To get a cat because we have a recurring rodent problem?

[gigi556]

We live in a Victorian terrace. We moved in 4 years ago. For the first 9 months we never saw a mouse BUT we had a much loved Yorkshire Terrier. Sadly, she passed away. Since then (so for the past 3 years!) we get mice coming into the house constantly. We've tried everything:
Snap traps
Glue traps
Humane traps
Electric traps
Poison (they don't eat it!)
Sealing holes
Those plug in things that make noise

We do manage to eventually trap them and then don't have an issue for a month or two and then they come back. We even had rats in the floor at one point. We don't think they ever came in the house but it was unnerving and we think (hope) they've gone now. We never did manage to trap the rats.

We try to have traps around all the time now and we are constantly on alert as to whether we have a current rodent problem.

I've been considering getting a cat for the last year as it's the only thing we haven't tried. Is this an insane reason to get a cat (or two)? I'm at my wits end. Am I trading one headache for another?

I've never had cats and I'm not even sure if I like them 😬 I was a bit traumatized by my elderly dog's final year and I've been put off the responsibility of having a pet. I'm really torn. I don't desperately want a pet. In fact, I think I'd prefer not... BUT I also really want to stop CONSTANTLY worrying about mice.

@cosmopolitanplease

I can't believe someone would freely admit to using glue traps. Fucking disgustingly cruel.

^this.

Glue traps should be illegal.

If you're undecided about a cat you could try peppermint oil. Mice hate the smell so you put a few drops on cotton wool balls where you think they are coming in.

Get a terrier. I live in a rural cottage and had mice every year but never since getting our dog. He very occasionally goes nuts in the utility room and I think one might be passing under the house but we haven’t had a mouse sighting in years

In my experience your cat doesn’t necessarily need to be a great hunter to solve your mouse problem as the smell of a cat is enough to keep mice away. I put a bell on my cats collar to stop her catching mice and birds which seems to work (although I know some cats learn to move without making the bell ring!)

I have a house cat. He is the most pathetic hunter I have ever seen. We live in the country and get the odd shrew in the house from time to time. My cat will alert me
thats there a shrew about and then watch from a safe distance. On his braver days he may edge closer before running away to hide when it moves unexpectedly.
Like the pp I do think the smell of the cat keeps the majority of the rodents away.

Glue traps are very efficient, though. The key is to kill the fuckers once you hear that squeaking.

Male cat owner here. We don't have a cat flap. He comes and goes through the garden french doors so we can see before opening the door if hes got something in his mouth and if he has we praise him but dont open the door until he's eatten it. We still get leftover bits like the skull but its on the outside at least. The cat also caught a mouse that was inside the house. He would not stop until he caught it and after 10 minutes of catching, letting go dance he ate it and left me some mouse internal organs.

I think cats do repel mice because we didn't even see any mouse droppings around the house since we had him and we usually find droppings once a year at least. Like you, its a fucking terraced.

The cat also has a dog personality but less maintenance. He knows when its bed time, miaows at me to go upstairs then sleeps at the bottom of the bed. When i have been sad hed just come and headbut me or sut in my lap.

Like dogs, consider the age and breed. Ours is a british domestic cat we had him from cats protection as an adult cat.
Its so cute when he follows me around like a security cat. He is very funny and affectionate and deters the mice.

He also does that funny roll to show his stomach abd miaows loudly if i had been gone a while. When we get back home hes at the door or top of stares guarding and waiting.

You could get a strictly house cat which you will need to provide a pot of cat grass for indoors..or dont get a flap.. this is fine if someone is always at home to let him out. You will know when he wants to get out because he will sit by the door or scratch it.

Worse comes to worse you give the cat back. It's not a great thing to do but it is a (last) option.

Just remember he needs cat sitters or cattery if you go away more than a couple of days. Dogs travel with you more easily, cats get so stressed and dont do leashes as well unless you trained them from a young age.

@ClintonMoments thank you! Glue traps have been very effective. We kill the mice immediately. My husband is a very light sleeper/insomniac so he always hears them. The only time we've left a mouse in a trap was one of the humane ones we didn't realize we'd caught one. Kind of forgot we'd even put the trap out. It died in the humane trap. I felt terrible.

We bought the glue traps after trying all other traps. We actually film the mice at night to see where they are. We've seen them consistently avoid traps on camera (all types of traps). They are really smart and not always easy to trap.

@HazelWong my husband has refused to get out a pest control firm as he doesn't think they'll do anything he hasn't tried/done We aren't in London otherwise I'd take the recommendation!

Interesting you've managed to keep them out with proper whole filling. I really thought we were fighting a losing battle with that. 🤔

A cat has saved my sanity. We have a big Victorian house in the middle of a renovation and at one point there were mice wondering past us dragging bags of crisps from our cupboards not in the least bit phased by us.

Sorry @Maddiemademe but this did make me chuckle I’m glad Daisy and co have got the situation under control for you!

We also have a cat and I’ve never seen a mouse in our Victorian house, which should be a mouse paradise - we have very old floorboards, gaps in the skirting boards and all sorts. Neighbours a few doors up have frequent mice and don’t have a cat, so I don’t think it’s a coincidence!

@listsandbudgets

When we moved in to our current house there was a massive mouse problem. The house had been unoccupied for sometime and they'd evidently made themselves at home.

