Nibble, Nibble Like a Mouse
The scene above looks like our kitchen for the past two weeks. After having not seen a mouse all summer, one day, they were just there. And not just one or two, but a lot. On Saturday afternoon, Mrs. B walked in to the kitchen, and three of them were having a powwow on the…
The scene above looks like our kitchen for the past two weeks. After having not seen a mouse all summer, one day, they were just there. And not just one or two, but a lot. On Saturday afternoon, Mrs. B walked in to the kitchen, and three of them were having a powwow on the counter. As yesterday’s article in The Times points out, the common house mouse “weighs about an ounce, has a two-inch-long body and can slip through a hole just a little bit bigger than a pencil.” So the biggest preventative measure you can take is to seal up as many holes as possible. We had someone come in last winter and spray a hard foam-like substance around (steel wool is another DIY option) but in a house like ours, there’s really no way to cover all your bases. Traps and poison are the two standard remedies; if you’re going with the former, the article recommends, you gotta go all out: If you’re not starting with a dozen traps, you’re not serious about catching mice, said one expert. As for bait, forget about cheese and go with peanut butter.
When Mice Move in to Spend the Winter [NY Times]
Photo by viralbus
I really feel you because my mom and I ws scared and then when I got rid of the mouse we were relived. But remeber that the sticky traps (glue traps) with the seeds or corn on it that is the best on that works! The one with nothing on it that is just crap. NEVER GET THE ONE WITH NOTHING ON IT GET THE ONE WITH CORN OR SEEDS ON IT.
Try this:
http://www.abundantearth.com/store/mousetrap1.html
While your house may not be big enough for your family and a growing population of resident mice, the world certainly is big enough for us all. Why not catch mice the humane way with our Humane Live “No Kill” Mouse Trap? Catch mice and then let them go, without snapping their backs or tortuously poisoning them. Snap traps and glue pads often leave mice in agonizing pain. Likewise, poisons have similar horrifying effects and will continue poisoning all animals, such as cats and birds, that catch and consume poisoned mice. Choose the humane way of dealing with mice. Choose the Humane Live “No Kill” Mouse Trap.
Where do you get the traps where you can then release them outside? (didn’t quite follow the garbage can trick!)
Glue traps are extremely cruel. If you want to kill the mice, which is understandable, at least do it in a quick, humane way.
I read this yesterday afternoon and was happy that I did not have to deal with mice…then I came home last night….and there the little bugger was! Damn it!
Anon 3:49 – the RatZapper zaps one mouse at a time… when a mouse has been caught, an indicator light comes on and the electric shock power is turned off. So you will need to check the zapper periodically to clear out and reset. If you have a large house/apt or alot of mice, I would recommend getting more than one unit. Since I’m dealing with a smaller space, I just move my single unit around to the various locations I notice droppings and that seems to work fine for me. I caught 5 last winter and didn’t have any problems for the rest of the season after that.
squeaky clean is a genius.
I can’t say enough about the Rat Zapper. I tried everything when i moved into my brownstone, including 2 different exterminators. You never have to see the dead mouse and they really go in there. I don’t know why the mice avoided all my other traps – even with peanut butter – and forget about plugging all the holes. That is a waste of time if you have an old house with a yard and a basement. The other problem with plugging holes is that then they will dig new ones. When I plugged all the holes in my bedroom (their initial entry), i could hear them scratching and clawing in the walls for weeks until they made a new hole in!
My ex-roommate and I invented something we termed “the mouse diving board.” What you do is set a thin piece of carboard (which acts as a mouse ramp) against a garbage can – the can should be 2+ feet, or high enough that a wee mouse can’t jump out. You run the carboard just to the lip of the open garbage can, and then fasten a piece of paper to the end, so that the paper hangs outward over the lip (a little like a diving board). You then put a small bit of cheese or peanut butter on the paper. The mouse runs up the ramp, goes for the food, and falls into the garbage can. You can then take your captive to the park or wherever else to release him. We caught three mice this way in about 2 days, and never saw another one. Good luck!