topic Re: Have a mouse upstairs! in Home

Have a mouse upstairs!

qualityshopper — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:17:00 GMT

Day before yesterday late evening, I was sitting on my bed watching TV when I thought I saw something on the floor heading to the bathroom. Since I have some problems with my vision, I didn't think too much about it--just assumed my eyes were doing something weird. About 15 minutes later, I again saw something. This time I looked right at it and just barely caught something black going underneath the closet door in the adjacent bathroom.

Called my mom upstairs to investigate the closet and after moving a few things out, all of a sudden a little black mouse ran out. I couldn't believe it. We have not had a mouse in this house for probably about 40 years. But what really gets me is that we have not had any other sighting or evidence of a mouse anywhere else in the house, especially not in the kitchen, which is where I would expect to find one. It seems like he bypassed the food areas downstairs and just headed straight upstairs, but why?

Now I'm in a real panic. We were not able to catch this mouse. Before he ran out of the closet, my mom had shut my bedroom door and placed towels at the bottom to keep him from going into my room. Did the same for the bathroom door. Unfortunately, she missed a small spot under my door, and I believe he got into my room and is now hidden in there somewhere. We set two traps out last night with peanut butter as bait but have not caught him. I'm afraid to even go into my room and, especially, to sleep. Do I need more traps and/or different bait? Would really appreciate advice!

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

qualitygal — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:25:18 GMT

You're bigger than he is, he is just faster. Trap with peanut butter or bacon. I'd try to catch it in a jar but you have to be there with the lid. If you use a trap, the other works well.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

2blonde — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:29:52 GMT

@qualityshopper I've caught many mice in my basement with peanut butter, so that should work. The fact that he's upstairs doesn't necessarily mean that he bypassed the food, it could mean he came in through the rafters or attic somewhere. You may have had others in your house over the years and never knew it. They only need about a half inch to get through something or under a door. I slept upstairs when I was a kid and the only mice we had always came in that way......never through the basement. I was always able to catch them with a trap, so hang in there. Remember, where there is one mouse, there usually are more, so keep some traps set around the house for the future too.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

2blonde — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:31:14 GMT

You could also get a cat!

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

tessam — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:36:20 GMT

Unfortunately tiny field mice make their way into houses to avoid both heat and cold. Where there is one you can bet s/he has friends. If you use traps use several and place them close to the wall. Mice tend to run along walls and this can be helpful Prevention can help as well. Certain substances are known to repel mice. Place one of these items in the corners of your basement, closets, doors, and other place you suspect mice may be entering:

Mint. Mint plants planted around your windows and doors will repel mice. You could also sprinkle peppermint or spearmint essential oil around your house.
Bay leaves. Tuck them into the corners of your pantry and cabinets, or crush them up and sprinkle them in your windowsills.
Mothballs. These will keep mice away, but they're poisonous to humans and pets. If you use mothballs, make sure your children, dogs and cats can't get near them.

Oddly we had a mouse rest on the engine of our car during the winter gnawing and destroying wires! Mechanis advised us to place a basic clothes dryer sheet on the engine as mice do not like the odor. It worked. Perhaps it would inside as well All else fails you may need to cal an exterminator who can block points of entry and do the dirty work of capture. Good luck!

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

ptagirl — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:39:08 GMT

@2blonde wrote:
You could also get a cat!

That reminds me of something funny (but not for our cat)..

we had a shrew in our last house..of course it was so small we couldn't catch it with a traditional trap, so we bought some sticky traps and set one on our basement stairs....well you probably know what happended.. we were watching tv and all of a sudden there was this loud howl and this clippity-clapping up and down the stairs...the cat had that thing stuck to his foot. We laughed so hard, but I know it was traumatizing for the cat....

just one of those funny things that happen...we eventually did get the shrew, though...

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

toria — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:44:55 GMT

Go to the hardware store and get a D Con product. They make mouse traps and bait. Different kinds. I had a mouse problem and I nipped it in the bud right away with a mouse bait that they ate and then went outside to die. If you do nothing they will just increase.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

ptagirl — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:45:59 GMT

@tessam wrote:
Unfortunately tiny field mice make their way into houses to avoid both heat and cold. Where there is one you can bet s/he has friends. If you use traps use several and place them close to the wall. Mice tend to run along walls and this can be helpful Prevention can help as well. Certain substances are known to repel mice. Place one of these items in the corners of your basement, closets, doors, and other place you suspect mice may be entering:
Mint. Mint plants planted around your windows and doors will repel mice. You could also sprinkle peppermint or spearmint essential oil around your house.
Bay leaves. Tuck them into the corners of your pantry and cabinets, or crush them up and sprinkle them in your windowsills.
Mothballs. These will keep mice away, but they're poisonous to humans and pets. If you use mothballs, make sure your children, dogs and cats can't get near them.
Oddly we had a mouse rest on the engine of our car during the winter gnawing and destroying wires! Mechanis advised us to place a basic clothes dryer sheet on the engine as mice do not like the odor. It worked. Perhaps it would inside as well All else fails you may need to cal an exterminator who can block points of entry and do the dirty work of capture. Good luck!

We had that happen to one of our vehicles.. ate a hole in the break line and some other wires in addition to the upholstery...we put traps in there and caught several mice.. at least my husband didn't have one crawl up his pant leg when he was driving!(happened to a girl-friend of mine)..

