Mice in Rental Unit (Durham: credit score, attorney, neighborhood)
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
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I use the flat glue traps that you can fold up into a box. I was putting them under my stove, but I got smart and filled the crack under there with spray foam, then put the mouse traps in the crawlspace. Mouse goes in, gets stuck, throw trap away. No need to add bait. The trap smells good to them. I don't feel responsible for the lives of the mice.
I have more trouble with mice in the winter.
Sorry this sounds mean. No, no. I mean I'm really sorry if this sounds mean to anyone but this is an effective way to get rid of them. Better than poisoning them.
So what's going on in the neighborhood that they're suddenly moving in with you? New construction? Land clearing?
Location: Sodo Sopa at The Villas above Kenny' s House.
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I've had mice several times and they can be occasional or extremely problematic. Do not allow an infestation in your kitchen. They like to hide up in the oven insulation where it's warm and guess what they do in there. It wasn't until I noticed every time I would bake something in the oven there was a rancid smell. Yep,mouse urine. It one of those smells you will never forget.
One week we managed to catch about 7 of them back to back. Some nights 2 at a time. I'm a animal lover but I had to toughen up when I saw the filth they leave behind. Such as opening the oven pan drawer and all the pans covered with mice poop. Under the burners was a stash spot too. I don't agree on the trappings and releasing in your yard. Wouldn't they come right back in? I've had cat in a house with mice and let's just say some cats are mousers and some couldn't care less.
Am I obligated to continue paying the rent whilst vermin run freely?
Yes. 4 mice over the course of a year and a half are hardly an infestation. Its been cold lately, they are likely coming in for the warm. Get traditional traps, and that should take care of it. Honestly, you haven't seen enough mice that most people would call it an infestation, so I would set out snaptraps and make sure I don't have food out for them (petfood is the most common culprit.) I can't believe its worth the hassle of involving the landlord. Also, if one of your neighbors is a mess and they are coming from there, look at stopping any gaps or through ways they are using.
Bait with a peanut. Catch cute critter. Release it outdoors, unharmed.
Mouse returns a day later, unless you cart each mouse a significant distance away from your house.
Also, when using these traps, I had two cases where the mouse died inside the trap before I checked it. In one case, it looked like the poor thing had suffered a heart attack and died while struggling to get out. He (and the inside of the trap) was completely coated with urine and feces, so that particular trap did not turn out to be reusable (and it gave me a greater appreciation for the relative humaneness of breaking the mouse's neck instantly vs. letting it die in horror as it struggled in a dark, enclosed space).
After that experience, I went out and bought some plain old-fashioned spring mousetraps and appreciated the old cliche about "building a better moustrap".
I don't agree on the trappings and releasing in your yard. Wouldn't they come right back in?
Yes. Yes they would.
Quote:
I've had cat in a house with mice and let's just say some cats are mousers and some couldn't care less.
True, but the smell of a cat will, in my experience, keep mice away. We had two cats who never, to my knowledge, chased or caught a single mouse, but we never had a mouse problem until after they both died.
Mice nest and live near their food and water source. They don't travel far.
If you cannot find the nests, look for entry points.
Mice can squeeze through a hole the size of a dime.
Look at pipe and wire penetrations through walls under sinks, behind the stove, or at laundry.
Look in storage areas, at furnace and water heater. Pull heat registers out of the floor and see that they are sealed.
Plug holes with steel wool and maybe some foam in the steel wool. It will be quicker than waiting for an exterminator to catch them all. And it will help keep other bugs out of the house, too.
And, the glue traps are very effective at catching mice.
They can work in a garage, where it is very difficult to seal a garage door to keep mice out.
Getting rid of a multi-generation nest of mice can be difficult.
We have them in the crawlspace, and they love to eat bait, it seems. At least, I think I have the living space sealed up well enough.
Nuc-u-lear option! Bring home a black snake! Needs less companionship than a cat, for sure.
Obviously, not a solution for everyone.
I like the black snake idea! Very effective! If you see mice you need to jump on it. The have a very high reproductive rate and can breed every 21 days or so. A few can become a major infestation within a short period of time!
I had this same problem the first year I moved into my rental apartment. Definitely bring it up when your lease is up for renewal; as a result of the problem the leasing office didn't increase my rent the second year.
Also, have they pulled out the refrigerator? There was a small hole behind mine where the mice kept coming in. It had to be filled and covered with drywall as they chewed through it. Hope you find the source soon!
To the OP:
When dealing with your apartment management, do not use Forums for legal advice.
Surf the state website's info pages on renter's rights. There are valid reasons for withholding rent, but I'm certainly not going to say I know what is or isn't legal.
Read your lease. It will have specifics on how you should notify management. (Email probably is NOT considered 'official', and would not be useful to you if you had to with-hold rent).
To add to the list of suggestions: I had an extended battle with squirrels getting into my attic when I had a house. I stopped thinking they were 'cute' when I had to pay an electrician several hundred dollars to re-wire several circuits up there that had been chewed.
Filling the observed openings with Great-Stuff expanding foam was useless as tunnels were re-chewed in a day. But putting a layer of foam, then a layer of expanded steel-wool, then another of foam worked every time. Then I used a cage trap, bated with peanut butter. Once trapped, I put the cage inside a trash bag to keep squirrel pee from getting on my car, and road tripped them 2-3 miles down the road to an undeveloped patch of trees. I also had heavy-duty construction gloves on when I opened the trap, just in case.
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