is it possible to get rid of mice?

[equationgirl]

If you're in an old flat, fill any gaps under the skirting boards, check inside cupboards, near the boilers (popular as usually warm) and check your kitchen. Whoever fitted my kitchen should have been taken out and shot given the amount of mouse highways they left behind the units. And don't talk to me about them fitting sockets in my skirting board - they left an inch gap underneath.

You need to find where they are coming in, else the mice won't go away.

 

[Skim]

The little bastard's back

Just walked into the kitchen and let out a blood-curdling scream when I saw him

There was a scratching in the kitchen this afternoon where he was trying to get through the gaps we'd blocked up with wood. We took the wood away to lure him out into a trap, but he seems to have bypassed the traps and got out of the cupboard.

I want a load more traps and some of this No More Big Gaps stuff

 

[Skim]

Just found this link:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/HomeAndCommunity/InYourHome/PestAndWeedControl/PestAndWeedControlArticles/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=10026737&chk=U1uMIo

 

[netbob]

i'd love a cat, but it wouldn't be able to get outside and wouldn't that be unfair, altho it would be in the house to chase mice all day

You can get cats that dont go outside. Our one came from batersea and is scared of the outdoors. Not had any mice since we got him!

If not, ask if you can borrow one for a day or two, the fantist wiff of feline and the mice will scarper.

 

[Dhimmi]

My parents have some sonic device that keeps them away. They live in the countryside and havent had any problems since getting this.

If you need more info, I can ask them.

Sounds handy could you get more info please?

 

[pogofish]

Fumigate your house with sulphur - Worked wonders for my place, my gran did it when I was a small child & it kept the mice away for many, many years. Inded, they have only started coming-in again in the last year or so.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

My parents have some sonic device that keeps them away. They live in the countryside and havent had any problems since getting this.

If you need more info, I can ask them.

I had one of those that worked for quite a long time. Apparently they are more effective with rats. We can't block up holes and prevent mouse access as the terrace I live in is all interconeccted because there used to be a communal heating system and they can run from one end of the terrace to another under the floorboards. If one place gets mice, we all get mice. If you have children or messy adults who drop food scraps and leave dirty dishes out overnight that's all a mouse needs to consider moving in, settling down and starting a family. I have tried everything (except for those appalling sticky traps) to no avail. The only mouse free places I know have cats. I have now got a cat which although still a kitten is training up nicely for his intended employment.

 

[pembrokestephen]

The little bastard's back

Just walked into the kitchen and let out a blood-curdling scream when I saw him

There was a scratching in the kitchen this afternoon where he was trying to get through the gaps we'd blocked up with wood. We took the wood away to lure him out into a trap, but he seems to have bypassed the traps and got out of the cupboard.

I want a load more traps and some of this No More Big Gaps stuff

Block up the gaps with wire wool or metal mesh, scrunched up and shoved in firmly. They'll gnaw through wood pretty quickly, and they're a bit cunning about avoiding stuff you've set up (probably because it smells of you, and is therefore strange).

 

[toggle]

I had one of those that worked for quite a long time. Apparently they are more effective with rats. We can't block up holes and prevent mouse access as the terrace I live in is all interconeccted because there used to be a communal heating system and they can run from one end of the terrace to another under the floorboards. If one place gets mice, we all get mice. If you have children or messy adults who drop food scraps and leave dirty dishes out overnight that's all a mouse needs to consider moving in, settling down and starting a family. I have tried everything (except for those appalling sticky traps) to no avail. The only mouse free places I know have cats. I have now got a cat which although still a kitten is training up nicely for his intended employment.

They learn fast, don't they.

How does the cat get on with your oher half's dog?

 

[Skim]

Block up the gaps with wire wool or metal mesh, scrunched up and shoved in firmly. They'll gnaw through wood pretty quickly, and they're a bit cunning about avoiding stuff you've set up (probably because it smells of you, and is therefore strange).

All gaps have now been filled with wire wool and filler. There are traps and poison waiting for the mouse, which seems to have to come from a crack in the floorboards.

Fingers crossed!

 

[radiohead]

i made a trap out of a tin lid (those with ring-pulls), an upside-down tupperware box, and a piece of cheese. it worked. one mouse in an upside-down tupperware box.

i flirted with the idea of posting it through an enemies letterbox....

in the end i let it go

*shrug*

no blood, no mice, all good

 

[Skim]

I thought it was a bit of a myth that mice like cheese... but maybe not.

Apparently chocolate is the way to go. The little culprit has got some Bournville on the end of a trap to look forward to... but hopefully he's been munching on the poison.

 

[Skim]

Rodentwatch update: mouse has not been fooled by traps, but has been trying to make a nest in the poison tray. With any luck, he's been eating the poison.

I'm pretty sure that the wire wool and filler has blocked all the holes that were under the cupboards, should the mouse still be alive. There is no sign that the mouse has been in the kitchen, no droppings or anything.

