Operation Mouse Kill

[Doc Safari]

For the last couple of months I began to see evidence that my humble domicile had been invaded by vermin of the rodent persuasion. It seems like I would hear things like objects on the countertop being rattled in the wee hours of the morning. Sure enough, upon close examination of the countertop I could see multiple spots of mouse poop on the counter. I quickly moved any foodstuffs and tabletop appliances out of the way. I thoroughly cleaned and disinfected every inch of the counter.

It was then that I set about devising my plan to vanquish my invaders.

First I tried the spring-loaded traps. I managed to catch one mouse in one trap, but I began to see evidence that some mousy entity was smart enough to lick the peanut butter off the trip lever without activating it. Clearly I was dealing with a professional standing army of trained infiltrators.

Next, I set out the cylinder type traps, four to be exact. Again, I caught one mouse, but the rest of the traps remained untripped for days while my enemy bivouacked on my counter top at night.

Frustrated, I turned to mouse sized sticky traps.

Again, I caught one mouse one night. I thought surely the infestation is over.

Wrong.

Night after night the other sticky traps remained untouched. At the end of a long week, one trap had clearly been stepped on but the mouse managed to chew the edge of the trap, wedge it between the counter and the stove, and get away.

Clearly, my quarry was not your run-of-the-mill mouse. I was dealing with an advance rodent demolition team.

I switched to rat sized sticky traps. One must plant the appropriate type of landmines, right?

I nailed three mice in one night!

I thought the war was over. I cleaned and disinfected the countertop, and moved all my tabletop appliances back to their original positions. I was secure in the knowledge that I had vanquished the last furry creeper in the night.

But then...about a week later...I began to notice the return of.........you guessed it......mouse poop.

How many more of these bastards are there?

I lay in wait one night. As I heard movement on the counter, I flipped the light on. Staring back at me was a creature with an attitude that said, "I am just as smart, and just as trained as you." As I lunged toward him he ran back into the crevice between the counter and the wall.

Damn. What to do now?

During this entire conflict, I had resisted resorting to chemical warfare, modern conventions being what they are and all.

Still, having an unwelcome squatter in my territory was no Bueno por chit.

I caved in to the temptation to purchase some OTC rodenticide. IIRC it contained difethialone which the manufacturer claims may kill in one dose.

I set out my chemical landmine and waited. Sure enough, the next day most of the poison was gone, and the rest of it had disappeared the following day.

I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

I reread the packaging. "May take a few days to kill" or something to that effect.

Peachy. With my luck the mouse would probably die behind the counter and I'll have to choose between tearing the cabinets out or smelling dead animal.

I read some literature on the net that tells how the poison kills, and how the dying mouse will probably wander around disoriented out in the open before dying.

I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Finally, after a night of socializing, I came home and went to bed. The next morning I saw Mr. Gray Mouse, of late deceased, lying in the middle of the floor in all his rigor mortised glory. A quick swipe with the broom into the dustpan and my last holdout was disposed of.

I have been mouse free for nearly a month now, and I have a new education about what kills and what doesn't.

1. Spring-loaded trap: old school and too easy for a mouse with a light touch to eat the bait without tripping it.
2. Cylinder type: good for very small mice only. Other mice learn to ignore it.
3. Small sticky trap: too easy for mice to struggle enough to get away.
4. Large sticky trap: Very effective, but the other mice learned to steer around them.
5. Rat Poison: The Winner. Enemy soldier never suspected his rations were tainted with anti-coagulant.

Summary:

Doc Glockster for the win.

I think I will go right to large sticky traps and poison from now on.

[Moose-Knuckle]

Damn, mice and swallows . . . good thing BCM is runnings sales on their complete uppers!

https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?156029-I-ve-had-enough!!!-I-m-going-to-kill-them!!!!!-I-need-a-pellet-gun

[Bulletdog]

Oh Doc. I think you might be jumping to an early conclusion. Where those ones found their way in others will follow. You might have just won the current battle. Did you find and close off their entry point from the outside?

Snap traps are effective if used correctly. Peanut butter is useless except for feeding the rodents, as you discovered.

