Need some creative mousetrapping ideas

[Roselvr]

Originally Posted by tarragon

LOL! This reminds me of the movie Caddyshack. I hate mice, I'm petrified of them. I would move out until it was gone! Your wife might just have to take some allergy medicine for a day or two so you can bring in a cat at least overnight.

My daughter would move out too! She actually has temporarily moved out for carpet beetles. She's been back home 8 weeks now. I go there to vac and spray because she's petrified, has PTSD when I ask her to come help. I'm satisfied they're gone. Want my house back after 2 kids ages 4 and 7 for the weekend. Non stop fighting, hitting, then running around. Normally it's just the 7 year old. Thankfully the father has custody of the 4 year old for now. They're good kids by themselves or when the older one is playing xbox but he gets tired of it.

The only reason I allowed her to come here, it was right before Christmas. When I went to pick her and the 2 kids up, they were standing in the kitchen crying. My daughter had both kids petrified the carpet beetles were chewing on them and all their stuff. She swears it's infested, it's not. I think she had about a dozen that came in with the new carpet and or through the window cracks. She had ants too that came in through the windows.

Originally Posted by hominamad

The war is over. I finally got it last night. Luckily it went to one of the snap traps id moved around and died a quick death. I didn't really want to deal with it stuck in a glue board. The bait in that one was marshmallow. I think it was just a matter of patience, moving the traps and bait constantly and also locking up any other food sources.

Glad I can get back to normal now. Will leave the camera out for another week or two overnight to make sure there's no other family members.

Thanks everyone!

Glad you got it and that you didn't have to resort to using poison. I will never use poison.

What works for us is peanut butter with bird seed on it. They can't resist the combo. I have old time mouse traps, not the one with the scented cheese piece.

I thought you were exaggerating until I saw your video. Yes, he was smelling something on those glue traps for sure.

Originally Posted by harry chickpea

Since this mouse is dead, the question is academic for the OP, but not for those of us who have to resort to glue traps from time to time. You aren't going to like the answer if you are in the "no-kill" group.

I'll start by saying that I will go for snap traps or other fast kill methods, even if it means extra work and a little extra time resolving the problem. About 80% to 90% of the time, those work as designed and death is near instantaneous. Glue traps, and variations of bucket traps are only for use when the other methods don't work or the infestation is too large.

I'll follow by saying that innocent looking little rodents have killed millions of people over the centuries. Skipping the plague, hanta virus, and other diseases they can carry, a mouse that eats wiring can cause a vehicle to malfunction and be involved in an accident. One that eats house wiring can cause a fire. Stored documents are nesting material and your last photo of your great grandmother could end up as chewed poop covered flooring for more mice. When mice invade a human home or vehicle, it is war. One side will eventually die. The best war is one you don't have, so seal up those cracks that mice might explore. Keep them out and you won't have to deal with the following. (Set in spoiler so the squeamish don't have to read.)

Spoiler

So, all other methods have failed and you now have a little bulge-eyed mouse covered in tanglefoot (the glue on a glue trap). Unless the creature has only one foot trapped, it will die. The only question is how fast and how humanely. We don't have lethal injections for mice. A stun gun would probably electrocute in a second or two, but most people aren't going to buy one for that purpose.

The goriest disposal method is undoubtedly the fastest and most humane, once you get over the idea that you can't lay the mouse remains out in a tiny casket for a viewing and wake. Take the glue trap outside, cover it and the mouse with a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil, and drop a concrete block on it from about five feet up. The nerve impulses will never have time to reach the brain (or what remains of it). This is effectively the same method used by a snap trap.

Second method of dispatch is to hold the glue trap underwater to drown the critter. This takes longer and there can be struggle. As someone who has had laryngial spasms that close my throat, I would prefer the first method over this, although it is relatively fast.

Third method is some sort of asphyxiation. Spraying engine starter fluid (ether) into a small jar and inserting the trap might seem an idea, and it has been used to dispatch countless butterflies, but ether can cause a burning sensation. Better to exhaust the oxygen in a container such as a coffee can or paint can by burning a votive candle in it with the lid almost closed, waiting for it to go out from lack of oxygen, letting it cool a bit, and then quickly and carefully sliding the trap into the can and sealing it.

