What to do about rats and mice?

[catmogg]

Checked for holes...no joy. Plus....my dog seems to have made friends with them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I brought him up to be far too polite.

[Jane M]

Catmoog now that is hilarious! I can see them meeting for tea in the garden!

[catmogg]

I
Am
Not
Laughing



can You See Me Laughing???

[Kiran]

Thats the first time I have heard a dog making friends with a rat!! Maybe Kafka was a rat in his previous life!

[catmogg]

Hmmmmmmn yes, maybe. I wish he'd been a cat. A particularly rat disliking kind of cat.

[Kevster]

You've gotta find the holes they're getting in from! Fortunately, the rats in our house could often be seen disappearing down them, they only need small spaces to get through, that said they may make other ones..... though if you annoy them enough they may move on.

[RedWellies]

Can I just add a thought? If you are blocking holes in a loft/attic, please check for bats first. They probably won't be in there at this time of year but you should be able to see droppings (mind you bat and rat poo is similar!).

[Pilaf]

I am trying my best to be a good vegan here and take a nonviolent route for a little animal infestation problem I am having, but my options are almost expended. My house seems overran with mice, and I've purchased several varieties of ethical mousetraps..they don't seem to go for them however.

My only option left is to find one of those sonic noise emitters which are supposed to scare them away, but I wouldn't know where to begin looking. If I don't find a place to order them soon, I'm gonna have to cave and poison these mice, which is a last resort.

So could someone please direct me to a url to a place I can order the sonic emittors so I can take the ethical route? These mice are starting to get into my food and leave their droppings in my kitchen. As peaceful as I try to be I will not tolerate the possibility of catching diseases from these animals.

[ravenfire]

I had a really bad mouse infestation once too. One of the side effects of living in the middle of cotton fields at harvest time. I tried the catch and release traps but after about a month they stopped going in them. Luckily I moved so I didn't have to deal with it. Here is a link to the sonic emittors, I really hope they work for you.

http://www.safetycentral.com/pestchaser.html

[Roxy]

Good luck Pilaf! And thank you for trying to do your best, and try all humane options.

[Pilaf]

I had a really bad mouse infestation once too. One of the side effects of living in the middle of cotton fields at harvest time. I tried the catch and release traps but after about a month they stopped going in them. Luckily I moved so I didn't have to deal with it. Here is a link to the sonic emittors, I really hope they work for you.

http://www.safetycentral.com/pestchaser.html

Thank you so very much. I'd hug you if I could. I'll try these.

[ravenfire]

Thank you so very much. I'd hug you if I could. I'll try these.

*Big virtual hug*

[cookey]

I am having so much of a problem with mice in my house at the moment that I am seriously considering getting a cat.
I have tried everything that has been suggested about repelling mice and humane traps and nothing works. The mice are even coming into my room so I have to wear earplugs to sleep. My elder daughter also heard them in her room the other night and came into my room crying. I even dreamt about them last night! I have taken the afternoon off work to clean up the mouse poo! Having to clean so much extra plus all the housework, children and work is doing me in! We've had them on and off for a few years and they seem to hibernate in the winter and I think that I've got rid of them. Then they come back around now.
The thing is, I don't really want the resposibility of a cat and I definately don't want to be feeding it meat. I can't stand fleas, although they love me, so I'm wondering if it will make my life easier? I know my daughters would love a cat and it would be well looked after.
What are other people's experiences? Is it worth it?

[philfox]

ive never had mice before, but when people are visited by our little furry friends we have to look where they are coming into our homes from. try and isolate where they are entering your home. window frames, doors, gaps in the airvents etc. try and block off every route. there is a post somewhere on the forums regarding a mouse problem you might want to check out, i'll put the link in when i find it.
invest in a couple of humane traps, then they can be released. however, there are thoughts about re releasing mice and rats away from the source of their problem. they are social animals and get establihed in their own routines and family units. some people worry about the survival when they are removed. but the distress they are causing you and your children is also something to take into account.
make sure you have no food lying around on the floors, and all the kitchen cupboards are tidy. perhaps dont keep food in your bottom cupboards etc until signs of mice disappear. the most important is to make sure they can't get in to your house.
whether to get a cat is up to you, but first see if a neighbour or reletive has a cat you could borrow. but its up to you if you want to wake up with little corpses :S
i hope you get some more useful help

edit: here:http://veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11885

[cookey]

