Best way to get rid of mice

[mogie01]

After working on the cabin this weekend, the door to the crawlspace had been left open, when we went to close it up we found at least half a dozen field mice scurrying about.  We blocked any holes that they could enter into the cabin.  What's the best way to get rid of mice, using those snap traps??  I saw a comment on here that someone had bought a house and found mice skeletons in the walls because the previous owners had used poison, I don't want mice making nests within our walls.  We'll have to make sure to keep the door on the crawlspace from now on.

[stricsm]

First plug all holes that are dime sized or larger (quarter size for rats).  I use a Ratzapper to kill them at home and it works well.  It electrocutes the little boogers.  I bought it for rats but it works for mice too.  Clean up the ground around the house and never keep wood piles within 50 feet or so of homes.  Buy an outdoor cat preferably a female (I think they are better hunters).   If you have the space for it, build an owl house (I read this is one of the most effective solutions).  You can find plans for an owl house online.

I've been fighting rats for years.  Every time I plug a hole they create another one.  I'm almost to the point of buying two snakes - one for my crawlspace and one for the my attic. 

Good luck killing the little bastards.

[Erin]

Peppermint oil (not extract).  You get it in health foods stores. 

Soak a cottonball with it and put them in any areas where mice/rats are found.  Or, put it in a spritz bottle and spray it in nooks and crannies.  Do this every 4-6 weeks or so. 

Works like a charm.  I swear by the stuff.  It keeps mice out of the house.  Packrats out of the shop... 
And everything smells like Christmas!   

This will keep new ones from coming in, but snap traps will catch any stubborn ones that  you can't drive out with peppermint oil.  Personally, I would avoid Dcon, etc. unless you don't have pets or small children...

[Gary O]

Well, the Victor 'snap traps' nailed 27 mice in two days in an old fixer we'd just moved into.
And nailed me only 54 times tryin' to set the dang things.
Yeah, rat skeletons...I was crawlin' thru the (well) crawl space, runnin' wire to hook up cable when a huge dried up maple leaf loomed up in front of my face...reached out to pick it up by the stem....only, IT WAS A TAIL!!
Turns out five or so nonstop minutes of terrified panic screaming has enough decibel force and velocity to make a rat husk completely disintegrate if within nose hair range.

However, an acquaintance from another forum swears by this (note the 'call ya a liar' phrase of conviction):

His words verbatim;

"Get tin can, poke 2 holes, one in each end, dead center (critical) then run a coat hanger through it to act as an axle. Put it across the top of a bucket (5 gallon size) and bend the coat hanger onto the bucket handles. Smear the can with peanut butter. Thin coat. Fill bucket 1/3rd the way with water. Set up a ramp to its at a right angle (90 degrees) from the coathanger. Mice smell strong peanut putter, walk up the ramp, jump to the can, can rolls them into the water, they drown. No need to reload, jsut dump once in a while. Set up more than one.
Tell me that wont work and I'll call ya a liar! Get em everytime."

[TheWire]

We did the 5 gallon bucket o' mice death that Gary described at our old cabin before it was sealed up.  It works!

[CjAl]

Give me your address and i will drop off a half dozen cats or so. I have enough to spare

[Don_P]

We had someone leave the crawspace door off when poking about our place while we were gone early on in construction. I had drilled and fished the electric but hadn't hung drywall. We got back, switched on the power and started finding mouse poop upstairs. Started investigating and found they had chewed the insulation off the romex while heading up for the light. Rewired multiple runs. I've heard of them stripping wire several other times so do look around. We sprayfoamed the penetrations and although they did get into the crawl again when the screen came off the drain I had run under there they didn't ruin the wiring. We've got a few snakes at the sawmill and barn but they can't keep up and I don't think they smell particularly better.

[Erin]

It's easier just to KEEP them out (or drive them out, as the case may be) than it is to let them in and try to get rid of them... 

[considerations]

Cats, and 1/4" hardware cloth under the floor joists.

[texasgun]

We have 10 outside farm cats and only feed them once a day. 3 years no mice inside and only 1 rattle snake which when I found at 6:00 am under the back porch and was being watched by 4 cats just waiting for the right moment to pounce. I see them walking by all the time with little feet and tails hanging out of thier mouths.

[UK4X4]

love that bucket of mice method

could'nt you just leave out the water and accidently drop off the mice to a grumpy neighbours house ?

[stricsm]

The 5 gallon bucket trap is inventive.  I think I will give it a go.  Thanks.

[TheWire]

I think if you left the water out of the 5 gallon mouse trap, they might be able to jump or claw their way out.

[MountainDon]

I think if you left the water out of the 5 gallon mouse trap, they might be able to jump or claw their way out.

And maybe not. We had left a 5 gal bucket sitting on the ground by the shed once. We found a mouse in the bottom barely alive. Don't know why he jumped in there, but he couldn't get out on his own. It was a fairly new bucket with smooth sides still, not scuffed up.   

[considerations]

If you put molasses in the bottom of the bucket and just have a hole on top, you dont need a can/cat.  My dad had a 5 gal bucket of molasses (mostly gone) that he kept in the barn to sweeten the cattle feed.  After he passed, I was cleaning out the barn and opened the top of the bucket to see what it was.  There were about a dozen "candied mice" in that bucket.  The yuck factor was high.

[mogie01]

Thanks for all of the info, I'll certainly pass it on to my husband and let him figure it out  

[DevilDogSixEight]

My wife and I lived in a mobile home right after we got married.  I'm guessing that most mobile home manufacturers go to the day labor sites.  I have seen multiple holes cut with a hole saw for water, electrical, drains (our master bath tub had about eight or ten holes drilled - I guess they couldn't find the center).

First, I don't like the sticky traps - the cats and / or dogs will get in them too.
Second, steel wool in holes - vermin cannot eat through it.
Third, a cat (or cats) is a wonderful deterrent.

We now live in a subdivision on about 1/2 acre.  We have a fenced in backyard with a wooden privacy fence.  We get rats - yes, honest-to-goodness rats in between the slats in the fence (we even got a rather large rat [aka possum] once).  For rats, I recommend a Miniature Schnauzer.  I don't particularly like our Schnauzer, but as long as she continues to kill the rats, she can stay.

Someone mentioned female cats are better hunters - I agree with this and *usually* their temperaments are better.  I don't know why, but some folks just don't like cats though.  In that case, put a chicken snake in your house. 

JB

[Redoverfarm]

This time of the year is particularly bad with mice/rats.  When it gets cold they seek warmer climate (house).  The barn cats have been working double time here as every morning they bring their nightly catch to the back door. "Look what I found"  .  Yesterday there was three lying around.  Good Kitty.

[Windpower]

I got a few of these

quite effective

I will try the mint trick

the critters are pouring into the hanger and the garage -- haven't caught any in the house yet

[PunchAndJudy]

Night vision goggles and pellet gun.