Suggestions for mice

[Johns_Gal]

I leave my house empty for a month+ at a time visiting DH/family. Every stinkin' time, mice move right in.

On my return, they are quickly dispatched by the housecat, but I still of course have to really deep clean my kitchen. I have tons of cabinets so this takes for.ev.er. They invariably find the bag of flour I've overlooked, chew all the labels off the cans in the pantry.... grr. Hate them, hate them, hate them.

End rant. I do need to have repairmen out to seal the drafty old place up, but what can I do while I am gone? I am loathe to set and leave snap traps, as the ick of dead mice seems worse than all the cleaning, but....

Suggestions until I get the repairguys out? Hopefully it will be before I have to go again.

[Sihaya48]

I put a few drops of peppermint essential oil on cotton balls and put them in every corner of the pantry/cupboard/food storage areas. The cupboard smells like candy canes, but it works. I would also make sure grains and flours and the like are in tightly closed containers that are not easy to chew through. And I would wipe down the shelves right before you leave so there's no food/crumbs/flour dust out to entice them. Hope that helps!

[Psyche]

mint is great :yes

You could also plant it around your house come spring

[curlymopmom]

I had NO idea Steph and Heather! We got rid of the mice for the winter, but not sure if we got all the holes closed up. We'll find out come spring. :giggle

I'm so glad you started this thread Jen!

[Johns_Gal]

I was all nervous posting this that you all would screech at me for letting even a rodent's whisker make it's way in, lol.

Peppermint oil... I think I have some! Ha ha ha, little meeces. Welcome no more!

And mint... I think I have some empty pots in my shed I can strategically place. Ooh. Planning now.

[curlymopmom]

Oh no way! This will make you feel better: The mice in my house crawl in my sofa. :sick :mad Hate isn't even a strong enough word for how I feel about mice. You know where else they went? On the cutting board that slides into my cabinet. :sick They would come into our bedroom so I would get out the vacuum to scare them away. I started leaving food for them in one spot :bag so they wouldn't come in the bedroom. They would just lick the traps clean! After trying SOOO many different traps, I finally found some that worked every time. :praise I am tired of cleaning up mice droppings.

[Lady TS]

Peppermint didn't keep them out of my silverware drawer.:sick

As a fellow rural farmhouse dweller...I recommend poison. :shifty I have not seen a sign of a mouse(or rat) since I put it out, and I am quite thankful as cleaning out all the kitchen cupboards about once a month was getting quite old.

[Iarwain]

Peppermint didn't keep them out of my silverware drawer.:sick

As a fellow rural farmhouse dweller...I recommend poison. :shifty I have not seen a sign of a mouse(or rat) since I put it out, and I am quite thankful as cleaning out all the kitchen cupboards about once a month was getting quite old.

Rural farmhouse. Yep.

They like your silverware drawer too, eh? Mine seems to be a favorite mouse hangout as well. Three cats aren't keeping them under control. Traps aren't doing it - the mice are too smart. I even put a trap IN the silverware drawer - and found droppings all around it the next morning. :sick :banghead

I opened this thread hoping for brilliant new ideas. I have been trying not to resort to poison but for sanitation's sake I think that's where I'm headed next. It's just too gross.

[Lady TS]

Rural farmhouse. Yep.

They like your silverware drawer too, eh? Mine seems to be a favorite mouse hangout as well. Three cats aren't keeping them under control. Traps aren't doing it - the mice are too smart. I even put a trap IN the silverware drawer - and found droppings all around it the next morning. :sick :banghead

I opened this thread hoping for brilliant new ideas. I have been trying not to resort to poison but for sanitation's sake I think that's where I'm headed next. It's just too gross.

Yep, I finally just HAD IT with dealing with them. I think the risk of disease was greater than my desire to be nice to nature...thus the poison. After 7 years of snap traps...it was time. Just hoping and praying my kitties don't find a dead mouse somewhere and try to eat it...:-/

[Iarwain]

Yep, I finally just HAD IT with dealing with them. I think the risk of disease was greater than my desire to be nice to nature...thus the poison. After 7 years of snap traps...it was time. Just hoping and praying my kitties don't find a dead mouse somewhere and try to eat it...:-/

Hope this isn't too gross but... what about the, um, carcasses? Do you find dead mice in inconvenient places or have mysterious odors? With traps at least you know where the body is and can dispose of it easily.

[Lady TS]

I have yet to find anything or smell anything at all. I think they find the "stash", stock up and take it back outside to their homes or something. Haven't found anything in our unfinished basement yet either.:shrug3

[Johns_Gal]

Add me to the rural farmhouse clan.

I have considered poison, but when I was a kid my grandma used it and they'd die in the walls. :yuck No stench like dead mouse stench. That, and my toddler would eat the pellets given a chance.

They are bold little nasties, for sure. They just sit there and stare at me like "Nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah!". At least the cat gets it now, at first she just sat there and watched them bemusedly.

I don't even keep silverware in the drawers anymore. We're down to just enough for the two of us, so I keep it in the dish drainer to keep filthy mouse feet off our dishes. Bought new shlf paper today to lay down, and am going to give the peppermint oil a shot.

[blessedwithboys]

as a former rural farm house dweller, I highly suggest poison. We never had them stink or die in the walls. :shrug3 We put it in places that the kids had ABSOLUTELY no access too. We also had cats and they never were hurt by eating poisoned mice (I don't think they actually ever ate any).

Have you thought of throwing some poison up in the attic? They really like to live up there, and it may be that they are hiding out there.

[Lady TS]

Our poison is in our unfinished basement, where the kids never go. I think I might put some in the attic too...maybe.

[Sihaya48]

We are also in a rural farmhouse and tried poison, but after two encounters with dead mice, DS eating some poison (that was a fun call to poison control!), and many worries about them dying inside the walls, we got rid of the poison. It just wasn't worth it to me.

[Peacemama]

Im also in a rural old farmhouse, they seem to come in every fall to get warm. We start to think they are gone, and then it gets colder and more show up! As afraid as I am to do it, I may try the poison. My DH is only home 2 days a week right now because of his job, and I just cannot handle dead rodents in traps BLECK! I am going to try the oil first before he comes home next! Thanks for the tips :)