, I had to get it taken care of ... STAT!  We tried a variety of things including traps, but we had some pretty smart mice.  After 2 weeks of working on it ourselves,  I called a friend, who is in the business and who knows of my chemical sensitivities.  She examined the house and crawl space thoroughly looking for where they got in as well as what was attracting them.  She put bait traps down ... they were in locked plastic containers that had mouse sized openings.  The mouse were supposed to eat the bait, which contained an anti-coagulant, and go outside to die.  2 weeks later, she came back to check the traps and close the openings where they were entering.  She only found one mouse carcass and it was in the sump pump ... searching for water.  I am glad we called in the professionals who were more skilled in solving the problem.  We have not had a problem since. 

 

ETA:  We started out with the "humane" traps.  the buggers were too smart - getting the bait and escaping.  We tried the snap traps.  both of us were grossed out.  We tried the glue traps - I was opposed, but we were getting desperate.  We had a couple of mice that were just too smart.  They would avoid the traps, even if they were in their path to get what they wanted.  Using the poison bait was the last resort. 

[Carol in Cal.]

Those snap traps that seem gross?  What I did (sigh) is take opaque plastic grocery bags and put one over each hand.  With my right hand I picked up the trap, mouse and all.  With my left hand I pulled the bag down over the trap, inside out.  Then I put that whole thing into the other bag, opening down in the bottom.  Then I had an invisible mouse body that was double bagged that could be thrown away easily and never seen again.

 

I feel no shame for throwing away the trap.  They are cheap and although I hate to waste them, I hate even more the idea of emptying it out and cleaning it.  My life was happier when I decide to just say no and toss the whole thing.

 

Regarding clever entrances, mice will often chew the insulation away from around pipe openings to the outside.  They love that stuff for nesting material.  And they also chew at the plastic scuff thing at the bottom of your garage door, and then get into the garage that way.  If you have an attached garage, it is very important to have an excellent seal and preferably a really high step between the garage and the main part of the house.  

[Carol in Cal.]

Craziest mouse story of all!  You know  how they color rat poison a lurid green now so it can't be confused with food?

 

We had a bag of burlap feed sacks laying in the corner of our garage for a couple of months AFTER we thought our mice were all gone. (We planned to use them to wrap large Christmas presents.)  When we went to get them and shook them out, there was rat poison in them.  Critters had come and STASHED THE POISON for the winter in the folds of the bags.  SMH.

[marbel]

The electrocution traps (like rat zapper, linked above) are easy to deal with.  Just tip the mouse into a trash bag, then rebait it and turn it back on.

 

But I don't know anyone who saves snap traps for re-use.  Not to say no one does, but I've never come across anyone.  During mouse season there are pallets of them at Lowe's.  I don't guess they'd sell so many if people were reusing them! 

 

 

[tm919]

Craziest mouse story of all!  You know  how they color rat poison a lurid green now so it can't be confused with food?

 

We had a bag of burlap feed sacks laying in the corner of our garage for a couple of months AFTER we thought our mice were all gone. (We planned to use them to wrap large Christmas presents.)  When we went to get them and shook them out, there was rat poison in them.  Critters had come and STASHED THE POISON for the winter in the folds of the bags.  SMH.

Oh! I have a crazy mouse story along those lines. Our house is old - tons of tiny holes, we couldn't ever close them all - and we have a yard, so when it rains, mice like to come in.

 

The previous owner had a cat (probably to deter mice). Apparently, it didn't work so well, because when we moved in, we were cleaning and found an opening in a wall. It was (we thought) filled with mouse poop... small brown things were spilling out. We got masks and started a clean-up operation, then we realized the poop was shaped like tiny hearts and stars. Within about 5 minutes, we surmised that the mice had stashed the CAT'S FOOD in the wall! The nerve!

 

Owning an old house is a constant adventure...

 

Supposedly mice don't like peppermint. Really, though, I feel like keeping mother nature out of the house is a constant battle that is never really won. 

[Carol in Cal.]

The electrocution traps (like rat zapper, linked above) are easy to deal with.  Just tip the mouse into a trash bag, then rebait it and turn it back on.

 

But I don't know anyone who saves snap traps for re-use.  Not to say no one does, but I've never come across anyone.  During mouse season there are pallets of them at Lowe's.  I don't guess they'd sell so many if people were reusing them! 

