Mouse!!!!

[Peaches77]

Just seen a mouse run from one side of kitchen to the other...by time h got in it was gone. After a while I convinced him to go get traps...no traps in Asda but he got some posoin...so
He has put the along sides and behind cupboard skirting boards. I had left the window open tonight so obv how it got in. I could cry have a genuine fear. What's the chances the posoin will work tonight and there's only been one

Ooh that looks like it's bordering on being a rat!

That mouse is HUGE! Must be 5 or 6 times the size of the ones we had when they suddenly appeared in our loft a few years ago. We used traditional traps to deal with our problem - baited with bits of snickers - and an electrocution one. They were both quick and effective.

Also had mice in a rental property even longer ago and Landlord put down poison. We kept finding dying mice and having to despatch them ourselves to put them out of their misery. It was pretty horrible and DH and I were both in agreement that there was no way we'd use poison when we had them in our house.

I'm bad enough as it is, looking between my legs to make sure no rat jumps at my fluff. No, no, no!

Pp...mice have no bones?? They do...it's usually called a "floating skeleton" they can fit through very very small cracks and holes. You'll usually never just have the one mouse! I wouldn't bother with poison they'll just eat it and wander off to die and they absolutely STINK! Extremely problematic if they wander off under a floorboard to die. Humane traps are a waste of time. As horrible as it is you will have to resort to traditional traps set them up along the skirting boards. Been there, done that with the humane ones, poisons etc. The snap traps work and get rid of the problem. My mice used to wander around and had a love of quavers! Field mice are absolutely tiny, unlikely to wander into your house

Oh Noodles! Your kitty is divine. I think s/he just wanted a little friend!

Ah, the mouse is really big. Or your cat is rather small. I don't have any photographs of my cats playing with mice as we were too busy to chase them around the house (my older cat does what I believe is a "clumsy human training" by bringing a mouse in, calling me to play with it while he watches me. It's how he taught the younger cat to hunt). He once brought a rat that was paralysed but still breathing. We dumped the poor thing in the garden and found it next morning stiff like a plank, with all its paws in the air. From other rats we found we learned that cats love eating their paws, must be extra crispy.

I'm sure poor mousie isn't actually a rat.. it was in the foreground so looked bigger than it really was. The mice in the house were a lot smaller though, I looked on t'internet at photos of the different species of mice to see if I could identify it. Really still not sure.

This was the only mouse that mum cat (with the white fur) brought back for her kitten (brown tabby) to assist kitten's hunting ability. Even then she was visibly scornful at kitten's ineptitude. There was sarcastic eye-rolling and everything I may be indulging in whimsy here

Yellow necked mousie? And kitten is gorgeous too. I'm sure s/he just wanted to be friends!

My cat was useless with mice, she brought them in, dropped them perfectly fine and alive, then they lived with us for a while until I could catch them and set them free. I am a mouse catching expert, just give me a scarf and we're in business. Pretty sure my cat just thought they were her best mates!

One time I woke up in the morning and one of them was curled up in the small of my back under the duvet.

Tell me more about the scarf user. Do you just drop the scarf over the mouse, scoop it up and take it outside to be released so the cat can go out and try again?

I never thought of that. Our method of choice seems to be trying to catch the mouse in a tupperware tub, or just picking it up by hand, but it is usually a bit stressful both both us and the mouse.

Yeah it's definitely a mouse and not a rat in this pics; the eyes are far too big for a rat.

When we had a rat in our apartment recently I found it so hard not to feed it; I love the things.

We dealt with it by blocking up all the access points into the apartment (think it was coming in from a gap in the wall where the pipes from our dishwasher exitted the property).

Yup, that's exactly it Barbara! Drop, scoop, release - although the drop and scoop are kind of one movement because mice are so fast! I've been known to rearrange en route to a door because it's tried to sneak out. To be honest, you're probably right, I'm thinking I spent years rescuing hundreds of different mice, but they were probably the same two or three the cat kept recapturing!!

big box can be helpful for the cover and scoop....drop the lot in there once you have scooped, and then run to the outside with it all!

All of you with humane traps and 2 mile hikes for mr/s mousey are just kidding yourselves
...the mouse will have nfi of where it is, no idea of where to find food or safety and will die of the stress or starve.

Nicely baited snap traps, checked often in case of an unclean catch, dispatch any not quite deads with a shovel or as upthread, use granny's bucket of water.

Go around the outside of the house and fill any entry points for pipes/wires......use wire wool for best results, tin foil will work also, and check inside especially around water pipes in the kitchen and bathroom, and again fill any gaps.

Where is the OP? Perhaps wee mousey too revenge and set a trap for her.

Still here and still nothing 😭😭😭😭 I think I have seen eight droppings but I don't know if they were black fluff and H wouldn't keep the washing machine out for long enough for me to sweep them up so I'm going to do it in the morning when it's light. I am so creeped out I know it's only a mouse or mice but my anxiety levels are through the roof. Traps still nothing should we put fresh bait in everyday? Checked under kitchen kick boards and clear 😨😨😨

Literally just read this thread and go downstairs to find the cat sitting like a sentry by the sofa under which is a tiny mouse he's caught and let go.
And so my watch begins.

Tell me more about the scarf user. Do you just drop the scarf over the mouse, scoop it up and take it outside to be released so the cat can go out and try again?

My friend does this using a large, strong but soft tea-towel.

I believe it is also important to be saying 'ee eee eeee eee ewwww ... THERE YOU GO' as you do it and then pour yourself a large whisky afterwards (even if you did find Mousie at breakfast). Rats mean a bigger towel, capitalised EEEE EEE (etc.) and two whiskies.

Ah yes whistle. You always know the cat has a live one on the go when they show extended and unusual interest in a particular item of furniture.

Thankfully all the mice ours have brought in recently have been dead but I'll try the tea towel trick next time they bring one back alive.

I think I prefer them to hunt rodents rather than birds. A live bird I m the house is a bugger to catch and the last time they brought a dead one in they left piles of feathers in five separate places, with no sign at all of the body.

So droppings found under the washing machine last night h wouldn't leave it out for long so I couldn't clear them up. Best friends H is coming round to help me look. This is fuckinh draining six traps down second night now and nothing.h is adamant it's left but won't look for holes to fill in 🙄🙄🙄

Mine is still under the sofa. The cat has lost interest. I've set a trap with peanut butter and gone out shopping!

We have them now and it is horrible. Tried the old fashioned traps - caught two. Tried the humane traps (at the same time) - caught 5. You then have to walk a mile to release them. Now trying mint oil - they hate the smell and it does seem to work but they are not gone yet. Bought one of these plug-ins that emit high pitched sounds we cannot hear but they can. It seems to help a bit. (Do you see my desperation yet?). Now bought expanding foam and wire wool to literally block every gap outside they could come in through. I hate the buggers.

Peaches - if you can clear up the droppings so you'll know if fresh ones appear. If the traps aren't being touched though you might have got lucky.

Update: mine is dead - caught in the trap. I can relax now. Bloody cats!

Found a massive hole which has now been steel wooled and foamed

Traps baited with Nutella hopefully tonight's the night