Best way to get rid of a mouse in the house

[bcla]

Years ago I tried using both snap traps and glue traps when I was in school and living at my parents house. We also had a small dog. They managed to work only once each, and both actually got the mice by the tail. I hid the snap traps between a wall and the washing machine so my dog couldn't get in, but left the glue traps hidden but still somewhat accessible. The dog did get a paw on one, but that came off with rubbing alcohol.

However, I said they were trapped by the tail, so obviously they didn't die quickly or painlessly. They were probably struggling for some time before they died of exhaustion trying to get free.

More recently we took care of some mice. My wife was really freaked out - actually saw several coming up some stairs and then scrambled back down. So I set up some snap traps. We tried some of the plastic ones, but none of them every caught a mouse. So it was the old fashioned wooden ones that worked, although the newer ones have a bigger plastic bait/trigger platform. I remember catching on once, and it was pretty obvious it was gone quickly. Then I set up several in cardboard boxes near the stairs where my wife saw them. I was just waiting around watching TV when I heard a pop, then another one maybe 20 seconds later. Got three mice in three traps. I guess two triggered them almost simultaneously. Apparently they don't work alone. Two were clearly trapped at the neck, but another one got trapped right at eye level - looked kind of like one of those squeeze toys where the eyes bulge out. Still - it clearly had its skull crushed, so it must have died quickly.

Yeah - I don't think of myself as cruel to animals, but mice in homes are pests and health risks. I'm glad to see them gone.

 

[Wishing on a star]

If you seal up all the food and put it away, and put a trap, with bait, where the mice come looking for their next meal... that should do it.

Not fun... getting rid of the dead mouse.
But, should work quick and easy.

And, no matter what, these critters can sometimes find the tinyest way into your home.
It happens.
I would def. be vigilant about keeping as much food sealed up and put away...
Do not leave pet food out for extended periods, or at night.
We keep our bird-seed in a tight-seal container.

Sorry you have to deal with a mouse in the house!

 

[bcla]

If you seal up all the food and put it away, and put a trap, with bait, where the mice come looking for their next meal... that should do it.

Not fun... getting rid of the dead mouse.
But, should work quick and easy.

And, no matter what, these critters can sometimes find the tinyest way into your home.
It happens.
I would def. be vigilant about keeping as much food sealed up and put away...
Do not leave pet food out for extended periods, or at night.
We keep our bird-seed in a tight-seal container.

Sorry you have to deal with a mouse in the house!

I get that a lot of people panic thinking maybe they're nesting inside your house. However, generally on house mice will do that. Many homes are visited by field mice (including deer mice) which was what we had. We saw no evidence of bedding inside our house, and once we caught them they were two-tones, which isn't found in house mice. So the key is that they're coming in looking for temporary warmth and maybe food. Even so, we've never seen any evidence that they've gotten into our pantry or have eaten through boxes.

I guess one of the odder things I remember was that I brought some fancy chocolates to the office years ago and gave them to my coworkers. One coworker saved it for later. In a few days she found little scratch/bite marks on them that made it obvious a rodent had been there.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

A mouse can get though a hole the size of a dime, so don't think that any holes you find are too small. Before I moved I had a problem with them and it was snap traps that did the trick, baited with peanut butter and Velveeta mashed together-the mice love that combo and it's harder for them to lick it off. I had an exterminator tell me that they run in threes. (he probably wanted to keep my business).

 

[goofy4tink]

We have them in our basement...which is partially finished. They love to scurry around on top of the suspended ceiling, and along the beams in the unfinished half, as well as on the top of the foundation walls. Every once in awhile, we can smell them decaying!! Yuck. I have a cat..actually had three of them at one point. Only one of the cats (now dead) was interested in 'mousing'...and even he wasn't at it all the time.
Just had our pest control guy out to do the summer exterior spraying. Asked if they 'did' mice as well. Next thing you know, I have 9 black boxes up along the foundation walls!!! He did say that many would die inside the walls, and it would be pretty smelly for a bit. So, here's hoping it works into the fall...before the masses come in to get out of the cold!!!!

 

[havaneselover]

Thanks so much for all of the suggestions! I bought Tomcat poison bait from Lowes. It's safe for kids and dogs and I put it in my pantry. I really hope this works.

 

[DisneyJules]

I had a mouse several years ago in my apartment, I feel for you! I tried EVERYTHING! Those things that you plug into the wall and emit a high-pitched noise do nothing, in fact the mouse pooped right in front of it. I think old fashion mouse traps are the way to go, bait them with peanut butter.