Cough cough my parents cough cough

[marbel]

Cough cough my parents cough cough

 

Ya know... if my parents had ever had mice problems, they'd have saved them too.  :-)

 

I just can't imagine dealing with it.    Not a way I'm going to be frugal, I guess. 

[fdrinca]

You won't even hear it. They aren't that loud.

 

I heard it, but then again I stopped sleeping well at night after we found a RAT in our house, and I heard it running through my bedroom at night (shudder, shudder, shudder). I heard the trap go off and made DH get up and take care of it, even though it was 3 a.m. I have not cursed so much in my life as I did at that thing in my house. 

 

Sorry about the mice. It might be worth the call to the exterminator just to figure out where the baby mice are coming from. Our experience with exterminators (when we lived in very unsealed faculty housing in the woods) was not good. He'd come, ask where we found poop, put traps there. It was like Mice Killing 101, except we had to PAY for the privilege. 

[Zebra]

I thought this was going to be about unwanted advice regarding mice. ;)

 

We had the same situation. Lived in this house for years and year and never had mice till a couple years ago. Kind of weird. But we kill them in traps. And by we, I mean my husband.

 

I didn't want mouse pet owners to open this thread and be horrified!

[Farrar]

We finally had to have exterminators come and I was glad we did. That's all I can say. They said sealing up the outside of the house is impossible but that you can make them want to leave with industrial strength poison and by sealing up the tiny holes inside. I was dubious, but it worked for us so far (going on four months with no mice finally!).

[Zebra]

I really appreciate all the great thoughts, keep them coming.

 

I just went to the hardware store and bought some sort of sound thingy.   I doubt it works.   There was all kinds of stuff, including 2 adorable kittens, so it must be the season for this.

 

I don't have a garage, and I don't have a door in my basement.   I just cannot figure what is going on, but we may need to call someone just so they can see something we can't.

 

I know this is weird, but I don't even care about mice in the house.   I mean, I am not thrilled and don't want them....but it was all the baby mice dropping from the sky that is completely grossing me out.   I just feel like someday I will be down watching TV and a cute baby mouse will land on my head :ohmy:  :ohmy:  :ohmy: !  

 

[Carol in Cal.]

The sound thingy is helpful but not sufficient.  And, some people can hear it themselves slightly.  #dontaskmehowIknow  #bothofthethings

[Mrs. B]

We had a mouse invasion a few months ago. It took a long time to get rid of them.

 

Everything I read by people other than professional exterminators said not to bother with exterminators. They will put out poison and traps, tell you to find the minute places the mice are getting in, and leave with your check. You still have to deal with dead mice. And depending on your house, it may be impossible to find every opening.

 

We set regular traps all over the place. We figured out we had very small mice (probably a nest somewhere) when we'd find the bait taken but the trap not sprung. So we set out poison (hated to do that) and finally bought a rat zapper. It took a few days but within 3 days we got 7 or 8 mice in it.

 

We also cleaned the pantry out completely and made sure all food was inaccessible. We put bags of grains and beans into plastic or glass containers. Every night I wiped every crumb off the kitchen tables and counters, cleaned out the toaster, vacuumed the floor. We usually left the dog's bowl with clean water in it overnight but I would put that up so there was no water for mice to get at to drink. Basically we wanted to be sure there was NO food or drink for the vermin.

 

I'm guessing those baby mice you found had eaten poison and were in their death throes. Weird that they were all together like that.

 

We also went around with steel wool but I'm sure there are still places mice can get in.

 

I hope you are successful in ridding your home of the mice.

We are buying this rat zapper! We have this scratching in the ceiling/crawl space above our bedroom and it is driving me bonkers.

[Katy]

Repel them safely with peppermint essential oil.  Get the biggest bottle you can find.  Put about 10-20 drops in your mop water & mop the floors with it.  Put an equal amount in a spray bottle with some flat club soda and wipe the windows and mirrors with it.  Put some in some vinegar & clean everything else with it.  Put 2 drops on each ball in a bag full of cotton balls and then scatter them around the house, especially in the basement and basement ceiling.

[foxbridgeacademy]

Cough cough my parents cough cough

We lived in the middle of a giant field surrounded by thick woods when I was a kid, we'd have gone broke if my parents hadn't reused traps.  Probably still one of the grossest memories from my childhood.