Our cat was killing 2 or 3 A DAY minimum for the first couple of weeks- it was carnage. I usually started my day by dealing with victims of a mass murderer. She seemed to be having a brilliant time never seen her so bouncy and happy before or since The mice moved out pretty quickly.

A cat can be a good solution but keep in mind you may end up with a lazy cat that just can not be bothered. Even then the mice won't be overly keen on co-habiting but you need a feline with a killer instinct our other cat is so lazy that a mouse could probably curl up in her basket with her and she'd not raise a paw

Like an inbuilt cat entertainment system?. She sounds awesome.

Ours found a mouse in the house and killed it, no messing around unlike the ones he tried to bring in.

We very occasionally get mice and my cat has killed them in seconds before I’ve even realised there’s one in the room. He’s a great mouser. It’s not very nice though, I would rather use a humane trap but it’s not worth it as it’s so rare we have them and the cat doesn’t give us a bloody chance!

I would always advocate getting a cat as they’re absolutely wonderful, but not all cats are natural mousers and if you’re not sold on the idea of having a pet would you want to put it in a rescue centre if it wasn’t good at it’s “job”? If you get one you need to be prepared to love it and have it for life or it isn’t fair.

My female cat is excellent at killing mice and rats. She always brings them in after they're dead and lays them out to show us and gets a reward. She never eats them so no mess and she sorted next doors problem with rats in their garden better than rentokil

We covered all the air bricks with air bricks mesh covers which helped stop them getting in and since we got a cat we’ve not had a problem. We live near a tube station so there’s mice in lots of properties.

Last year they came through next door in the loft where the cat can’t access. We put a plug in up there and they haven’t been back. The plug in ones that make a noise aren’t very effective. The ones that work better switch the electromagnetic field in the power supply constantly as well as the noise.

We don’t let our cat out at night or early morning which reduces prime hunting times. She’s only brought back gifts on two or 3 occasions in 7 years.

@gigi556

For people suggesting we fill all holes.... ITS A VICTORIAN TERRACE. There are holes everywhere and they can run between the houses. It's a nightmare.

We suspect they get in from outside somewhere and go into under the void in the kitchen and then into the walls and floorboards.

I feel your pain here as a fellow Victorian terrace dweller!

Our neighbours are filthy bastards and have chronic rodent problems. We've got three cats and very rarely see a sniff of these mice (we seal away all food etc) and if we do, we push cat hair, peppermint oil and wire wool in any gaps.

However… we get a lot of live mice brought in by the cats, especially when I'm pregnant.

If you do get a cat I'd go for a former stray female who was taken to the shelter with her kittens. She'll be a good hunter, in theory.

As other posters have said there is a big difference between a cat who has had to hunt to survive and a cat who hasn’t.

We have had a few cats and the one who was confiscated from his former owner for neglect had a totally different attitude to hunting. He was a killing machine, there was no toying with them, it was catch, despatch and eat. Our other cats who have never been self reliant although all rescues, will catch and then toy with their prey, often bringing it in alive to release and recatch in the house, which can mean the mouse, vole etc diseapears into a cavity.

Every cat is different with their ability to hunt. I had one that used to bring me in leaves as that was all he could hunt and he was so proud of himself too.

@AintOverUntilTheCatLadySings

Not in my case! She brings most of them in alive unfortunately.

I had one that used to bring me in leaves as that was all he could hunt and he was so proud of himself too

Ooooooooo that's sooo sweet 😂😍

Since we got a cat we havent had any mice. I know they are around because I have seen her catch them outside. But none have ever got as far as the house

We have two rescue cats (sisters) ... one is a very successful hunter, she catches any sort of rodent you can imagine and birds too, she releases them live into our home and plays with them for hours (unless they are swiftly rescued by us) sometimes mice and rats she's brought in disappear in the floorboards.

The other cat has never attempted to hunt, she will sit by and watch her sister with her prey with mild interest, if a mouse ran towards her she would run away.

[quote Dashel]@AintOverUntilTheCatLadySings

Not in my case! She brings most of them in alive unfortunately.[/quote]
Your former stray female? She must be very maternal then and trying to teach you to hunt 😂

We had two boys - the second being the son of a stray mother. He taught the first to hunt, and he became a killing machine!

I think the best mouser we have is our tiny female though. No idea why as she's always been a pampered house cat. But she's ruthless.

(Our last cat is an elderly former feral who goes INSANE for fried chicken. He has no teeth left so anything he brings us is normally very soggy and unharmed)

Our inherited cat would ignore mice but we'd find headless birds in the house, she was dreadful for killing them. We didn't get another cat after we had done our duty by this one so we can enjoy the birds in our garden again. We have had mice once and they were a pain to get rid of but a cat wouldn't have helped as they came in an air brick and stayed under the floor - we only saw them once before we covered the brick with strong wire and filled the hole they had bitten through in the floor.

@ClintonMoments glue traps are horrifically cruel and cause an unnecessary amount of pain and suffering to the animal. There are far more humane ways of killing vermin.

Glue traps should be illegal and as another PP pointed out, I'm too really shocked that some people freely admit to using them.

I agree about the glue traps. How do the people that use them despatch the trapped mice humanely? Do they just leave them to die slowly of hunger and thirst?