Also, just wanted to add, my husband and his brother have a hunting camp which was lousy with mice. They put scented dryer sheets throughout and when they went up to go hunting, there were no mice...incredible!, (but didn't keep the spiders out), since it's located way up in the woods and nobody goes to it but once/twice a year...oddly something so simple worked ...

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

itsmagic — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:54:02 GMT

I agree with @tessam. Put several mousetraps perpendicular against the wall with the peanut butter side closest to the wall.

We had mice get in our house several years ago and I finally figured out that they came in through a crack in the garage wall where the cement block and wall board met. They would then crawl up to the attic and eventually back down between two other walls exiting into the basement. After I sealed that crack we have not had any more mice. But I'm on the lookout for them every year because I don't like sharing a home with them!

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

Anita Hug — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:54:29 GMT

You probably have more than one... I giggled at stuffing the towel to keep him out. Those little guys can squeeze through an opening no wider than the diemeter of a pencil. :-o I prefer to use traps to get them because I don't like them croaking in the walls. I know they say that the dessicants make it so they don't smell, but peeew, they sure CAN smell. I rather trap them and get them outside! Keep setting traps even after you think you got the one because there could be more. Especially when the weather starts getting colder in the fall and the critters start coming in more.

good luck.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

Big Joanie — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:56:04 GMT

D-con is the best ....

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

ptagirl — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 14:05:51 GMT

Yes...They certainly can stink...always used traps just because it's quick and I know where/when they die and can quickly dispose of them before that happens...

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

NickNack — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 14:06:07 GMT

I kept seeing one and couldn't catch it. I finally called an exterminator who put baits in the back of all my cabinets and right inside the air vent where I change the filters. I haven't seen one since. I had a handyman here right after that, and I had him look for an entrance. He found one right beside the pipes under the cabinet in my bathroom and filled it. I had seen drippings in that cabinet. He said the bait would last for years. It's in a container that the mouse can get in but pets can't. I wouldn't trust it around pets, but they're in the very back of my cabinets where my dog wouldn't go.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

2blonde — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 14:27:53 GMT

@ptagirl You made me laugh! I can just picture my cat in that situation. Cat's just HATE anything sticky on their feet.......I actually used double sided tape with my last cat to keep her off the glass coffee table!

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

JeanLouiseFinch — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 15:22:39 GMT

If you saw one, you can pretty much bet there are more somewhere in the house. The peanut butter should work.

Several years ago, I was filling the washer with water as I was sorting clothes. I saw "something" poke out from under the gasket at the top of the drum/tub. Like you, wasn't sure because it was so fast. Then it happened again. I called DH. He ran a paint/wall scraper around the top of the tub real fast and "Mickey" jumped into the pool. DH held him under until he drowned. After that he set traps. Believe it or not, we caught seven mice and never once did we see any in the lower level living areas, no "evidence" anywhere either. We had three cats at the time who were useless. We live in a wooded area so we expect to get a couple in the garage, which we do and traps take care of them. But in the house, eww, that made me feel so dirty and we are not dirty people.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

151949 — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 15:33:00 GMT

You never have only one mouse - you need to find where he is getting in & out & seal it up. Then put out traps - you will probably catch more than one.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

Fressa — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 15:34:50 GMT

I swear by those pest pulse plug in devices. they come in all sizes. They just chase them outside. There are also some traps that you can purcahse that the mouse enters but can't escape. There's a color bar that let's you know if you've caught it. Both of these systems have worked well for us.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

walkingal — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 20:03:01 GMT

@toria Good info. I don't deal with traps. I like bait stations so that they take the poison back to their nests. That's what my pest control company uses in my yard. I also have small bait stations for indoors that I keep under the kitchen sink and under a radiator also in the kitchen.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

qualityshopper — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 20:35:42 GMT

Thanks for all the responses. Very helpful. Got a laugh about the cat getting stuck. Poor thing.

To update, just checked the trap in my room about a half hour ago, and found the nasty thing had met its maker. My mom thinks that it's maybe the only one, but as many of you have said, where there's one, there are probably others. Now one of us has to be brave and pick it up and dispose of it. Ickkkk!

I ordered some traps from Amazon last night, including the type where you don't see the mouse once it's caught. Just pick the unit up and throw away. Won't have those until Sunday. I would reset the ones we have, but we had so much trouble with getting them to stay set (everytime I'd start to go upstairs with one, it would go off).

Not sure who we're going to get to examine our home to see where it might have gotten in. When my dad was alive, he had made sure all holes were sealed in this old house. He's been gone a long time now, so obviously either there are new places or some of the old ones have become open again. It would help, I guess, to find some droppings (haven't seen any).

Wanted to ask about using the scented dryer sheets. Hadn't heard about using those before, and am wondering if the scent matters. All we have are unscented ones.

Re: Have a mouse upstairs!

NickNack — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 20:50:23 GMT

@qualityshopper Glad you caught it! I would definitely try to find a handyman to look for the entry and seal it. Mine was next to my pipes inside my bathroom cabinet. Do you belong to NextDoor? It's a neighborhood group on the internet. I got recommendations for several handymen from the one for my neighborhood. It's a nice thing to be a member of. You can be completely anonymous. I am.