I need to see a dead mouse before I can relax, though

 

[Mrs Magpie]

How does the cat get on with your oher half's dog?

Absolutely fine, although the dog has a healthier respect for the cat than the cat does for the dog. The cat spends a lot of time attacking the wagging tail with gusto...doesn't make any impression on the dog....

 

[Mrs Magpie]

Within a minute I heard a buzzing from the kitchen and came out to find a dead mouse in the trap. All I had to do was tip it in the bin, and switch it back on and it's ready to catch the next one, if there is a next one.

What's it called and where did you get it?

 

[toggle]

Absolutely fine, although the dog has a healthier respect for the cat than the cat does for the dog. The cat spends a lot of time attacking the wagging tail with gusto...doesn't make any impression on the dog....

I can just imagine that.

 

[Skim]

I'd also like to know where you can buy one of those electric mousetraps.

Have just seen him again. We're going to have to do some major work in the kitchen tomorrow, because there are some gaps we're obviously missing. The traps aren't going off, and although the poison has been messed around with, it's not killing anything.

 

[Skim]

The mouse is dead! (Well, one of them, although I hate talking about mice in the plural. It's easier for me to imagine there was just the one.) He ran into the trap left behind the sink, which is where I've seen him on three occasions.

Turns out there were three holes behind the washing machine which we'd overlooked. These are getting filled, then the gaps in the floorboards under the counters are being filled with No More Big Gaps later today. With any luck, that will sort out the problem.

Then after a heavy session with the disinfectant, I'm looking forward to having my kitchen back

 

[Louloubelle]

I hope that doesn't explain why I had a nasty tummy bug (and violent bouts of vomiting) through Friday night...

I don't know if this is the cause with your illness, but mice carry some kind of germ / bacteria in their hairs that causes food poisoning and also causes miscarriage.

I bought 3 sonic devices from ebay for £25 or so and plugged them in the kitchen, hall and sitting room an I haven't seen a mouse since. This was maybe 4 years ago.

I also wiped all the surfaces, floor and inside the cupboards with bleach as the urine trail they leave attracts them back to the same place and also attracts other mice.

 

[Skim]

I don't know if this is the cause with your illness, but mice carry some kind of germ / bacteria in their hairs that causes food poisoning and also causes miscarriage.

I bought 3 sonic devices from ebay for £25 or so and plugged them in the kitchen, hall and sitting room an I haven't seen a mouse since. This was maybe 4 years ago.

I also wiped all the surfaces, floor and inside the cupboards with bleach as the urine trail they leave attracts them back to the same place and also attracts other mice.

Yuk – I'm about to give birth in a month so I need to be extra-careful. The idea of a urine trail is sickening enough, pregnancy or no pregnancy – I was going to use some anti-bacterial spray, but I'll get some bleach instead. Thanks for the tip.

 

[Louloubelle]

Yuk – I'm about to give birth in a month so I need to be extra-careful. The idea of a urine trail is sickening enough, pregnancy or no pregnancy – I was going to use some anti-bacterial spray, but I'll get some bleach instead. Thanks for the tip.

I didn't know

You should see your GP just to be on the safe side, explain that you;ve had a rodent infestation and that you've been sick

You can read about the relevant virus here

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/bd/lcmv.htm

You are probably fine but better safe than sorry eh?

also, don't go clearing up mouse piss, get a non-pregnant friend to do it for you

edited to add, if you want to borrow a sonic pest repellant until after your baby is born I have one you're welcome to borrow

 

[lyra_k]

For a fairly heavy infestation (we have an old house which had plenty of gaps - now filled (I hope), in the country, so there are mice everywhere outside), I'm sad to say that we found the sonic plug-ins absolutely useless. We have them in every room and they made no difference at all.

What worked was mouse traps for the existing mice, filling gaps, and keeping food in mouse-proof containers. I haven't seen a mouse turd in months.

 

[Louloubelle]

I think some sonic things work and some don't
The ones I have have worked completley, but also I was very fastiduous about cleaning up the wee trails with bleach (shudders)
I had the council round for weeks before buuying the repellants and they put poison and traps down, the poison in the form of seeds that looked like linseeds, but the little bastards used to jump around in it and shred the containers but never seemed to die or go away until I got the sonic repellants. I was feeling very despairing and was massively relieved when the repellants worked

dirty nasty animals yuk

field mice excepted of course

 

[Skim]

Thanks for the link, Louloubelle – makes me feel queasy, but important reading. And cheers for the offer of the mousetrap, I'll take you up on it if needed, although the kitchen floorboards are being sorted at the moment – more holes have been discovered – but the gaps will be filled and hopefully there will be no more mice.

I'd like a word with the previous owner of the flat – why didn't he sort the holes in the floorboards before fitting a kitchen?

