Please help me - mice are ruining our lives here!

[thebecster]

We realised we'd got mice about 6 months ago, put down traps and plugged in the sonic thingies, didn't catch any, thought they'd gone. Then 3 months ago I was home alone reading quietly when one ran out, looked at me, and ran back in, so clearly they never left. Shortly after that we realised that there is a nest in our exterior wall in between the flat above and our flat (we are on the second floor - these are clearly mountain mice...). We've seen them running into their nest via the drainpipe which is on our fire escape. They have never touched the traps - we've tried peanut butter, bacon, cheese and chocolate. A couple of weeks ago after a big rainstorm we opened our pantry door to find half a loaf of bread eaten & mouse poo all over every single shelf. So I cleaned everything & put poison down (I know it's cruel but getting nowhere with the traps). I've put all food away in tupperware or glass jars - there's nothing they can gnaw into any more. The poison was gone next morning - masses of it. And the next morning, and the next. They were spreading the poison all over the crockery & the floor when eating it, so I've switched from loose poison to the Rentokil boxes.

Our next door neighbours told me they have mice too, and I know that upstairs have them because I've heard them scratching in our ceiling at night.

The worst is my husband is allergic to furry animals (cats are the worst but he also reacts to dogs, rabbits etc.), and he is currently trying to watch the Holland Russia match through eyes swelled half shut, tears streaming down his cheeks, sneezing every 3 minutes or so. It's making him really ill. And our DS is asthmatic (clear at the moment, but I don't want him sleeping amongst mice).

Please somebody advise me - should we get professional exterminators? Or the council? We don't own this flat we rent from a friend, and she only owns the flat - the exterior & common parts are supposed to be looked after by a management company who have done nothing to help us. Am at my wits end, it's making me miserable to see DH getting iller and iller, to have to wash up everything before we use it because it's likely to have had mice on it, even if it was put away clean. Oh I could cry...

oh dear, sounds awful. Do ring your council pest control dept. I did and they sent out a very affable "specialist" in just a few days. Our council would exterminate rats for free, while they'd charge for mice, though.

We have a mice problem at the moment and are using rentokil to get rid of them. The chap there says that the boxes have to be refilled weekly and left down for at least 8 weeks - as that is how long it takes to poison all the various generations of mice.

If you have the boxes and the poison, then I'd just keep going at it tbh - I don't think the pros would do anything different to what you are already doing.

Thank you for replying! Good to know that others have them too really - makes me feel like I don't clean properly... But I do have a toddler who spreads food all over the floor so this place is probably mouse heaven anyway.

So I think I'll change the Rentokil boxes for new ones in a couple of days & keep changing them for 8 weeks. And if no better, I'll call the council, although will I need landlady's permission? DH might need to move out for a bit if it isn't better before then, the poor dear.

It is all very depressing. And is it true they cause fires? How common is that? - I keep worrying about it because we're so high up in quite an old building, a fire here would be very bad.

Surely your landlady should be actively trying to do something about it to help you? Never mind asking her permission to call the council.

Where I live the council pest control man visits for free - Have you checked whether you would have to pay in your area (It can depend on your housing whether you pay. I rent privately)

My rat man told me you should only put down poison every few days. Every day has no extra effect accept that it costs you more

I really really sympathise. I had rats in my house for 6 months........ I would hug you better if I lived near enough

Hope they go soon, though if you've got neighbouring flats I think its going to be tricky

its going to be tricky if its affecting all the flats in proximity to yours i think i'd call the council as i'd assume everyone needs to be treating the prob not just you, for it to have any benefit

Had a word with our neighbours who are as traumatised as us. We're going to contact the management company with a letter signed by all of us saying that if they don't sort the problem we'll get the council in. Our landlady and the other freeholders in the block pay the management company a monthly fee to look after all common parts inc. upkeep of building, so they really should be sorting it.
It was comforting to hear about our neighbours standing on chairs and screaming like 1950s housewives just like we are!

there is meant to be a plug in type thing that you can buy that mice and small rodents dont like the sound off! dont know if they work though, maybe someone on here would!

We've got them in every room Micci! Our neighbours have them too and she suggested that the mice were likely having all night raves to the funky sounds our plugs are emitting . Think they might be effective at dissuading the odd mouse, but our full-on infestation seems to be more than the sonic thingies can deal with.

I don't think the electronic things are very good. Actually, they are useless.
Are you able to get a cat ? They are the most efficient at sniffing out and killing mice.
We put snap traps and alternating poisons down. Smear a little peanut butter on the traps.

Can you speak to Environmental Health re the infestation in the building?

I feel so sorry for you.

We have on and off mouse problems, goinf on over the last 2 years, we live quite near to fields and lots of us in the area get regular infestations. The trouble is the little buggers are moutain climbers and they can literally scale 2 stories of bricks!!

Like you we tried humane traps etc and none worked so we called in the exterminators, all they did was come out once a week for 4 weeks and put poison sown whilst charging us £15 each time for the privalage. We are now more vigilant and any sign of activity we immediately start putting poison down. As someone else mentioned if your in flats I would imagine you will all need to do this otherwise they will just change their food sources accordingly.

Sadly DH is even more allergic to cats than he is to mice. I'd love a cat. I could send him into the kitchen to chase the mice away before going in myself And I could sleep with the cat on the bed so I'd know that no mice would run over the bed while I was asleep [shudders] But DH is super-allergic, poor dear.

What soapbox said. We had the same problem and I did cry! They were everywhere, droppings in the beds and everything, the whole house was taken over by them and whilst I hated the idea of poison it was the only option. They breed at a fierce rate. We had Rentokil out every week for a couple of months and for the first few visits it was scary how many of the boxes were empty. It worked though. I havn't seen one or any droppings in months.

Hope you get it sorted out soon.

Neosorexa Gold is excellent

Not pretty but fur free and good mouser

Oh crunch, I know just how you felt. It's just so depressing isn't it? I sat and cried last night - one minute I was hanging up the washing and next I was sitting on the floor crying. It was one of those things where the mice were adding to a general sense of inadequacy - ie. why I am so crap at looking after my family. Seeing poor DH so poorly when he's worked really hard all week, and worrying about whether it will trigger DSs asthma. Gah! I HATE MICE! They are bad bad creatures and deserve to die. (I am usually not a homicidal maniac, I've just been pushed to the brink. I guess I'm still not homicidal, just rodenticidal )

GentleOtter, I will show that picture to DH just to see his reaction. I must admit (whispers) now, this is strictly between you, me and the millions of people who read MN... DH isn't just allergic to cats, he's also scared of them. Don't tell anyone though, he's very manly and strong, and his cat-fear (and mouse-fear, and frog-fear, and spider-fear) must never be mentioned in public. Shhhh.... So when I show him that picture he'll make a little girly shriek, and then, in a very manly deep voice, will explain that we can't possibly get a cat. But I will show it to him...

rodenticidal

I know it's horrible. You really need to get all the neighbours involved and do it asap. As I said, they breed like mad so the whole place will be infested and remain that way until the whole problem is treated not just home.

The management company should foot the bill but read the contract and discuss with your neighbours. Even if you can all chip in for now for rentokil and tackle the management company later then I'd do that. Good luck.

thebecster - Did he do the girly squeal, did he splay his fingers ?

Rolos on the mousetraps...seriously.

I caught 17 mice in 2 days in my old house with this method.

countrystores do good moustraps too

The humane ones are crap