Need to catch (or kill) a mouse

longbeachguy

longbeachguy

Joined
Oct 11, 2005
Messages
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Okay I'm at wits end and I really don't want to call an exterminator if I can avoid it. I feel that in a head to head battle of wits with a small rodent I should be able to prevail. However to date the little #%#^%$& has run circles around me, sometimes literally. Also, time is of the essence, as my wife is out of patience and about to call in the pros. I'm getting so desparate I'm actually considering getting a pellet gun and laying in wait for the little sob all night.

Here's what I've tried, and the results:

Traditional snap traps -- I think I actually heard him laughing at me over these. Anyway, he never went near them.

One of those "roach motel" type traps with bait inside. He's supposed to go in the little opening, and door closes behind him. Doesn't kill, just traps him. He thought that was funnier than the snap traps.

Sticky/Glue traps. I think he has the ability to hover in midair because he ate most of the cookie I placed in the middle of it, and didn't leave so much as a hair or a footprint behind.

Poison -- I swear I'm not making this up. After laying out some poison one night I woke up the next morning and saw he had eaten several pellets. They weren't just missing -- there were nibbled remnants and crumbs from the pellets he ate. I simply assumed he was dead or dying and I was victorious at last. Until that night when I saw him scurry across my bedroom in the pink of health.

I've never had a mouse issue before and I don't know if this is normal or if this is some superhuman mouse. And yes I do mean superhuman, the human he superior to of course being me.

Anyway, can anyone please offer me some practical advice for dealing with an intellectually superior mouse?

I'll send a Case trapper in a collectors tin, still factory sealed to anyone who's original idea works. I mean that.

Thanks in advance! I'm sure this mouse, formidible though he is, is no match for the aggregated wisdom of the Bladeforums community!
 
I use the electronic rodent repelers that you plug into the wall. They seem to a pretty good job to chase away any unwanted mice and keep them away. Although the pelet rifle does sound like fun too!
 
I'd go with some kind of a pellet gun of your choice. It doesn't even have to be that powerful.
 
The classic, spring-loaded mouse trap works great.

First, handle it only while wearing examining gloves so as not to leave a "human" scent.

Second, bait it with peanutbutter. Mice love peanutbutter and they have to lick it off the trigger which requires pushing on the trigger.

Finally, put in in a corner or along a wall preferably under the toe-kick space of a counter or in some other "protected" space. Mice like to stay in corners or close to the foot of a wall or in some place where they feel protected. They won't go out into the open center of a room, for example. The natural enemy of a mouse is a cat. So, mice won't go into places where cats can easily get them. Think that way and you'll find a good place for the trap and have good results.
 
Don't use poison. They'll eat the poison, run back to a hidden spot inside the walls, die, and stink up your house with their rotting carcass.

Here's a recent thread on the same topic: help! I got mice...
 
At this point his stinking rotting carcass would be like sweet sweet perfume to me.

Gollnick, I've tried just about everything you suggest with the exception of the surgical gloves. That makes a lot of sense. Surely if he detects the scent of me, his mortal enemy, he's not going to lick that particular peanut butter. I'm going to try that next. Thanks!!
 
Chuck's advice sounds good. Also, if you go with the glue traps, buy the larger sized ones advertised for use against rats - and make sure the bait (piece of chicken or clump of peanut butter) is well stuck right in the center. Once upon a time I caught 7 of those little field mouse bastards on one trap in my office in the supply wharehouse at MCAS Tustin. :D
 
I too had aproblem that was resolved with an electronic trap that electrocutes them. You place peanut butter at one end of the trap, and when they cross over two metal plates to get to the bait, bam. I successfully offed about 7 of them before they were gone. The thing operates on batteries or a/c current, and peanut butter was the absolute best. I used the Rat Zapper 2000, but I don't recall where I purchased it. Hope this helps.

Lance
 
I have killed at least 20 mice with one spring trap. Peanut butter smeared on the trigger that looks like a piece of cheese- has holes that the Peanut butter sits in. Location is important. If you can identify the access point into the house, or the route they take, then you have the best chance.
 
i have plans for a mouse trap that is neat to build and works great. no springs, no mess, self resetting so multiple catches are possible. interested?
 
Here is the foolproof secret. Use the basic spring trap but tie a number of knots, using cotton stringor butchers twine around the pressure plate to create a little lump.

Now smear your peanut butter to embed it into the string. The rodent will be more likely to bite the string than lick. I killed two last winter using this trick and both had the knots in their mouth.

Also as mentioned place it along a wall.
 
I find melting cheddar cheese on the trigger works well too. Take a lighter and drip the cheese right on to the trigger. They have to work at it to get it off.
 
RUN! Run far far away! You have mutant mice and it's only a matter of time until you end up like this...

I've had the sonic dohickies in the garage for years and we still have mouse problems. Mechanized traps never work, the cat's too well fed to worry about mice and poison only makes your house reek... The peanut-butter and string trick always works in the end, but I also bought my kids a blow-gun and they set up a blind in the kitchen and hunted the last few little buggers down!

J-
 
There was an NPR show once that dealt with this. Please, quiet your hissing for a second. Anyway, the guy that was being interviewed owned a mousetrap company, and he said basically that there was no money in a better mousetrap because those old snap-traps have about 80% effectiveness, and some not much more expensive ones are near 100%. Couldn't find the full audio/transcript. Have to spend more time looking. Anyway, the bucket idea is pretty good: deep, 5 gallon bucket, water/antifreeze (interviewer said just antifreeze cuz this was supposedly an enviro-friendly trap- he was the one that called it out on that!:D), a wooden dowel that is put across the bucket, and bait in the middle. Mousey goes across dowel, it rolls and plop... but really, the interviewer said a mouse is essentially the perfect creature to hunt. Doesn't explore very far (only about 10' on average from his little hole), but is very curious about new things- so maybe there are problems more on your end than the mouses ;). Really, best thing is to watch for it, see where it comes from, and make the floor in front of the hole a minefield, either literally or figuratively with traps/anchored sticky tape.
Zero
p.s. Investigate the complicating factors. Are there multiple mice, multiple entry holes, other pests that aren't mice, other animals (your own?) taking the bait? Again, key to success is doing your homework. You shouldn't hunt an elephant without knowing where it's brain case is (Orwell). Neither should you hunt a mouse without knowing thy enemy :p.
 
I second the cat. I have a tom that adopted us and so far he has left us 6 mice, 2 rats, a squirrels hind end ( I think it was a squirrel..) and bits and pieces of various other rodents. He seemed to be a little thrown off his stride by the posseum though..just sat and watched my wife and the mighty Broom of Death..
 
Also, on the spring loaded traps, you can adjust the tension to snap by slightly bending the tang. With less pressure rqeuired to set it off, it's harder to steal the bait.

Watch your fingers though.
 
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