Here are some tips for when the invaders return:
Get the snap traps that have a metal trip plate with a little triangle shaped spike meant to hold the bait. Bend that spike upward toward the sky. If you can't find the metal plated ones, run a small screw up through the bottom of the plastic plated ones. Then you need some dog or cat kibble with holes in the center. You can usually get free samples at the pet store. The kibble really attracts them. Impale this kibble on the spike. Then, placement is everything. The end of the trap with the trip plate and bait needs to be placed in a "high traffic" area up against the wall. Mice don't usually run around out in the open, so the traps need to be in the areas where they do run, along the corners where the walls or cabinets meet the floor. This way they run right into your bait as they move around. They don't lift the kibble up, they tug sideways on it trying to pull it toward them and this almost always trips the trap while their neck is in just the right place. This upward facing spike and kibble with the holey center is critical to the success of the operation because it prevents them from absconding with the meal you've provided.

I can't use poisons around my places because of all my other animals. Even though they say the rodent poison only affects rodents, lots of other animals die from eating the dying rodents filled with poison.

Just like with our guns, its not enough to just have the hardware, you still gotta use it correctly. It took me a long time to figure these things out, I hope they can help you eliminate some rodents from the world.

[scottryan]

You want dead mice in your light fixtures stinking up your house, then go ahead and put poison out.

[.46caliber]

http://www.solutionsstores.com/v/vspfiles/photos/bell052-2.jpg

Trapper Mini-Rex

http://www.solutionsstores.com/mobile/Product.aspx?ProductCode=bell052

If you're particularly vengeful, get the rat size for your mice. Watch your fingers.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

[Jellybean]

Congratulations on your victory Doc. However, as BD mentioned, the war is just begun.
They will return one day when you least expect it- likely in greater numbers.

My house just survived an invasion by 5 Micentruppen. And a snake that they sent in ahead of their advance on a solo recce.
Luckily he was spotted before he could get far, and gave away their point of infiltration.
We tried appeasement by simply blocking the route, but they found the material used to be edible and had damn near chewed though it by the next morning.
Unfortunately we were only issued outdated equipment to combat this assault in the form of spring loaded traps, so we decided that given the lack of superior technology, numbers would have to win the day.
The Micentruppen were using a stairway from the lower levels of the building to gain access to a small slot under the door at the top of the stairway.
We could have attempted to storm their hideout in the lower levels, but the ground favors them fully here, and they would have been able to ambush us with impunity at every turn- they also have the aid of the local spider populace, who we all know are experts at CQB. While our superior weapons would likely have mitigated their ground advantage, the damage sustained to our own facilities embedded in these sublevels would have been unacceptable. Further, the possibility of contaminating our own forces with poison was to great to employ such a penultimate weapon, since our friendlies are inclined to eat anything left on the ground.

So at the top of the staircase, the door slot was again blocked, and a field of five spring traps laid, baited with peanut butter- that being the only thing found to be resistant to their Trap Ordinance Disposal specialists.

At first things weren't looking good- the next day, one trap had snapped to no result, and another had been licked clean without activating.
Luckily, these were clearly not Elite Micentruppen, because after that first hit of peanut butter they got cocky.
After resetting the trap field, the next day two enemy were destroyed- one caught clean in a trap, and the other apparently killed himself when he panicked over a trap snapping and fell off the staircase with it (told you they weren't the brightest).
They then tried both a daylight attack, and a night infiltration, both failing and netting a single mouse each.
Finally last night what seems to be the fifth and last Micentrupper made a lone Banzai charge into the trap field, but was snapped as well.
It has been quiet on the southern front since then, however the trap field has been reset to 100% readiness and other points of possible infiltration are being monitored.

Lessons- low tech spring traps can be effective when deployed correctly at a choke point, and in large numbers.

Of course, in-home Alamo methods are simply delaying the inevitable. If things continue to escalate like this, we may need to work out a means to take the fight to them. I recall one intrepid soul here who had great success using such tactics with a NOD and a suppressed .22....
:D

[Ned Christiansen]

You guys don't know about the 5-gallon bucket trap?

[SeriousStudent]

You guys don't know about the 5-gallon bucket trap?

I honestly have not heard of it. Please tell me more when you have a chance, Ned.

[MountainRaven]

I find this relevant to my interests, as my house also has been infiltrated by Maustruppen in unknown numbers. One has been disposed of near the site where one was first spotted using a traditional spring trap. Baited with artificial peanut butter. So far, nothing has come of a second spring trap deployed in the vicinity and baited with traditional peanut butter.

[Whiskey_Bravo]

I honestly have not heard of it. Please tell me more when you have a chance, Ned.