Whatever you do, don't buy the sticky paper, those are so inhumane.

 

[Kitty 34]

We had some mice problems years ago. Cats took care of the problem.

 

[bcla]

Thanks so much for all of the suggestions! I bought Tomcat poison bait from Lowes. It's safe for kids and dogs and I put it in my pantry. I really hope this works.

So you're talking about the bait traps and not the simple, exposed bait blocks?

You're still looking at the possibility that they take the bait and die inside your walls or a crawl space that you can't get to. It's also a myth that they'll go crazy looking for water outside. What will happen if they take the bait is that they'll eventually die (and over a few days) from internal bleeding.

 

[havaneselover]

So you're talking about the bait traps and not the simple, exposed bait blocks?

You're still looking at the possibility that they take the bait and die inside your walls or a crawl space that you can't get to. It's also a myth that they'll go crazy looking for water outside. What will happen if they take the bait is that they'll eventually die (and over a few days) from internal bleeding.

Yes, it's a bait trap. I understand that is a possibility. I ended up looking at what was available at Lowes and these were by far the highest rated product. I'm hoping for the best

 

[tigercat]

I have a cat that is a great mouser except when it is in the house. It seems that once it is in the house it is part of the family.
tigercat

 

[pittypat]

We had mice in our garage this spring. I started out being humane in my approach, not wanting to "hurt" them. After they chewed up ANYTHING, I got over that pretty quickly. We had good luck with the plain, old fashioned mouse traps. Make sure you get ones that are large enough to actually kill the mice and not just strangle them indefinitely. And a PP said just to bag and seal all foodstuff. We did NOT find that to be adequate…mice apparently like plastic, too.

 

[North of Mouse]

Our outside cat did great, but since she died, a mousetrap baited with peanut butter in our garage does wonders for the stray ones that dare to come in. Hate, hate them!!

Kitty was 16 years old when she died - a great mouser (also took care of any moles in the yard).

 

[North of Mouse]

Cats are not entirely dependable with that. We got a mouse in our house where we used to live. My cat caught it and played with it for a while then let it go and sauntered off.

Our cat was totally dependable - never showed any mercy! Never had any issued when she was alive.

 

[eh24fan]

When we moved into this house, my mom and I literally crawled around on our hands and knees, finding and filling ANY tiny little hole we found along the floors, under cabinets, in closets, behind appliances, heat ducts, everything! We were on the first floor, the 2nd floor, in the basement. Everywhere. We used spackle and the expanding foam. In 9 years we have had 1 mouse and I think it must have snuck in an open door or something. I went and bought several different traps, set them around where my husband and son had seen the nasty little critter and within 45 mins that sucker was GONE! I do not play when it comes to them. I hate them. I'm terrified of them. We keep the bags of poison in the corners and along the walls in the unfinished basement because I'm not taking chances! What I've found though is that the stupid crickets have been known to get into the poison. lol

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Get Disney to send a cease and desist letter.

 

[cabanafrau]

I think your kids sound like they have a good attitude about it. I'd be wanting to move too. I don't enjoy critters, at all.

 

[bcla]

We had mice in our garage this spring. I started out being humane in my approach, not wanting to "hurt" them. After they chewed up ANYTHING, I got over that pretty quickly. We had good luck with the plain, old fashioned mouse traps. Make sure you get ones that are large enough to actually kill the mice and not just strangle them indefinitely. And a PP said just to bag and seal all foodstuff. We did NOT find that to be adequate…mice apparently like plastic, too.

I don't think they really have to be large. The spring just has to be powerful and fast enough to crush the neck or skull.

The big 'ol rat traps may be too big for mice, where they might get trapped lower along the abdomen.

 

[JaxDad]

It's a little ironic to have this discussion on a Disney site...



There were much worse images I could have picked!

 

[sksjasams]

We had a mouse last winter...very first one after living in the country for ten years. I didn't even recognize the droppings when I had been seeing them. I didn't know what they were until I googled them (yuck!). I bought like 8 of these no-touch traps at our grocery store:
http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1279062
My DH baited them with peanut butter and we set them all along edges of walls. The very first night, my DS and I went upstairs to bed about 9:30pm and by the time my DH got home from work at 10pm we already had gotten the mouse - in a trap we put on the counter behind the microwave (double yuck!!).
We left the traps set up all over for another month and then took them down - luckily we only had that one mouse...
Good luck OP!!