Death happens to all of us. Most people are far enough removed from the realities of a farm life, where death of animals is a regular occurrence, that it is a rare and jarring reminder of reality. A mouse dispatched by any of the above methods will undoubtedly have a kinder death than mother nature would have in store. Any of the above are more kind than waiting for the mouse to die of exhaustion, thirst, or injuries. If you have unresolved issues with your own demise, please don't take it out on a mouse needing to be put out of misery.

Great post Harry. I read it all. I wonder how many people will.

I'd never use poison or glue traps. I don't want the animal dying in my walls or killing owls because the owl ate it. Glue traps for the reason you state, now you have a mouse stuck on glue that you have to kill or some how free. Snap their neck quick with a traditional trap. It's the most human next to dropping the concrete block or running over it with your car which could be messy.

Originally Posted by bound2TN

How about a ferret or mink?

I can't believe the small cages he has them in. Looks like he also keeps a chicken or something behind the garage. I saw more very small cages with what looked like a chicken when he ran behind it at the end.

Pretty funny video though.

If he cleaned up the yard he wouldn't have anything to film.

[Crashj007]

Originally Posted by hominamad

We have a mouse in our house that we just can't seem to get rid of<>Any suggestions would be much appreciated!
Thanks,
H

Not a mouse. It's an evil demon. Live with it.

[karen_in_nh_2012]

OP, it was creepy to watch the video and see the mouse go under the door. They really mean it when they say mice can compress themselves so as to fit through a hole the size of a dime!

I would have closed up the area under the door before doing anything else -- that would have kept the mouse in the basement so you could have trapped it there. (They make draft guards for the bottom of doors that would have worked.) Did it just not occur to you to close off that area -- or did you not even realize that's where the critter was coming from?

[ChessieMom]

Originally Posted by aliasfinn

I had a small mouse last year that drove me batty. I first saw him when I was doing dishes, I spotted him coming from behind the microwave and running down behind the stove.
I laid down some strips of duct tape, sticky side up on the counter and put a cheese puff in the middle of the tape.
I got up in the morning and saw that the cheese puff was gone but saw no sign of the mouse. I then used a couple of the standard mouse traps with cheese on the trigger, smashing my finger a couple of times loading them, that hurt.
He must have been as graceful as a pickpocket because he was snatching the cheese without setting off the traps. He was pizzing me off with his attitude. I think he thought I was his friend because I kept putting snacks out for him. He didn't even bother to run anymore when I came into the kitchen, he would just casually stroll back behind the stove.
I finally glued a cheese puff to the trigger of a trap and an hour later saw him with his neck crushed on the trap. Haven't seen any mice since. I make sure I clean out the toaster regularly because I think all the crumbs inside and around it is why he was hanging around my counter to begin with.

That is an EXCELLENT strategy!!

As far as cleaning out the toaster - if there is a mouse, he'll find plenty else to eat or chew. He's not coming in for the toaster crumbs alone I promise.

[PJSaturn]

Originally Posted by K'ledgeBldr

This reminded me of one of my favorite comedy’s-


https://youtu.be/TVAhhVrpkwM

OMG, this is hilarious! I'm currently dealing with mice in my house and spent much of last night thinking and worrying about it. I needed a good laugh and this video did the trick.

.

[MidValleyDad]

I know I'm late to this but



1) Some cats are mousers, some aren't. A marginal mouser may catch them if they are very hungry, A great mouser will go after them whether they are well fed or not. Just make sure they have all their shots especially rabies!



2) Live traps are good if you have a snake to feed them to but if you release them even 10 miles away they will still harass someone else and you have just made the mouse smarter.

[johngolf]

I had one bugging me. I tried several traps with no luck. I put down glue strips and got him within 2 days. Set them along the walls where mice like to run.

[gypsychic]

We have mice around our house that we bought a year ago. Our cat gets most any that come in the house - he is a great mouser!