Here you go SS.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSk79YcuIRQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpT9lj91MiE

[MountainRaven]

Here you go SS.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSk79YcuIRQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpT9lj91MiE

I wonder if you could use that to catch all the mice and let them get so hungry that they start to eat each other and then set the last two free....

[Moose-Knuckle]

I wonder if you could use that to catch all the mice and let them get so hungry that they start to eat each other and then set the last two free....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yI1hjITn8Q

[Honu]

MouseHunt is a must watch for you then :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjL_Gf4jdfc

[Alpha Sierra]

Ruthless mouse killing machine

http://desicolours.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/cat-and-mouse09.jpg

[brickboy240]

I had rats get in my attic last winter.

I also tried the poison and the sticky traps but could not get them all.

Then, I went to the sporting goods store and bought some red fox urine. Take some small Dixie cups and taped a cotton ball in the bottom of the cup (and a penny for weight). Sprayed the cotton ball with the fox urine and threw these about in the foam insulation in my attic.

Guess what....in a day or so I NEVER heard rat noise again and never saw droppings there again. This was back in February.

A relative told me about this trick and I admit I had my doubts but for a minimal investment (...and I still have tons of fox urine to use again) the damn trick worked!

Try it...it is fairly cheap and man does that stuff keep the rodents away.

-brickboy240

[Ned Christiansen]

Watched a few moments of the YouTube and it doesn't even have to be that complicated. Just poke a hole in an empty pop can and string it over the mouth of the bucket, the string being tied to where the bucket handle is anchored. Draw it taught and tie. Smear peanut butter on the can, lay a board from the floor to the mouth of the bucket as an "on ramp". Have 3" of water in the bottom so they can't jump out but can't touch bottom. They jump from the ramp to the can, can spins, kersploosh.

I think mice are cute and that this is not "nice" but when the little buggers are in your house making a mess, I tell ya, this one works. Guys think I'm setting them up for a joke but it is THE mouse trap. You could make a humane version if you wanted. Or you could go full meany and put ONE little life preserver in there ;-)

I've cought many, many mice this way in our camp. Uncle caught 44 one time.

[Doc Safari]

I've always wondered if those things that send out a high-pitched sound that humans can't hear would work.

[brickboy240]

Both me and my parents tried the ultrasonic devices with no so good results.

Try the fox urine trick....I am telling you it worked very well.

-brickboy240

[Alpha Sierra]

Both me and my parents tried the ultrasonic devices with no so good results.

Try the fox urine trick....I am telling you it worked very well.

-brickboy240
Predator urine works extremely well as a repellent. My wife used bottled coyote urine around her rose bushes after she had enough of deer eating the buds. Once that stuff hit the ground the deer were nowhere to be seen.

[Ick]

You want dead mice in your light fixtures stinking up your house, then go ahead and put poison out.

Personal experience here of a rat killed by poison... that died UNDER the finished hardwood floor. No way to access, had to wait three months for stink to subside. Not cool.

[Denali]

Poison is a terrible option, only required in the most extreme of circumstances, it just as readily kills unintended species, like your cat or dog. The water bucket trap is probably the best mouse killing gizmo to ever be designed, but its fairly cumbersome and this turns away many from realizing its potential. I use the water bucket in my pole barn to devastating effect, but in my home the sheriff takes care of business in merciless fashion. The best cats are the American short hairs, or American domestics, you know, the little tiger striped black & gray, or Black, tan & gray cats. This species of cat are far and away the most prolific mousers of the cat world, I've never seen a single specimen turn up its nose at the chance to murder a mouse or rat, ever! Not all of them will eat the mice, but they will sure as hell murder them. What you need to do is place their food and water dishes in the area of highest rodent activity, literally right in the rodents sweet spot.

You will never have an internal mouse problem again.....

[Amp Mangum]

You need an old fashioned rat killin'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iinxXoot724

[Kain]

Poison is a terrible option, only required in the most extreme of circumstances, it just as readily kills unintended species, like your cat or dog. The water bucket trap is probably the best mouse killing gizmo to ever be designed, but its fairly cumbersome and this turns away many from realizing its potential. I use the water bucket in my pole barn to devastating effect, but in my home the sheriff takes care of business in merciless fashion. The best cats are the American short hairs, or American domestics, you know, the little tiger striped black & gray, or Black, tan & gray cats. This species of cat are far and away the most prolific mousers of the cat world, I've never seen a single specimen turn up its nose at the chance to murder a mouse or rat, ever! Not all of them will eat the mice, but they will sure as hell murder them. What you need to do is place their food and water dishes in the area of highest rodent activity, literally right in the rodents sweet spot.