 

[boozybirdie]

For a fairly heavy infestation (we have an old house which had plenty of gaps - now filled (I hope), in the country, so there are mice everywhere outside), I'm sad to say that we found the sonic plug-ins absolutely useless. We have them in every room and they made no difference at all.

What worked was mouse traps for the existing mice, filling gaps, and keeping food in mouse-proof containers. I haven't seen a mouse turd in months.

My parents have them in their house and still had a mouse come in, luckily it didn't breed and they put half a grape on the trap to catch it (obviously they had a mouse who was on a diet ) and it worked.

 

[Skim]

We have another dead mouse Luckily he died under the kitchen cabinet this time and not in the sink like the other one did earlier in the week.

Perhaps this No More Big Gaps stuff is working

I'm still feeling on edge about seeing another one though. Bloody cracked floorboards

 

[Skim]

I'm at the end of my tether now. Now the kitchen's pretty much sealed up, there aren't any more mice in the kitchen. But instead, they're finding other places in the flat to pop up. There was one in the hallway last night, signs of one in the spare room and one in the bedroom. We've got gaps all over the place and the little critters are now finding cracks in the floorboards. Filled up as many cracks as possible last night with wire wool and filler, went to bed and then a nightmare scenario – I was reading in bed when one ran along the skirting board, a little thing, literally bouncing along Don't know where the fuck he came from. Alef managed to trap him and kill him, then we moved into the front room to sleep. Except I haven't slept a wink

This whole flat needs to be sealed up – and fast Damn floorboards need replacing, because there must be cracks under the carpets. I'm waiting for nine o'clock so I can get a pest control expert out here today. We're looking at major work, though

I would cry if I wasn't so damn tired... but I can't even close my eyes

 

[Skim]

Mouse update! Four mice dead. How many more can there be? Apparently they work in gangs of four, but I'm not convinced the battle is won yet.

A pest control bloke came along on Monday and laid down some more poison. We'd been using the stuff from the hardware shop, but apparently it's not as strong as the poison that pest control people use. It should kill mice pretty quickly, as long as they eat what's left for them, but they've told us to wait two weeks to see an effect. In the meantime, we're not meant to block any holes, for fear that we could keep any mice in the flat, unable to run back down through a gap in the floorboards. That's what happened on Sunday night – the mouse was hiding somewhere in the bedroom, leaped out when I was reading in bed and discovered he couldn't get back in the hole because it had been filled up. (I haven't had the courage to sleep in the bedroom yet and have spent the last two nights at a friend's house ) The pest control man said mice will lie in wait for hours until everything is quiet and they can scurry away to find food somewhere.
But that's all they're looking for. They'll go away if they can't find food... that's the theory.

The two mice that we (well, Alef) killed this week have been little ones. What we really need is another bigger one, a breeder we can kill off. (The first one killed was bigger – I'm hoping it was mummy.) They are so little they can walk over the multiple traps in the kitchen and not set them off

But I'm hoping the poison will take effect soon. I also bought one of those sonic repellents today to see if that works at all. Traps, ultrasound, poison – what more can I do?

The neighbours are having similar problems, so we're going down the pub tonight to discuss an extermination strategy

After that, I want some mouse-free days so I know there are none left in the house and we can fill in floorboard gaps and get a new carpet/underlay fitted to seal this place up as much as possible.

 

[equationgirl]

The sonic repellents do work - I've got them in my flat after two rounds with mice (last round was May/early summer last year). The sonic things won't work if there's furniture or any solid surface in the way.

My problem was that whoever fitted my kitchen just ripped out the old one and didn't fill in any of the gaps behind the units - stretches of the wall were missing, creating a mouse highway. When sockets were originally fitted in the skirting boards, they just cut chunks out of the skirting boards and didn't bother filling in the inch high gaps left underneath.

I filled all the gaps under the skirting boards with wirewool, and some of the larger gaps in the floorboards too, practically rebuilt the kitchen (cost about £100 all told, but then i did get new doors and drawers as the kitchen was pretty manky) and blocked up a hole I found in the the hall cupboard and the boiler cupboard.

You will get rid of the pesky little buggers, promise. I did, and every tenement block in Edinburgh has them!

 

[Skim]

The sonic repellents do work - I've got them in my flat after two rounds with mice (last round was May/early summer last year). The sonic things won't work if there's furniture or any solid surface in the way.

You will get rid of the pesky little buggers, promise.

That's encouraging – everything in the house has revolved around mice for the past month, and I'm really looking forward to getting shot of them.

Plugged the sonic repellent in the kitchen last night and we're getting another one for the bedroom.

Encouragingly, the mice have been eating the poison left out for them. Not the stronger stuff from the pest control man, but the one from the hardware store. Still, at least they've been eating poison for the past week, and apparently it can take a week to take effect.

Didn't see a mouse last night, even though all the holes in the kitchen were left open. One day at a time...