mouse house (Louisville: apartment, houses, live)

[katolb90]

While house hunting in Louisville east side, I've come across a couple of vacant houses that had a dead mouse in the basement. They were older homes. Is that a common problem with older homes? Would a newer home be less likely to have mice? This is probably a dumb question, but I just had to ask cause I really don't like mice. Also don't know if a pest control person could get rid of them permanently or whether I should just use some dcon. In an ideal world, I'd like to get rid of them without ever seeing/smelling any 'bodies'.

[tomocox]

Mice occur naturally, just like flies and mosquitos. They like the same creature comforts humans enjoy. Cool in Summer, warm in Winter, lots of easy food, and a safe place to raise their kids. To find a dead mouse is a normal fact in any home. Yes, a tightly constructed modern home will deter mice better than an older "settled" home. Just get a cat, or a dog, and mice will invade your neighbor's house before settling on yours.

[Off Topic]

Especially in the more eastern portions of Jefferson County, which are more rural or nearer to rural areas. But I doubt you can go anywhere in the US and not have a potential mouse problem.

I live on a bunch of acres and had lots of trouble all the time. Then a stray cat came along and I gave him a heated house and two meals a day -- problem solved!

[katolb90]

I have two older dogs and I'm sure neither one would chase a mouse. One of them would try to kill a cat though. LOL Do you think just the presence of dog hair or the scent of a dog would deter mice from coming in?

[Off Topic]

Originally Posted by katolb90

LOL Do you think just the presence of dog hair or the scent of a dog would deter mice from coming in?

I don't think so. Heck, if my scent didn't scare them off, I don't think a dog's will! But there are plenty of other methods, some fairly humane.

[tomocox]

Originally Posted by katolb90

I have two older dogs and I'm sure neither one would chase a mouse. One of them would try to kill a cat though. LOL Do you think just the presence of dog hair or the scent of a dog would deter mice from coming in?

Yes, as a matter of fact, since humans are not a natural threat to a mouse's life, we don't scare them. A dog or a cat, however, does provide a natural enemy scent to mice. For whatever it's worth, when growing up, I lived in older houses. When there was a dog (never had cats in house) in the house, there were no mice.

[Nmissi]

Mice happen. Even if you have a tidy home and cats, mice will happen occasionally. I have four cats, and a clean house... this past winter a neighbor's pet fancy white rat somehow wound up lost in my bathroom closet eating cat chow out of the bag. We think he escaped his apartment and got into my house through the ductwork. (No, the kitties didn't eat him; they instead marveled at the new arrival, and acted a little scared of it.) I eventually caught him and took him back to his home.

[katolb90]

Oh my, I'm sure I would have fainted had I found the white rat.