topic Re: Mice issues in Among Friends

Mice issues

Carmie — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 13:06:23 GMT

We built our house in 1988 and never saw any mice until last fall.

I think a pregnant mouse got into our home because we saw some very small mice as well as two adult mice.

To make a long story short, we finally got all the mice out, 14 of them. They were everywhere in our home and ruined food, wires and furniture.

This year, so far, we have no mice inside yet. But, my husband has been setting traps outside our house near our garage door. So far, he's caught five mice just this week.

We are away and our daughter is checking on the traps and resetting them. She said she can hear a noise coming from inside our walls that sounds like an animal is eating crunchy food.

I hate to have to go home to deal with this. "I hate meeces to pieces"

Re: Mice issues

Sooner — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 13:10:39 GMT

@Carmie I would have daughter meet Mr. Pest Arrest there and spray for those darned mice before I went home! Get 'em where they live!

Re: Mice issues

Shelbelle — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 13:28:44 GMT

We had a situation like that in 2016, hired an exterminator who still comes once every 3 months, checks inside snd outside and sets traps in strategic places, and seals any openings he finds. Only had a couple of very minor troubles since. I was done having my DH try to handle it by himself.

Re: Mice issues

jackthebear — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 13:49:56 GMT

get an exterminator

Re: Mice issues

JoyFilled Warrior — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 16:43:44 GMT

Hi @Carmie I can imagine yr frustration!

I just came from that situation myself, newly, after living 8 yrs at that same abode.

"Quelle NIGHTMARE!"

Apparently, these mousy buggahs eat right thru -

Under homes, In Walls - thru the Water Pipes, thru Electrical Wires, and thru & INSIDE CARS! *SUCH $$$ DAMAGE ($till even now!)* *and* they makes nests for themselves & their ghastly, abundant, increasing relatives.

Their sole mission seems to be to EAT, NEST and PROCREATE! Bah-da-Bing. *drop the mic*

Never aware of any problem until those local homes were being torn down, & replaced with those Matchbook Developer homes which were built in days.

I heard that at one such "newly torn down home" was found replete with rodents, for yrs, that I'm guessing just merely scattered & relocated TO US!

. . . and it appears, if they die at yr home, the plethora of FLIES, and their own Lifecycle! yeah, that problem!

One of my first questions to God, when I meet Him:

"WHY THE RODENTS?"

Good luck, @Carmie ! Sending my prayers!

Re: Mice issues

hkrgrl — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 14:46:41 GMT

ugh, just the worst!!!

we had them 2 years ago and could not figure out where they were coming in at.

so we put down mouse poison pellets - they eat them & die. sprayed outside perimeter house with mouse repellent and put sonic repellent (plug in) near all downstairs doors.

last winter, no mice.

they come in when the weather starts to turn cold. so get prepared. around here its october...

leave no standing water, even pet bowls overnight. they come out at night.

they say if u see them during the day in your home, you are overrun with them.

use steel wool around pipe openings under sinks. they are excellent climbers, can scale water lines, gas lines, really anything. seal up all food, leave nothing out.

worse comes to worse, get a 'mouser' cat!!!!!

Bring nature home, plant native species to your area

Re: Mice issues

wagirl — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 14:52:01 GMT

Yep-----I'd be calling my local pest guys as soon as they open this morning!!! My EX---killed around 6-7 RATS in a few days once--- yes rats that got into the garage-----he used a trap or 3 and even got 2 in one trap one night. It was absolutely the most horrid sound of them being trapped----am not squeamish about rodents-- but not in my house--altho they never did get into the house. I am sure the expense of fixing everything those pesky critters have damaged will very pricey too.

Re: Mice issues

Roscoe the Rascal — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 10:12:18 GMT

I hate mice. I get them in the garage every so often so I set traps all year long. I have had some get into the house every now and then. I have a trap under my kitchen sink and put aluminum foil in any openings I might see too around the pipes.

My problem started when my husband started feeding the birds and squirrels. He would keep the feed in the garage and to be honest make a mess of it too so I have removed all that and have a aluminum trash can that I keep outside near area where I feed. Lid fits on tight too. I set down by the tree at the end of the yard and put no more out than what will be gone before evening. I do not leave out during the night and use to have raccoons come visit too. Things have gotten a lot better for sure and I just keep at it. I have a cat and she is a good mouser for the inside.

I use to see a mouse and scream my head off but now I just take action and I use the traps that they go in and then I can release the dead mouse into garbage and reset the trap. I don't want to do the poison and find dead one at some point and then starts to stink. I just set out several in different areas and check weekly.

Re: Mice issues

Carmie — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:26:36 GMT

Well, so far this time, they seem to be outside only. We are catching them outside.

We do have sonic repellers and will be plugging them in again. My kids and grands can hear the sonic noise, but my DH and I cannot, so they that don't bother us.

We closed off a hole in the floor under the stove where wiring once was for a different stove we had when we first moved in. My husband thinks he knows how they got in, so he set the outdoor traps near that spot.

When we get home, we will close that spot off. We have small dogs , so we have to be careful with chemicals and where we put them.

I am determined they will not cause us problems like that did last winter. If we need an exterminator, we will call one.

Re: Mice issues

Zhills — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:32:28 GMT

Be careful what type poison you put out.

YOU DON'T WANT THEM TO DIE INSIDE! They Stink!

Re: Mice issues

hkrgrl — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:34:19 GMT

the poison pellets are good gauge as the extent of infestation.

put out a lot, and if its gone in the morning, big problem!

funny enough, we never found the dead ones. hope they went out to find water. i don't like using it since i don't want collateral damage, but they do work.

our dog cannot get to the pellets. they are inside the mechanicals closet in the basement.

i would not worry about killing the outside ones, that's where they belong. the trick is finding where they are getting in and fix that issue.

good luck!!!

