Mice in the house but what bait are you finding successful?

[DSM10000]

We have noticed for some weeks now our annual influx of mice has begun (house is surrounded by fields, a river etc) but this year either numbers have increased (presumably we have had good rating on Mouse Trip Advisor?) or they have taken to wearing heavy boots judging from the noise at times.

I have always managed to control them via bait boxes, the bait used contains a compound that acts as a sedative that will also lower their respiratory rate and effects the temperature regulation so they pass away peacefully after a good meal! The problem with this is they often pass away behind cupboards etc where it is impossible to reach them and you are left with the odour of decaying mouse for some weeks.

Domestic management do not like this so i have bought a number of more conventional plastic snap traps and baited them with Peanut butter which, in the past, I have always found to be highly effective.

This year however the Peanut butter is being ignored, perhaps we have mice with a nut allergy?

Any other suggestions for bait? Bacon has not worked either, cheese dries out and is easily taken without triggering traps in my experience.

 

[John N]

We have noticed for some weeks now our annual influx of mice has begun (house is surrounded by fields, a river etc) but this year either numbers have increased (presumably we have had good rating on Mouse Trip Advisor?) or they have taken to wearing heavy boots judging from the noise at times.

I have always managed to control them via bait boxes, the bait used contains a compound that acts as a sedative that will also lower their respiratory rate and effects the temperature regulation so they pass away peacefully after a good meal! The problem with this is they often pass away behind cupboards etc where it is impossible to reach them and you are left with the odour of decaying mouse for some weeks.

Domestic management do not like this so i have bought a number of more conventional plastic snap traps and baited them with Peanut butter which, in the past, I have always found to be highly effective.

This year however the Peanut butter is being ignored, perhaps we have mice with a nut allergy?

Any other suggestions for bait? Bacon has not worked either, cheese dries out and is easily taken without
triggering traps in my experience.

Bait the unset traps with Milk Chocolate for a couple of days, once you can see the Mice are eating the Chocolate, Set the Traps!

 

[Tramper]

Get a cat

 

[DSM10000]

Bait the unset traps with Milk Chocolate for a couple of days, once you can see the Mice are eating the Chocolate, Set the Traps!

Knowing our bloody mice it will not be Dairy Milk they go for but only 85% cocoa solid chocolate!

They take Arborio rice from the cupboards if left in the packet! We have the only mice that make risotto!

 

[DSM10000]

Get a cat

Have a dog!

Mice ignore cats, our mice can happily move around the house (original part is 16th C) through gaps in walls etc and effectively have a network to get around unseen.

 

[Deleted member 113659]

We got a pack of these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B081H48X7Y/?tag=amazon0e9db-21

plugged 3 of them around the house (1 in loft) and been mouse free now for over 2 years.

I’d have been out of the door years ago had I suggested setting traps.

 

[MissyD]

I've tried the bait boxes as I had mice in my bedroom, but all they did was chew the box and drag it around the room making a hell of a noise which kept me awake!

Chocolate spread on a snap trap did the trick.

 

[DSM10000]

We got a pack of these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B081H48X7Y/?tag=amazon0e9db-21

plugged 3 of them around the house (1 in loft) and been mouse free now for over 2 years.

I’d have been out of the door years ago had I suggested setting traps.

We tried similar in the past with no effect, the age and construction of the house may well prevent the signals spreading effectively?

 

[flowrider]

Many years ago we had mice in our house, I know its stating the obvious but we found where the mice were getting in and fixed it. No need for traps or poison.

 

[Smart320]

Not sure how mice can make a lot of noise ! When we had our house in Tunisia our Birmans cat would regularly hunt at night and then bring us ' live ' presents ' . Gifts included, baby rabbits , lots of voles, birds ( size of thrushes ) and the occasional jerboa. Of course when we heard him meowing with his mouth full we would know he was bring us a gift , then had to get up and try to catch our present as he dropped it on the bed . Luckily as he got to 15 years old his hunting skills deteriorated !

 

[st13phil]

Bait the unset traps with Milk Chocolate for a couple of days, once you can see the Mice are eating the Chocolate, Set the Traps!

^ +1 for chocolate (or chocolate spread). They learn fast, meaning baits you've used in the past become ignored once the rodents work out they're life-limiting, so you have to keep one step ahead of the critters.

In the past I used the poison wheat that, once it killed the rodent, sort of desiccated the remains which meant no nasty niffs regardless of where they conked out.

 

[DSM10000]

Many years ago we had mice in our house, I know its stating the obvious but we found where the mice were getting in and fixed it. No need for traps or poison.

I and my builder have been around all obvious areas, air vents etc and covered them with mesh but with a house this old there will always be small areas that allow ingress and they are in the house now so we need some method of control.

We found two areas where wood had been gnawed at to make a small hole so if you do block entry they seem determined to find a way

 

[DSM10000]

Not sure how mice can make a lot of noise ! When we had our house in Tunisia our Birmans cat would regularly hunt at night and then bring us ' live ' presents ' . Gifts included, baby rabbits , lots of voles, birds ( size of thrushes ) and the occasional jerboa. Of course when we heard him meowing with his mouth full we would know he was bring us a gift , then had to get up and try to catch our present as he dropped it on the bed . Luckily as he got to 15 years old his hunting skills deteriorated !

Scrabbling, scratching noises etc in voids in walls, ceilings, raised floors etc, dragging of bedding materials. In a quiet house at night it is very noticeable

 

[Smart320]

Luckily the Tunisian house was mainly stone and concrete so no worries about voids

 

[Swotty]

Another one for chocolate spread ... Nutella in our case. If you use traps, there's no worries about them crawling away to die and stinking the place out.

I read that a mouse can get through a hole the width of a pencil ... its head is the widest part of its body.

Our cat will only catch mice outdoors!

We get mice in the cars, too ... so traps in all engine bays and by every wheel.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

I wonder if it’s actually possible to be fully rid of vermin once they have moved in?

 

[Peter103]

Good old fashion mouse trap baited with any cheap cooking chocolate, they love it, for about 3or4 seconds then, Wack! Dead mouse. We caught one in our loft last year one night watching TV kept hearing a thwack thwack, I guessed we'd caught one in the loft but he'd dropped onto the inside of the loft hatch and was rolling about still in the trap, the following morning all quiet I got Mrs 103 to hold a big black bag under while I went up the steps to lift the hatch and tip it in. To be cont'd,,,,,,,,,,. if requested.

 

[Marquisofraspberry]

Mars bar or Snickers have always worked, also a good excuse to buy a family pack, just for getting rid of vermin you understand

 

[Deleted member 113659]

.......I got Mrs 103 to hold a big black bag under while I went up the steps to lift the hatch and tip it in. To be cont'd,,,,,,,,,,. if requested.

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[st13phil]

...kept hearing a thwack thwack, I guessed we'd caught one in the loft but he'd dropped onto the inside of the loft hatch and was rolling about still in the trap

When a friend of mine worked in the upper floor office of an older building she and her colleagues could hear scratching and scampering noises in the loft-space above their heads, so called in a local pest control firm.

After examining the loft space, the bloke declared that the noise was being caused by one or more squirrels and as it was illegal to poison them, he set a couple of "humane" cage traps.

Following day there was huge commotion in the loft space as a squirrel, now trapped in the cage, bounced it from one end of the loft to the other and back again. This continued unabated until the pest control guy returned late in the afternoon to remove a very angry squirrel !