You will never have an internal mouse problem again.....

Used to have two cats like that. Brothers. They killed mice, rats, snakes, lizards, scorpions, flies, roaches, birds, ect, ect, ect, and likely things that we never knew about. If it came into the house it was fair game to them, it would be chased, captured, and killed after it became boring to beat around. As far as them eating things if the cat is well fed then they will not eat the prey, but they have no issues killing it. Also, at least according to an article I remember reading way back when, that domesticated cats are the most murderous creatures on the planet(How much truth to that? I don't know, but makes you wonder....)

[Moose-Knuckle]

Used to have two cats like that. Brothers. They killed mice, rats, snakes, lizards, scorpions, flies, roaches, birds, ect, ect, ect, and likely things that we never knew about. If it came into the house it was fair game to them, it would be chased, captured, and killed after it became boring to beat around. As far as them eating things if the cat is well fed then they will not eat the prey, but they have no issues killing it. Also, at least according to an article I remember reading way back when, that domesticated cats are the most murderous creatures on the planet(How much truth to that? I don't know, but makes you wonder....)

There is a lot of truth to that, cats are right behind humans in this regard. I have a pure breed Japanese Bobtail and she kills for pleasure/sport. Pure predator drive in cats.

[Kain]

There is a lot of truth to that, cats are right behind humans in this regard. I have a pure breed Japanese Bobtail and she kills for pleasure/sport. Pure predator drive in cats.

That was one thing that was brought up, was that it was arguable that cats were more homicidal than even humans, in the numbers that they would kill for just straight pleasure.

I know my cats had no need to kill for food, since they were plump little fur balls who were constantly trying to climb into the fridge and the gun safe.

[SeriousStudent]

Thanks Ned and Whiskey_Bravo, I will remember that. Useful technique to have.

[MountainRaven]

Used to have two cats like that. Brothers. They killed mice, rats, snakes, lizards, scorpions, flies, roaches, birds, ect, ect, ect, and likely things that we never knew about. If it came into the house it was fair game to them, it would be chased, captured, and killed after it became boring to beat around. As far as them eating things if the cat is well fed then they will not eat the prey, but they have no issues killing it. Also, at least according to an article I remember reading way back when, that domesticated cats are the most murderous creatures on the planet(How much truth to that? I don't know, but makes you wonder....)

http://s3.amazonaws.com/theoatmeal-img/comics/cats_actually_kill/1.png (http://theoatmeal.com/comics/cats_actually_kill)

[Cincinnatus]

You need an old fashioned rat killin'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iinxXoot724

I love me some Jerry Clower stories! Good one.

[Shao]

You want dead mice in your light fixtures stinking up your house, then go ahead and put poison out.

My experience too. After much frustration and research, I first inspected every square inch of the outside of my house. I sealed any holes that I found with chicken wire and spray foam to trap the suckers inside. I baited a number of the larger sized glue traps with dollops of peanut butter and set them up around the house. I kept a bucket of water, gloves, and tongs nearby. When I would hear the squeals of a trapped rodent, I would bust of the gloves and tongs and proceed to drown them in the bucket of water. Within two weeks I was 100% rodent free.

[gunrunner505]

I waged a pitched battle with mice in the house about 9 months ago. We had new A/C installed and they didn't seal up the wall where the lines pass into the house. Sealed the point of entry and got rid of them. Did my due diligence, checked for signs, saw none. Yeah me.

Then......

Last night I get home from work, relaxing on the couch for a minute when I think I see movement. Up off the couch, look around the other sofa and right there, in the room........an enemy insurgent. You little bastard.

He spots me and runs into the laundry room.

Needless to say it's speed and angels check and fight's on.

[jmp45]

Doc wish you luck with the mouse kill.. I've been trying to kill moles for the last 4 or so years. Poisons, grubx, various traps, carbon monoxide (gassing from a lawnmower pipe), harpooning with a weed puller.. only one got sent off confirmed. Got him with a rat trap, peanut butter under a flower pot, it must have been a warning to others, they moved on. Yard is a mess.

[tb-av]

I had great luck with this thing. Dab of peanut butter.

you have to set them in their path... not simply on a counter. Then run around edges of cabinets and things.