There may be a mouse in the house

[whatswrongnow]

So over Xmas we found mouse droppings under the sink. That night I heard it in the attic. That was it for me , I turned into a nervous reck at night. Sitting up till 2 or 3 in the morning listening for it. 2 days later mouse caught in trap . All good till hubby and mil point out there is normally more then 1. So I'm sitting up driving myself silly listening to every noise in the house. I'm being unreasonable right?

I don't know if YABU or not, but your DH and MIL are right that there's normally more than 1.

We tend to catch 3 or 4 then nothing.

Why do you need to listen for it?

Why?! Yes there will be more but I don't see why you'd sit up listening for them!

we've always had one or two

never more

been going on four years or so

I'm the same. One mouse can make me into a paranoid wreck. its when your in bed when the house is totally silent, every little noise....I hate them with a passion.

Having just gone through this... Wherever you think you hear a noise put a trap.

For those who are wondering why she cannot sleep - have you ever had a mouse or worse a rat??

Mice love chocolate - it's the best thing to put in traps.

To be fair, I've had mice in the house and never been assaulted by them.

I've got mice at the moment, but I also like sleep

I'm mad I know I've heard nothing tonight.

Sometimes there is only one! I found mouse poo, caught one mouse and the problem went away totally. When you have had one a lot of other noises sound suspiciously like mice.

When we had rats ( due to the bloody cats bringing them in and letting them go), we used to bait the traps with peanut butter. Worked every time.

If you have mice, get a cat. We drove ourselves potty for years trying to get rid of them, the only thing that worked was a cat. They literally disappeared overnight and we have a great new addition to the family too.

I had mice in my last flat. I ignored them til the wee buggers started getting gallus and would be in my bedroom. I did the only sensible thing possible - and moved house

I'm the same. 6 months after leaving a house with mice to one that definitely hasn't I am still constantly paranoid. I always think it's best for your own peace of mind to throw money at the problem and just get an exterminator in and be done with it once and for all.

Though, if you can't find any poos it's likely they have gone (mice poo none stop)

We had one. I saw it. I set 2 traps using chocolate and caught one mouse. The traps are still set where I think they are but never caught another one. No more pop evidence either (3weeks now) we also have a bait box outside.

#Poo evidence

ah thanks was up till 2 this morning, just lying there. No real mouse noise (scratching) just the house making the odd tick. hubby set 5 trays in the attic with chocolate and there has been no sign of life. I'll see how i am tonight !

As I understand it, the way that they usually work is that there is a nest somewhere (not necessarily in your house, could be next door, could be in the walls) and the male mouse emerges to forage for the female mouse (and often babies). If it’s a new problem, you will only see the male mouse but, when you trap him, eventually the female mouse and the babies will come out. They won’t necessarily do so in your house, though, it depends on how far out the male mouse has come, your neighbours may end up seeing them instead.

Either way, you need to figure out how the mice got into your house in the first place and block up the entry place or you’ll just get them again next winter.

oh bloody hell!! we are in a detached house. Hubby thinks it came in the back door, because ds leaves the door open for bloody dog. i thought that dog would keep them away

I'm the same. One mouse can make me into a paranoid wreck. its when your in bed when the house is totally silent, every little noise....I hate them with a passion.

I used to be the same, but am more reasonable now.

Keep in mind, unless you have a serious infestation, they aren't really a health hazard. That doesn't mean that you should become best friends with them, but you don't need to lie awake worried all night. In fact, that's probably the biggest health hazard from mice (people staying up all night!).

Set traps and check them frequently. Peanut butter and chocolate seems to work. Forget about it.

Is it possible that the nest is in your shed/garage? Or compost heap?

The thing that annoys me most about mice is that they are very destructive. I wouldn't really mind them otherwise, they are kind of cute.

We recently had to replace a leaking hose on the dishwasher that looked very much like it had been chewed on by a mouse. First world problem, I know, but still a PITA.

More serious though if they chew through pipes where you can't see a leak and it floods your house!

I had a rat in the attic once, used to lay awake at night listening to it run around. When exh finally caught it, it was absolutely massive and I was paranoid for ages afterwards.

Ds1 now has 2 pet rats though and they are adorable.

We have mice in the kitchen all the time, so they don't keep me awake. I did have a rat in my bedroom when I still lived with my mum and she kept me awake (we know she was a female as weeks after my stepdad killed her he found a nest full of dead babies under the kitchen sink).

Mice chewed through our dishwasher hose and also the electricity cables for the oven. They also seem to eat just anything, try the wrapping off a toothpast pump and picking off the label on a bottle of squash.

Anyone had glis glis?? We did......

get some used cat litter and put it round where you've heard noise should scare mice away