A Mouse in the House

Chances are you have more hiding somewhere. Get the glue boards, they work great. Not very nice for the mouse, but everytime I find a humane way of trapping them, they just keep getting inside.

Hi it is not unusual to get an occasional mouse even in the suburbs. The weather is changing so they are trying to get warm and of course stoves are warm. I would not worry about it, unless you start to see multiple ones, b/c breeding becomes an issue. Your cat will probably take care of the randoms ones that find their way in. I would check your kitchen to find out how it got in a close that hole. Also I would check the bin in the bottom to make sure there isn't any feces in there, if so make sure you clean that bottom bin. Good Luck!

I agree with the other posters - when there is one mouse there are usually more. We had a local pest control company come out and they placed child and pet proof (non chemical) traps and it did the trick. They were black cases and the mice would go in..but not come out. Then the company came and took the traps away. I didn't have to look at the dead mice which was a big plus. We have 2 cats but since they are fed quite nicely, they didn't really care about the mice!
Good luck!

E., I would deffintly set traps to be safe. We just went thorough this. We caught one and thought that was it. A couple weeks later we spotted another so set the trap and caught another. To make a long story short, by the time we realized there was a real problem, they had breeded. All you can do is bait and catch them. The old fashioon traps that they step on and the metal piece flips over it's head does work the best. If you prefer, the sticky traps work, but I have only had good experience with the big ones, not the little ones. Set the trap near the stove and maybe in another place in the kitchen. Just find spots you can tuck them away that the cat or kids won't be able to trip it. I would do this for a month before being sure that there are no more. Every time you catch one, set it again until you are no longer catching them. If you can find-in between cabinets, refridgerators, washers and dryers, etc...behind things in the kitchen and close to walls-mouse droppings, clean it up and a couple days later see if it returns..another good place in under your sink. Those are the areas you will want your traps. When the droppings stop appearing, chances are the problem is solved. If you can't find the droppings, just keep doing the traps until you feel confident you are no longer catching mice. Maybe you will luck out, and not catch anymore after the first, but I wouldn't take any chances. Cause when they breeded, it took us literally, like 3 months. It was awful. Good luck!!

Hi E.,

You need to pull the stove out and check the back wall. It's likely that there's a whole or gap that the mouse crept through. Use mortar or a spray foam from Home Depot to plug up the hole, otherwise it's likely that more will get in. We had a similar issue and I have an 8 month old baby as well. Since then, it's been months and we're problem free.

Good luck.

Field mice are coming inside homes now that it is cold outside. To prevent their entry, you must seal off all possible entrances. They can squeeze through holes the size of a dime. Any outside pipes or wires that come into your home may leave tiny crevices around their openings. Seal them off with an expanding foam or plumber's putty that you get at Home Depot. Check around your home for evidence of more mice; look for their little droppings (black, hard, about 1/8" long). If they've gotten into your dry food storage, get an exterminator to put down mouse baits. Good luck!

My mother in law who is visiting right now says Oh Yeah! She recommends the basic mouse traps with peanut butter. She's from MA and the mice were always bad in her built-in-1923 house. Just make VERY SURE the traps are not set where the kids can't set them off, say under the dishwasher and such. They will break your fingers, let alone the kids. The good news is, if you have the least bit sympathy for the mice, know that they're dead before they know what hit them.

She does NOT recommend poison of any kind in a house with small children. Traps won't spread themselves around, poison could get spread around.

I would also suggest finding out where they are coming in and cutting them off. You probably need to call a pro for that, they know all the mouse's tricks.

We recently moved and there was mouse doodoo all over the kitchen. Within the week, we had someone come in and find out where they were coming in. He plugged up one or two spots and we have no more mice. We had one get snapped in a trap after the hole(s) was /were plugged, but we believe that one was in the house already and got trapped. Haven't seen one since.

Good luck depriving your cat (very useful, that!) as soon as possible!

-S. Kav

It is highly likely that your little invader was trying to escape from the cold. Most homes will see a mouse or two at this time of year. I agree with most of the posters-- Where there is one, there is likely to be another. Keep your eyes open for droppings, and try to seal around any pipes, etc. Steel wool works great. If you try the spray foam, be careful. It expands fast and can put pressure on your pipes. And by all means, let kitty do his/her job. That's probably the best deterrent!

