so, in a fit of rage, i bought some poison bait which was an effective but not entirely wise move. i killed a bunch of mice that way, but the corpses would turn up everywhere and if not found and disposed of immediately would stink. after a brief lull in rodent activity i thought the problem had been taken care of, but no. the mice came back and i moved on to the covered spring traps, which short of a getting a cat or a thorough professional treatment is what i would recommend using. they're quick and efficient, with an opaque slip cover so you don't have to see the body (though the tail sticks out rather pathetically).
― lauren (laurenp), Tuesday, 9 August 2005 11:40 (eighteen years ago) link
― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 9 August 2005 11:49 (eighteen years ago) link
― the story is in the soil, Tuesday, 9 August 2005 12:05 (eighteen years ago) link
i managed to corner it on the worktop and then put a pint glass over it (being careful of the tail) and a book underneath it and chucked it out the back door.
― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Sunday, 4 September 2005 22:50 (eighteen years ago) link
― rainy (rainy), Sunday, 4 September 2005 22:56 (eighteen years ago) link
― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Sunday, 4 September 2005 23:27 (eighteen years ago) link
Finally, I caught it by slamming a plastic container over it and sliding the lid underneath. When I opened the tent door and released it, it ran off like a shot. During the daylight hours, my wife repaired the hole the mouse had chewed.
The next night as we went to bed we heard similar chewing noises. The same mouse (we are sure of this) was busily chewing a hole about 3 cm from the first hole and was on the point of entering the tent again when we caused it to flee. It made me sorry I had let it go the night before instead of killing it, the rotter.
― Aimless (Aimless), Monday, 5 September 2005 00:49 (eighteen years ago) link
― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Monday, 5 September 2005 13:07 (eighteen years ago) link
― ken c (ken c), Monday, 5 September 2005 13:16 (eighteen years ago) link
― koogs (koogs), Wednesday, 21 September 2005 13:18 (eighteen years ago) link
Then, of course, there were the various animal parts that were left all over the house.
― Robert J Myers (moriarty), Thursday, 22 September 2005 23:53 (eighteen years ago) link
― Robert J Myers (moriarty), Thursday, 22 September 2005 23:54 (eighteen years ago) link
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Saturday, 25 February 2006 19:59 (eighteen years ago) link
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:06 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:10 (eighteen years ago) link
― Jimmy Mod: The Prettiest Flower In The Pond (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:11 (eighteen years ago) link
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:12 (eighteen years ago) link
it's a cruel world, don't let nobody tell you otherwise.
― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:17 (eighteen years ago) link
i wish i could find the other one though. i just threw out whatever was under my bed so there's no more hiding places. waiting for maintenance to come seal up the hole, wherever it is.
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Saturday, 25 February 2006 21:53 (eighteen years ago) link
― john clarkson, Saturday, 25 February 2006 22:02 (eighteen years ago) link
I'd like to read Tracer's great-grandmother's book.
― sgs (sgs), Saturday, 25 February 2006 22:29 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark s (mark s), Saturday, 25 February 2006 22:51 (eighteen years ago) link
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Saturday, 25 February 2006 22:54 (eighteen years ago) link
― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 25 February 2006 23:13 (eighteen years ago) link
― caitlin oh no (caitxa1), Sunday, 26 February 2006 03:26 (eighteen years ago) link
i just got a humane trap and they haven't even gone near it
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:16 (fourteen years ago) link
probably snickering at your good-heartedness
― rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:19 (fourteen years ago) link
Put it hard up against the skirting board - they tend to creep along the foot of the wall for cover.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:21 (fourteen years ago) link
maybe i should have used something other than aged gouda and a skinny latte as bait?
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:22 (fourteen years ago) link
We had one recently, but had to reset it a couple of times when visiting kids stole the raisins from it.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:22 (fourteen years ago) link
Lol @ yuppie mice. Maybe try a PBR and a street hot dog, Tracer?
― But not someone who should be dead anyway (Laurel), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:25 (fourteen years ago) link
Someone told me mice are mad for chocolate. To test if that was a joke I put some in a trap I had in my previous house and it worked!
― StanM, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:26 (fourteen years ago) link
attached a poisoned glue trap to the humane trap. That may work.
― dan selzer, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:33 (fourteen years ago) link
mice are ppl too
― ♥/b ~~~ :O + x_X + :-@ + ;_; + :-/ + (~,~) + (:| = :^) (Lamp), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:34 (fourteen years ago) link
is that the logic that causes ppl to use humane traps to catch them?
you know what doesn't work? Those electronic noisemakers. And yet we have two going in the kitchen non-stop for the last year and a half.
Also try peppermint oil, the hardcore stuff, not the stuff you cook with. Fill cotton balls and place everywhere.
And the only real solution? Find the holes and plug them up. Foam and/or steel wool. If you find one, there's 6 more hiding. If you kill one, there's 6 more still hiding...and mad.
― dan selzer, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:37 (fourteen years ago) link
And the only real solution
A cat still works too. Even a lazy cat drives them away with pheromones or something.
― StanM, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:38 (fourteen years ago) link
Find the holes and plug them up.
i heard that this stops the house from "breathing"
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:39 (fourteen years ago) link
houses are ppl too
― ♥/b ~~~ :O + x_X + :-@ + ;_; + :-/ + (~,~) + (:| = :^) (Lamp), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:39 (fourteen years ago) link
"breathing" is a euphemism for "being stuffed with mice"
― suddenly, everything was dark and smelly (HI DERE), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:40 (fourteen years ago) link
Sounds like you need a humane house trap too then.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:40 (fourteen years ago) link
hahaha tracer u should get a pied pipe and lead them all on a merry dance across town to an orphanage and tell them never to return
― ♥/b ~~~ :O + x_X + :-@ + ;_; + :-/ + (~,~) + (:| = :^) (Lamp), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 15:41 (fourteen years ago) link
Open a window. The house doesn't need a dime-sized hole next to the stove pipes or radiator to "breathe".
― dan selzer, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:18 (fourteen years ago) link
This is definitely not true.
We got an electric rat killer, it's zapped about 15 of the fuckers (mice, not rats) over the last 2 weeks, at least the rate has slowed down now but they're still around I think.
― Colonel Poo, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:21 (fourteen years ago) link
i live in a big apartment building so i'm very dubious of my ability to plug all the holes - can't remember where i heard the "breathing" thing, it sounds pretty bonkers
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:22 (fourteen years ago) link
THERE'S AN ELECTRIC RAT-KILLER?? Holy fucking technology, that would have CHANGED MY LIFE at my last apartment.
― But not someone who should be dead anyway (Laurel), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:23 (fourteen years ago) link
It rules, you just hear this BZZZZZZZZZT noise from the cupboard, then just go and tip the mouse in the bin, reset it, and back in the cupboard.
― Colonel Poo, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:24 (fourteen years ago) link
You need a smellier cat! (xxxpost)
― StanM, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:25 (fourteen years ago) link
That would have saved my roommate having to beat a rat to death on the bathroom floor.
― But not someone who should be dead anyway (Laurel), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:25 (fourteen years ago) link
cats are great for mice since they like to toy with them for hours before going in for the kill which means you can usually snatch up the mouse while theyre holding its tail and let it go outside relatively unharmed.
― I wish I was the royal trux (sunny successor), Tuesday, 14 July 2009 16:26 (fourteen years ago) link