to evict unwelcome lodger forthwith?

[MouseLandlady]

Apparently I'm the unwitting landlady of Cheeky Fucker Mr Mouse who, it appears, has been pooping and widdling all around my cupboards while merrily helping himself to my rice, pasta, oats, and I suspect, swigging the white wine vinegar.

Do I set a regular trap or do I have to set a humane trap?

I would have went regular trap! We had a Mouse problem a few years ago. Thought there was just a couple - 46 mice later... it was solved.

Here's what I found...

Big long back legs indicates to me it's a field mouse/wood mouse.

If it's small it's probably a young adult, they stray and can happily make home in the house, which is why I always put my food in the top cupboards and the crockery in the bottom ones.

It will be fine outside until the night owl swoops down sorry

JayoftheRed Why did I read that!

We haven't had any trouble with rodents since AlpacaCat came to live here. She brought me a gift of three quarters of a baby rat within 48 hours of moving in. She does occasionally bring one in still alive to play with but we have a system to deal with that involving a kid's fishing net a rigid board and an old quality street tin.

My cat likes to put dead mice in your shoes

That looks like a baby rat to me!

Oh fuck ☹️

We lived surrounded by fields and saw a mouse run under the sofa one night

My DH was convinced there was only 1 but at my insistence he put down traps etc.

We caught 7 mice over 3 days - not envy.

Havent had anything in a while but we fillied in the gaps they were coming through and we keep the traps out (under kitchen kickboards) and check them every week

I've just shown the pictures to my friendly gardener who assures me it's a wood mouse and that they don't live in colonies. 🙏🏻

Mouse - Sorry :( didn't mean to freak you out. I think what you had was a wood mouse looking for somewhere warm to spend winter - so he might be ok. I'd put your humane trap back out and see if you get another. If you do then you have more so go for the snap traps recommended by the RSPCA.

No eeess a rat? Eeess rare siberian hamster, no?

If you use a humane trap make sure you check it every couple of hours. People often forget about them and the poor mouse gradually starves to death - not humane at all.

There was enough peanut butter in there to last a while, but yes, I get your point. I am checking it regularly!

don't use humane traps, you are just sentencing the mouse to death by stress and/or starvation...they have an inner map and if you remove them from their locale they cannot manage.

snap traps, plenty of them, along the edges of rooms, use peanut butter/jam/chocolate spread to bait them.

and no such thing as a bachelor mouse!

also check around all areas where utilities come into the house, and stuff them with wire wool/tin foil...a mouse can get in through a space that you can poke a biro in.

I live in the countryside and occasionally get mice coming in, especially at this time of year. I can comfort you that the problem has always cleared up after I have removed the one mouse from the house - it has never turned into a multiple mouse problem. There are almost certainly more of them around, but as long as I don´t come across them, then they don´t bother me. Also, you were right to go a good distance from your house to let the mouse go. In fact, I´d probably go a bit further. I usually drive them a couple of miles up the road.

*To those of you saying terriers are the way to go, someone really needs to tell my two. I have a terrier and a terrier/spaniel cross. Both stood and watched a mouse run across the kitchen floor. They did a sort of "Naw, I didn't see anything. Don't know what you're talking about" act, before wandering over to one of the kids to beg for some food.

And I wouldn't mind, but the terrier goes into full hunter mode if there's a fly in the room. And she manages to catch the flies so not a lack of ability.*

@Theymademejoin

To be fair my younger dog didn't have a clue what to do with them, she used to chase them through instinct I think but just stood and looked at them, then one day she cornered one at the stables and it turned on her, she was the most surprised that she'd killed it! She just reacted and it was grabbed and shaken and gone. Wouldn't give me it though, had to prise her jaws apart. Since then she nails anything rodenty without thinking. Older dog learned from a pack at different stables, and the crazy old cow little love still has a go but is too old and slow these days, doesn't stop her clearing off for an hour trying though!

Bless all your dogs! They sound fab!

My terrier eats mice. In front of me. With all the noises and everything.

She is horrible. But I don't have mice...

us too,middle of no where but lots of fields, we had one wood mouse that lived in the living room and would come to you if you had a cornflake. The i laws came the over and it ran out the front door sharpish. pretty much says it all!

@Beerwench - so I need to send them to mousing school by the sounds of it.

I don't think I'd mind so much if they weren't incontinent

We also had just one mouse. It came in the open door one day. We caught it (after a lot of hoo-har) and put it in the garden and that was the last we heard of it. It doesn't call! It doesn't write! Nothing!

How ungrateful!

No more mice as of yet, but I'm away for the weekend. AIBU to think they won't be having a raucous party in my absence?