There are some poisons that enourage rodents to eat, and after they consume these pellets, they die. Because of how the poison works, they will not smell bad. However, be very careful about using these poisons or even the traps with you little ones around. Make sure there is no way that they will encounter them and get hurt.

Good luck, and unless you see a lot of evidence or hear scratching in your walls, etc, your problem is not likely to be an infestation.

Give that cat an extra treat! Good job kittie!

Put out a trap to see if he brought any friends in with him. You are likely to catch a few more.

It is just happening now because of the cold snap--it sends them inside.

If there is one mouse, there is usually more. We have had mice for a while and they are really hard to get rid of. A lot of people assume that if you have mice it means that you are dirty, but I don't think it does. We always put away all of our food after a meal, do the dishes, and wipe down the counters to make sure that we are not providing food for little critters. I also have put all of our pantry food that has been opened in hard plastic containers with tight fitting lids so that mice (and insects) can not get to our food. Be especially aware of putting pet food in plastic containers because that is a favorite food for pests.

We still have had mice for a while and caught some with snap traps with PB, but then I think they started avoiding them. My husband then bought these little boxes that tempt them in with PB and then electrocute them. We read that it was fast and humane. We have caught some that way as well. Sticky traps are not humane-- they get stuck on there and then suffer trying to pull themselves off until they eventually starve to death. You would hear them screeching and squealing if you caught one. You can get rid of mice in a more humane way with either the snap traps or electrocuting them quickly. Some people trap them in a humane trap to release them into the wild, but I don't live near woods where I would release them.

I hope we got the last one the other day since I haven't seen any droppings since, but I am not holding my breath. Good luck getting rid of your problem. You probably have a lot less of a problem because you have a cat! Your cat might be keeping the problem under control already.

E.: Mice come in to houses in the fall when it starts getting cold, that's why you often see them at that time of year and not others. Any exterminator will tell you that the best way to get rid of mice is to have a cat! So let that kitty do its job. Just make sure you are not leaving food out, sweep up crumbs, and tell your kids not to touch any mouse they see, alive or dead. Also, make sure your cat has a current rabies vaccination. I have 5 cats and still occasionally see a mouse (usually deceased), but unless your house becomes overrun I don't think you have to worry.

S.

Usually where there is one, there are more! My cat began to catch mice the week after my daughter was born -- not a happy time! We had Orkin come and take care of the problem. They did a really good job. We were already dealing with them for ants and adding mice control was no extra money. Good luck.

You got good advice so far, I would also add that cleaning up any food debris that may have fallen behind your appliances is a must. They are attracted to crumbs and all of that. If you don't leave anything for them to eat, then they will be less inclined to come in to your home. Of course, the warmth inside is a major draw in the winter too so many people with no vermin problems will see them in the winter simply because of this, but you may be able to at least reduce the draw by giving your baseboards and nooks and crannies a good scrubbing to remove all food particles they may be attracted to. Make sure that all consummables in your pantry are tightly sealed (like use plastic containers for your cereal etc.) and if you can, use a garbage can that has a tight fitting lid. Also remove any concealing items from around your foundation, like leaf piles, hose rollers, garbage bins etc. Anything that provides cover, also provides a front line of infiltration.

I hope these suggestions help. Good Luck!

you've already got the best 'green' mouse control there is.... a good mouser! my barn cats also keep the house relatively mouse-free. occasionally one will elude them for a while, but it's so rare that i still find it better to leave it to the two working cats than to put down poison.
khairete
S.

Mice always have roommates.

Another thing to think about: we had a mouse problem and thought we'd licked it...but failed to check our attic. When we moved, I discovered that mice had nested in a $250 set of slipcovers for my Crate and Barrel sofa and loveseat.....and chewed through enough of it that the whole thing had to be discarded. So beware.

You've gotten lots of good advice. I just want to add that if you have access to an area behind your walls, you will have more luck trapping the mice. I live in a 1940's brick home and have a small door to access the bathtub plumbing in our bedroom. By placing standard (snap-type) mouse traps with peanut butter back there, we caught a whole family of mice in a week that breeded behind our walls (probably starting in the attic). We have 2 cats, one who is an excellent mouser, but these mice stayed behind the walls. We knew they were there becuase we could hear late-night scratching or scampering in walls or ceilings and the cats would stand next to the walls or howl because of their frustration. So look for strange behavior from the cat too!