Yes, I have humane traps which they don't go in, I keep things as clean as I can. Have blocked up as many holes as possible. There are holes into the house in the kitchen which I cannot sort out without ripping out the kitchen.
Just for the record, I also use plug in repellants and ones that send an electric current around the house to stop them nesting. I have also tried spraying peppermint everywhere as they're meant to hate it.
In my room I had one small hole which I blocked up and I honestly can't work out how they are getting in now.
I'm not sure that the mice are actually living in the house, I think they are coming in and out as we have a field near us. I don't particularly want the cat to kill the mice, just that it's presence will keep them away.
I know that if I borrow a cat, the mice will just come back once it has gone! But I guess it might be useful to give me an idea of how hard it would be to look after.
We found a dead mouse anyway a few months ago, even tho we didn't have poison down for it. It may be that one of the neighbours does.

[philfox]

you sound like you've been having a bit of a 'war' of late lol. maybe the neighbours have put poison down. it might be they have a problem regarding stray foodstuffs and that you just get a few misdirected mice.
mice are pretty smart, so the traps are often ignored so i've heard. i have pet rats, and when i want them to go somewhere like the vets they get very suspicious of me trying to get them in the carrier
if you did look after a cat and enjoyed it but didnt want to take on a kitten, older cats of about 10 are always wanting homes, and would scare the mice away without actually moving. good luck, i would hate to be in the situation you are in. i'd probably have a mouse party with them and feed them, then the flat would go up in flames due to nibling through wires

[Monday]

I have loads of different animals and think cats are definitley the easiest to look after - we have litter trays to clean out and topup their (vegan cat biscuits) when their dish is low and a once a year visit to vets for vaccinations and a check up. I do have an issue with the fact that they go outside and might not come back (both have gone missing overnight and this has really upset me). However we had ours from kittens and kept them in as we lived on a main road (in a large house) and so they don't go out much. They have moved house with us 3 times and took it in their stride and they are very affectionate and completely daft. I'd say they are worth it.

Monday xx

[cookey]

Thanks Monday. Yes, looks like we will be getting a cat from one of the local rescue places. Either Cats Protection or Bristol dog(andcat) home.
I have ordered some vegan cat food and plan on getting a female not very young cat. I have been advised by the shelter that I will need a cat flap as I am out all day so looking into sorting that out. They come and do an inspection first which is good.
My girls are very excited!
I have also joined the "companion animal" sub forum which I guess is where this thread now belongs!

[Monday]

That's lovely that you are adopting a cat - please find out what she is eating at the moment and get some of that, feed her on it for a few days while she settles in and then slowly mix in some of the vegan food and gradually increase the vegan food and decrease the other one. This isn't because you are changing her over to vegan, just because their digestive system need to get used to a different food, especially with the added stress of a house move.

Also remember you need to keep her in for a few weeks when she arrives so that she knows where home is.

Good luck.

Monday xx

[cookey]

We finally have a cat that we have rehomed from a friend in Gloucester. She was rescued by him but wasn't getting on very well with the other cat there. I have a range of different vegan cat foods from Veggiepets which we are mixing in with fishy cat food while she adjusts to it. She seems to be eating it o.k and using litter tray so she must be eating enough!
We are planning to keep her in for 3 weeks as advised and haven't even got a cat flap yet.
The unwanted mice aren't usually around at this time of year so I'll have to wait until the autumn to see if the smell of the cat stops them coming in.
My daughters are obviously thrilled and the minor adjustments we are having to make (more hoovering to get rid of cat hairs and making sure doors are closed) will certainly outway the hassle of having mice pooing everywhere and running round my room in the night!
And she is actually rather lovely.

[emmapresley]

will you be posting a piccy of her up in the companion animal section cookey? you can see our tadpoles there