Re: Mice issues

haddon9 — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:38:53 GMT

Oh no! It is a nightmare when you have them and they start to multiply!

We had some mice about 15 years ago and got rid of them. DH went around the foundation to seal up any small holes or cervices. We also made sure that no tree branches were close to the house.

The mice were gone but suddenly they came back two years ago and I saw one running across the kitchen floor! I was freaked!! We don't know how it came in but did everything possible to get it and last year there were no mice.....fingers crossed for this year!!

They like to come in when the weather starts to get cool.

Re: Mice issues

on the bay — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:45:19 GMT

@Carmie,

One of my daughters had 3 over the 2 years she's been at their apt.

She got these each time-

Humane Mousetraps-

They work everytime. A little peanut butter, and voila! You have caught a mouse without the horrific killing trap or cruel poison.

Then you just let them out in the woods or somewhere away from your home.

A win-win for you and the poor mice!

4 for $8.81 at Walmart.

Now if you have a house with an infestation with multiple mice there are "exterminators" who do humane capture too. And they will plug up any holes around your home or should. They should also be walking all around the outside of your home to search for openings.

Re: Mice issues

Bonkers1 — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:45:03 GMT

@JoyFilled Warrior

Your post is so so true and so so funny.

Re: Mice issues

JoyFilled Warrior — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 16:52:38 GMT

@Bonkers1 wrote:

@JoyFilled Warrior

Your post is so so true and so so funny.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

@Bonkers1

*wink*

Re: Mice issues

shoekitty — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 01:57:53 GMT

many years ago they cleared acres in back of the neighbors across the street. Built a huge housing tract. Well, mice started pouring in , no where to go!! the houses across the street got the brunt of it. But we had a few a day. The cutest little things. They were field mice about 2-3 inches, some looked like little hamsters. We started out with live traps which worked great. Then we walked them down to huge park down the street. They also have. A large population of feral cats. At least I didn't have to kill them. Them a few years later we had rats from the neighbors.. they were living in the heavily jasmines covered fence, and ivy as well. We had large pepper tree by Sid elf house. They were crawling up tree and nibbled through a grate and were in house attic. Which was low and small. Neighbors used deacon, which I would never use, and they died in our attic and mpwe had to deal with smell and removing dead rats. Not many, but enough. We cut pepper tree branch down, they cut their jasmine and ivy and problem solved. My husband had to use traps for a bit . We learned to patch up all grates. Remove foliage near house and tree limbs that reach side of home. Keep all garbage cans, seeds away from home. Also we applied these stinky crystals that we used for animals coming around home, and it worked. It stinks for an hour, but fades and most animals avoid it.

Re: Mice issues

Venezia — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 05:36:12 GMT

I live in the country so, of course, we're going to occasionally get mice. I use Viktor Electonic traps.

The mouse gets zapped when it enters the trap to get to the peanut butter. It's killed almost instantaneously. Open the trap and dump the mouse. Reset the trap. They're battery operated; good for up to 100 mice.

I never use poison. If a mouse gets back outside and another animal (cat, dog, wild animal, birds, whatever) ingests it, the poison will kill that animal. And it's a gruesome way to die. I'd never forgive myself.

The electronic traps are humane and they work. I've always found that after I've caught a few the problem stops for a long time. It's as if the remaining mice sense the danger.

Re: Mice issues

shoekitty — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 19:28:07 GMT

@Venezia wrote:
I live in the country so, of course, we're going to occasionally get mice. I use Viktor Electonic traps.

The mouse gets zapped when it enters the trap to get to the peanut butter. It's killed almost instantaneously. Open the trap and dump the mouse. Reset the trap. They're battery operated; good for up to 100 mice.

I never use poison. If a mouse gets back outside and another animal (cat, dog, wild animal, whatever) ingests it, the poison will kill that animal. And it's a gruesome way to die. I'd never forgive myself.

The electronic traps are humane and they work. I've always found that after I've caught a few the problem stops for a long time. It's as if the remaining mice sense the danger.

@Venezia excellent idea. I haven't had a problem last few years, so I haven't looked. But I will tell husband. That de-con and poison should be banned, so cruel, and dangerous.

Re: Mice issues

Venezia — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 04:16:40 GMT

@shoekitty - I get mine on Amazon and keep them in place year-round. I just check on them every day or so.

When the batteries start to wear out, the light flashes red, so you know it's time to replace them. It flashes green when there's a dead mouse in there!

Re: Mice issues

Venezia — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 05:48:56 GMT

Just something to keep in mind for those who prefer poisons. I don't want mice invading my home, car or garage either, but I at least prefer a safer and more humane way to eliminate them, without endangering other life forms.

The truth about these poisons isn't palatable or popular, I know. (Turning a blind eye to it is always easier.)

--------------------------

"“d-CON Kills Mice and Rats,” the label screams. True enough. If it were totally honest, however, it would say, “d-CON Kills Mice, Rats, Owls, Bobcats, Foxes, Coyotes, Hawks, Cats, Dogs, and many other creatures.” (It is also mentioned that children have been poisoned by these things, too, as children will often pop anything into their mouths.)

The chemicals in question are anticoagulants. The target species—rats and mice—die from internal bleeding. When their carcasses are found and eaten by predators and scavengers, the poison is ingested as well, often causing injury or death.

This is why the Environmental Protection Agency is trying to yank the registration of a dozen d-CON rodenticide products in order to eliminate the collateral damage inflicted on wildlife, domestic pets and children."