Catching Mice

TL;DR, but I have made a few of these with old coffee cans.  Live trap, small footprint, easy to use.

If you really want to keep them alive, be sure to check them frequently.  Small rodents with their fast metabolism tend to not last long after their fight-or-flight kicks in.  For instance, if you catch a Mus musculus (house mouse), Microtus pennsylvanicus (meadow vole) or Peromyscus leucopus, (white footed mouse) it might live for up to 6 hours before running out of glycogen, but if you catch a pygmy shrew (Sorex hoyi), it can expend its entire glycogen reserves in a matter of minutes.  You want to make sure you release them in a fair amount of time, and be gentle with the live trap so as to not trigger too much adrenaline.

Don't worry too much about releasing them too far away.  Rodents have very small territories, and won't remember where you found them or released them.  For the most part, rodents have circles that are maybe 20 feet in diameter tops in the wild.  They do sometimes venture out when they need to.  Here is a trick about rodents.  Rodents are relatively intelligent, but not cognitively.  When rodents get into your house it is completely by accident.  One stumbled on a hole, came inside, found food, and decided to make your house their 20 foot circle of existence.  The problem is, rodents do tend to follow during a certain window.  Rodents have no control over their urination and defecation.  They just go.  So when a mouse enters a hole in your house, it leaves a scent trail.  If its a very fresh scent trail, the next rodent won't follow.  They'll assume its someone else's territory.  If its an old scent trail, it means "hey, there might be something interesting in here."  If its old enough to no longer really have a scent, they won't even realize it.

For that reason, simply live-trapping current rodents might not do the trick.  Other rodents may happen along and smell the entrance and simply take over where you made a vacancy.  The secret is to overwhelm the scent trail with oregano and orange oil, or napthalene flakes.  That way you can trap the mice, drop them out the back door, and even they won't be able to re-sniff their own entrance.

I've used the bucket + bottle method.  It worked well.  

Figured out where the mouse was, caught it, cleaned out that area (garage) and released it.  No problems again.

Bird of prey!  Better for outdoor use instead of indoor...

Juvenile of some sort snatched a mouse or similar sized mammal in our front yard yesterday.  I was trimming my beard so I only caught a glimpse of it in the mirror I was using.  SWMBO said she thought the markings looked like a peregrine falcon and not at all like the hawks that we see every day.  It must have come back later because all the smaller birds in our bushes went crazy for about 5 minutes a few hours after the observed snatch.

Hey Guys, sorry to hijack this thread, but...we just started cleaning our basement out of mice.  These freaking things come in to escape the Maine winters.  I have no qualms about dispatching their little souls to whatever hell awaits them.  I have hated these things ever since I found mouse turds on a brand new engine in my garage.  Not to mention the huge nest I found under the manifold when I was putting the kenne bell on my mustang.  It was the size of a small pillow.

I just wanted to ask for some advice:  We are pretty sure we have chipmunks in our basement ceiling.  We have looked all over for holes in the house or foundation and have found none.  I am seriously thinking about drilling a hole in the ceiling and pumping some type of noxious gas to drive them out. 

Any ideas? If I do this, I'll put up pics, I promise!

Another bucket trap fan. Bagged five in the garage this winter, that's the usual winter kill number.

Mouse fun fact: Mice poop out drowning but not in trap kills.

Shotgun.  Nuke from orbit. Fire. 

Dunno about your chipmunks, but for the mice, the above style bucket traps work great.  Conventional mouse traps wouldn't hurt either. 

I had a chipmunk running around the eve on my house.  A hundred dollar 177 pellet rifle dispatched it to the chipmunk afterlife.  I don't like shooting at the eves with anything bigger than a pellet rifle. You might also try the "have a heart" live catch traps.  HF sells a set of 2, one large, one small.  Put some chipmunk food in them in the basement and see what you get, then take it outside and kill it.  For the children.

Shawn Woods has tested live and kill traps for every kind of rodent including squirrels, oughta have something for the chipmunks.

https://www.youtube.com/user/historichunter

In reply to fasted58 :

Man, we went on that website last night.  Totally hypnotic!  My son and I just sat enthralled watching those suckers go down.  Thanks!  We felt like we couldn't stop watching!

Bumping an old thread.

The cats have gotten a few mice, but it looks like mouse numbers are up in general this spring and they aren't keeping up.

Poison is out, so stand by as I try a few methods.
 

In reply to Brett_Murphy :

I’ve had more mouse problems this year.  I finally caught two in traps and can see some bait in the garage being eaten.  

Since our last outside cat passed, I finally broke down and went chemical on their asses.  Got a bucket of bait at Tractor Supply.  It's not a Vitamin K agonist, but some other stuff that causes their brains to swell, then likely herniate, but that part they leave out of the literature.  Anyway, you have to wait a couple weeks for the stink of the hidden rodent to go away, but it seems to be working for me.  Some in the shed (sure a 'coon got a headache there), shop, etc.  After about the second round of putting bait out, it tends to stay there.

