Best mouser cat

[friesandchais]

Hello
So I'm petrified of mice and when we moved into this house 10 years ago who we blocked all hole to stop then entering, long story short every so often maybe once or 2 assay they find a way in then we again block any holes check the house and eventually they. But it a cycle and keeps happening. Me and dh and dc are all scared and hate knowing they maybe in the house. Everyone is telling me to get a cat to solve the problem. My friend told me she got a cat and she's now never had a problem since. I would want it to be a indoor cat. I know not all cats are mousers. But what are the best mousers? We really like British short hair cats, are they good, are they good around children? Female or male is better? Will a kitten be a mouser too? And can you train them to be Mousers?
This will be our first pet.

I’ve got a British Shorthair and a couple of British Longhairs.

The 1yo female BSH catches mice all the time, but tends to bring them in and play with them.

The female kitten longhair seems much more interested in catching things than her brother.

incidentally the breeder I got mine from is trying to get rid of a few slightly older kittens for a fraction of what I paid her. She is just looking to recover her vets’ fees. Sounds like the market has really slowed down recently.

@ThePuma they are gorgeous I really would like one. From what I read and heard just the smell of cats in the house , nice usually keep away?
Looking at comments now I see I was wrong.

No - I didn't have mice til I had a cat. They catch them and bring them in live then let them go. Boom - now you have mice.
Get an exterminator.

I’ve got a beautiful silver tabby and two stunning new longhair kittens.

These are the kittens.

Rentokil? Once a year if necessary. Much cheaper than a cat

@ThePuma omg I love them . Where are they based ?

Our moggies were both keen mousers (not now as they are elderly and retired!) but, if mice are in the eaves, a cat probably couldn’t get near them. Unless you love cats and are committed to having one (including letting it go outside), Rentokill is probably the best option for you.

Sooo cute 🥰

She is in Newport. I am in Bucks so it was a 2h30 drive each way but it was worth it. She says she is the only longhair breeder in the UK.

i paid £850 each for mine but she has said she will accept £200 each from anyone I introduce to her.

I have a blonde brown tabby and she’s the worlds worst hunter. My cat growing up was a small black cat and she was a very prolific killer of anything. she brought a live magpie into the house once and my mum went nuts at her after that all kills where left in garden or stashed in the gap between our garage and the neighbours.

Most cats are great mousers

some aren’t interested in it

you can train them to be better (by you playing with string etc)

a cat that loves its owner and is good at mousing will catch mice and leave them lying around the house as gifts for the owner. Usually they out them somewhere they think is important to you, such as sofa or your bed.

Cats are awesome I adore them but don’t get one unless you can cope with finding the occasional dead/alive mouse in your house.

If a mouse has eaten poison from beyond your 4 walls (and is maybe wobbling around in extremis ) and your cat catches & eats it, you will have a DEAD cat.

Do not get a cat to be your mouser.

Get a vermin control service in & get the experts to sort this out!!

Mine is a female 15 yo British Short Hair. She is still a prolific mouser although as others have said she does bring things in.....

My calico cat (2yo female) is useless. She has managed a bird mind you.

I grew up with the M theory also.

Both you and the OP should be very wary about 'introducing' strangers on the internet to purchase animals, via Facebook, from non registered breeders.

She is a registered breeder.

Tortoiseshell and Maine Coon, they are both skilled mousers. They help each other as well.

We have a two year old Russian Blue. She’s been catching mice avidly since she was about 6 months old. Our problem, like other posters, is that she brings them into the kitchen sometimes dead, sometimes alive. We often wake up to half a mouse. She eats the head and leaves the rump for us.
She is introducing mice into the house, not resolving any issues.
I suppose you could never let the cat out. I read in books that we shouldn’t let them out. That it is healthier and safer for them to stay ay inside. We let our cat outside. I’m sure if we could ask her, she would choose quality of life over length.

By law, all licensed pet sellers and breeders have to show their licence number and issuing authority. There is zero information on that Facebook pages 'About' section with any of that info or any indication that it will be provided. In fact it doesn't have very much info at all. A breeder that only advertises on Facebook is not a reputable breeder. You're very naive to think they are the only breeder of longhairs in the UK, this is simply not true.

It is irresponsible of you to post about these kittens being sold at a discounted rate, to strangers on MN.

@friesandchais if you are after a pedigree cat/kitten please go through the GCCF to find a reputable breeder, rather than finding one on Facebook, Preloved, Pets4homes etc.

Of course she isn’t registered. As if she’s the only breeder of pedigree long-hairs in the UK! And why on Earth would she accept £200 if you introduce people to her?! Decent breeders have a limited number of litters a year, maybe only one or two depending on how many cats they have, and they have waiting lists a mile long. What they don’t need to do is advertise kittens on FB and offer wildly discounted rates. Either you’re posting in good faith, in which case you’ve been duped, or you are in fact the “breeder” trying to drum up business.

OP, you need to consider this carefully. As has been repeatedly said, a cat is not going to solve your mouse problem and will probably make it worse. My day started with cleaning up a pile of rodent intestines from my hall carpet and trying to get the bloodstain out with carpet cleaner. Not something that would happen if I didn’t own cats. If you want a cat for its own sake, fine, but it’s a 15-20 year commitment and you will struggle if it turns out the cat refuses to be kept indoors.

That’s not a reputable breeder at all. They have multiple litters a year. They sell off queens they can’t breed from anymore. Cat equivalent of a commercial breeder.

Errr yeah cats don’t work like that. I think you’re getting confused with dogs. Cats haven’t been bred for specific tasks, so whether one is a good mouser is entirely down to the individual cats personality. Oh and you do realise if they are you’ll just end up with a load of dead mice in your house? Often hidden and rotting.

I’m going against the grain here and saying that smell alone has solved our mouse problem.

I live in a London terrace and we had mice problems for years. It’s an old house and was impossible to find/block every hole. We’d get rid of one infestation to just get another a few months later. One night I came down for a glass of water and there were 4 of them scampering all over my kitchen work surfaces! I was at my wits end.

I love cats anyway and had been thinking of getting one. In the end I got a pair of half rag dolls, so they stay indoors (and show no desire to go out). From day 1 of bringing them home I never saw another mouse again, nor any droppings or any other signs. It’s been three years now and we are still blissfully mouse free. They’ve never actually caught one to my knowledge either, so clearly it is the smell in our case.

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