A few weeks ago I heard a guy on our local “home fix it” show talking about a product that covers the urine scent that mice leave. According to him, after you’ve killed the “old mice,” the “new mice” will follow the trail of pee-smell and it’s a never ending battle.

From what I recall, it’s not so much a “cleaning solution,” but something you put in a pump sprayer and spray a perimeter around the house.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? My google-foo is lacking on this one.

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

If I recall correctly, you're in the Chicago suburbs?  I'm out towards Dekalb/Rockford and the mice have been ridiculous this year.  I'd say I'm averaging 10 a month during the summer which is unusual.  Like you, I've got an ancient house (built 1865), so sealing all the holes is impossible.  I bought a 72 pack of snap traps in April and have gone through more than half.

Do you have an unfinished basement?  I've had the best luck with traps set on top the foundation between the joists.  The mice seem to run along the top of the foundation before going elsewhere in the house.  This allows me to catch them before they make it upstairs into the cupboards.

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

You need a couple of wiry female cats.  They hunt better than the toms.   You will find dead mice presented to you for a while but the cat's odor will end up telling the mice your house is no bueno for their longevity.   Yes, I know, many people don't like cats or are allergic.  For them you need to run victor snap traps indoors and out for a while.  Peanut butter bait.  Put the trap perpendicular to walls, bait side facing the wall. Tie the traps off with strings so the trap can't be drug off if the mouse isn't killed instantly.  You may find you need the larger rat traps outdoors. 

 I grew up with horses.  Barn was rat and mice infected.  I was in charge of killing them when I was a boy.   Somebody had to do it and my brother would gag at the sight of a dead rodent.   

FooBag (Forum Supporter) said:

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

If I recall correctly, you're in the Chicago suburbs?  I'm out towards Dekalb/Rockford and the mice have been ridiculous this year.  I'd say I'm averaging 10 a month during the summer which is unusual.  Like you, I've got an ancient house (built 1865), so sealing all the holes is impossible.  I bought a 72 pack of snap traps in April and have gone through more than half.

Do you have an unfinished basement?  I've had the best luck with traps set on top the foundation between the joists.  The mice seem to run along the top of the foundation before going elsewhere in the house.  This allows me to catch them before they make it upstairs into the cupboards.

Stupidly partially finished basement. Why would you finish two rooms in the basement, but make it so you have to walk through the unfinished portion to get to them? One of the things I have to deal with in an old house that has been through at least 4 owners in the last 30 years.

Mice are indeed bad this year. It also doesn't help that the neighbors next door got divorced. He kept the house, she kept the Maine Coon and Tabby. 

jharry3 said:

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

You need a couple of wiry female cats.  They hunt better than the toms.   You will find dead mice presented to you for a while but the cat's odor will end up telling the mice your house is no bueno for their longevity.   Yes, I know, many people don't like cats or are allergic.  For them you need to run victor snap traps indoors and out for a while.  Peanut butter bait.  Put the trap perpendicular to walls, bait side facing the wall. Tie the traps off with strings so the trap can't be drug off if the mouse isn't killed instantly.  You may find you need the larger rat traps outdoors. 

 I grew up with horses.  Barn was rat and mice infected.  I was in charge of killing them when I was a boy.   Somebody had to do it and my brother would gag at the sight of a dead rodent.   

Allergic here. My eyes itch just thinking about it. 

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

jharry3 said:

mtn (Forum Supporter) said:

Goddamn little buggers keep coming back. Plugged the holes I could find, we keep the kitchen clean, but... Damnit. 

Setting out snap traps every night, along with the Tomcat plastic ones. Also setting up a bucket in the basement, humaneness be damned. I'm drowning them, don't care anymore. Can't keep up with them. I'm even considering a bucket in the kitchen sink, if I could keep my wife from finding out about it. Probably wouldn't be too hard. Do that for tonight and tomorrow night, hopefully that will take care of them enough before we go on a week long vacation. 

You need a couple of wiry female cats.  They hunt better than the toms.   You will find dead mice presented to you for a while but the cat's odor will end up telling the mice your house is no bueno for their longevity.   Yes, I know, many people don't like cats or are allergic.  For them you need to run victor snap traps indoors and out for a while.  Peanut butter bait.  Put the trap perpendicular to walls, bait side facing the wall. Tie the traps off with strings so the trap can't be drug off if the mouse isn't killed instantly.  You may find you need the larger rat traps outdoors. 

 I grew up with horses.  Barn was rat and mice infected.  I was in charge of killing them when I was a boy.   Somebody had to do it and my brother would gag at the sight of a dead rodent.   

Allergic here. My eyes itch just thinking about it. 

Maybe you can find some outdoor only kitties?

I've seen a mouse in our house exactly once in 3 years. About an hour later our cat walked into the living room and presented it to me.

In reply to andrew2w3 :

but does it trap canoes?