Mice in Kitchen

bri007

Hi all.

As the title suggests I write this with dread!

We have mice in the kitchen. Came down yesterday morning to get cereal out of the press and the bag was all eaten and ripped with lots of small poo droppings all over the kitchen press.

They had also made their way into the porridge pack and of course left their droppings all in it.

They appear to be getting up to the lower presses from the floor boards... we have suspended floor so they have free run.

I got trap yesterday and set them up, looked up old posts on here for tips and used the peanut butter, Nutella, Mars bars etc and fully expected to have caught some over night but nothing when I came down this morning.

My partner is pregnant so we are more anxious to get rid of them. Anyone any tips or advice on what we should do?

Thanks

JMR

bri007 wrote: »

Hi all.

As the title suggests I write this with dread!

We have mice in the kitchen. Came down yesterday morning to get cereal out of the press and the bag was all eaten and ripped with lots of small poo droppings all over the kitchen press.

They had also made their way into the porridge pack and of course left their droppings all in it.

They appear to be getting up to the lower presses from the floor boards... we have suspended floor so they have free run.

I got trap yesterday and set them up, looked up old posts on here for tips and used the peanut butter, Nutella, Mars bars etc and fully expected to have caught some over night but nothing when I came down this morning.

My partner is pregnant so we are more anxious to get rid of them. Anyone any tips or advice on what we should do?

Thanks

Never had mice but have had various pest infestations over the years and by far the best advice I can give you is call in the experts.
You will have peace of mind a lot quicker.

coolisin

Peanut butter and dark chocolate work a treat.
But be patient with them.
They may be full from all the cereal!!

Getting experts is is a great way to go full stop.
Also with a suspended floor could you put traps under the floor in a high traffic area for them.

gozunda

Cat in Kitchen = no mice in kitchen

Cape Clear

Pre baited traps and sonic device the way to go.

bri007

We were considering getting the experts in. We will wait a day or two to see if the traps work and then call them in if nothing changes!

JMR wrote: »

Never had mice but have had various pest infestations over the years and by far the best advice I can give you is call in the experts.
You will have peace of mind a lot quicker.

bri007

I’m going to try and make access to the suspended floor. Recently got new floor tiles so have to get in under the presses to access the floor

coolisin wrote: »

Peanut butter and dark chocolate work a treat.
But be patient with them.
They may be full from all the cereal!!

Getting experts is is a great way to go full stop.
Also with a suspended floor could you put traps under the floor in a high traffic area for them.

bri007

I was actually thinking that? I was saying it to my partner but she’s not fully on board yet

gozunda wrote: »

Cat in Kitchen = no mice in kitchen

looksee

No, cat in kitchen not the solution! Our feckin' cats are more likely to bring prizes home than get rid of them from the house. Also mice can have free run of kitchen presses without ever coming into the open where the cat can be.

How are they getting into the presses, mostly they are sealed by the tight fit of the edges and door? If there are gaps in the press try and seal them up first. A mouse can get through a gap 5 to 6mm high - I have seen one do it, literally no more than two matchstick thicknesses high.

When you put in the traps you need to have them on the run route, usually up against the edge of the space, not out in the middle.

ps, I am being a bit unfair to the cats here, they have in fact caught mice that were rampaging around the house, but its not very reliable. Just the presence of a cat is no deterrent - we have just this morning discovered mouse evidence in an area that a cat has complete access to and is very often present there.

Ger Roe

Traps are your best course of action. Catch them and count the bodies. These are the best traps I have ever used. Clean and easy to maintain, quick release and reusable. Well worth the money.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/LucaSng-Reusable-Sensitive-Catcher-Control/dp/B08GXGZ7FF/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=mouse+trap&qid=1609240235&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEySE1VWDRBVUZHMEhXJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTI1MTY0MjI1TVk0SUpENE9GOSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTMyNzQ4SVdVU1lBT1NOMDAxJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

greasepalm

Find out where they are getting in and block it off.

terminatorX1

I used an electronic trap that got rid of them very quickly. Place it near where you think they are coming in, put a bit of peanut butter in it and close the lid. The light flashes when you have caught one. Cost about €40

chinwag

looksee wrote: »

No, cat in kitchen not the solution!

You need to have a word with that cat .

Often wish I'd a cat, always thought they keep the mice away.

gozunda

chinwag wrote: »

You need to have a word with that cat .

Often wish I'd a cat, always thought they keep the mice away.

I think it depends on the cat. Some are born mousers. But yes mice will try and avoid areas with cats ime.

Found a mouse once who had tried to get in under a roller shed door. Well half a mouse anyway. Cat had got the rest

bri007

I think I’m actually going crazy!!

Walked into the kitchen there and could hear squeaking coming but of course as soon as I started walking around it stopped so couldn’t ascertain where it was coming from .

I thought it may have been the fridge freezer but I’m certain it wasn’t as it stopped soon after I came in.

I am going to try get the side skirts up now and place some traps under the press cupboards. I’ve two other presses to go through now.... dreading it as I’m certain they have been in there too. Not sure how they are getting in there, I know one press had a plug in it for lighting under cabinets and there is a large whole so that’s where they are getting into that one anyway.

Meeoow

I had the same problem as you. I found that weetabix on the trap was the best. Caught most mice.
Also, try to put your food into air tight containers, if they can't get the food, they won't come into the presses.

Fuascailteoir

bri007 wrote: »

I think I’m actually going crazy!!

Walked into the kitchen there and could hear squeaking coming but of course as soon as I started walking around it stopped so couldn’t ascertain where it was coming from .

I thought it may have been the fridge freezer but I’m certain it wasn’t as it stopped soon after I came in.

I am going to try get the side skirts up now and place some traps under the press cupboards. I’ve two other presses to go through now.... dreading it as I’m certain they have been in there too. Not sure how they are getting in there, I know one press had a plug in it for lighting under cabinets and there is a large whole so that’s where they are getting into that one anyway.

Make sure you have good access to retrieve the traps as a decaying mouse can cause an outrageous smell for a surprisingly long period of time. If a mouse gets caught and drags the trap to an unaccessible area you are in trouble.

Go for the electronic trap. Calling in pest control is not a great advantage

atilladehun

We've had cats and mice for years, the two never bothered each other.

The terrier was better. He'd sniff out routes soni could put traps and block them off. That's only at ground level though and a huge commitment.

Maybe I've been lucky but have always managed to get rid myself. As others have said place the traps on the routes, use a variety of baits, mashed into the traps so they can't pick it off.

chinwag

I haven't the stomach for the reusable traps and all that is entailed with the aftermath of a 'catch'

Markcheese

I think Ive probably caught more mice by them accidentally running over the trap than by them going for the bait .. if you can position the trap so the trigger is against a wall ,( mice like to run along a wall ) ,
Still chocolate and peanut butter are a good bet )

Treppen

JMR wrote: »

Never had mice but have had various pest infestations over the years and by far the best advice I can give you is call in the experts.
You will have peace of mind a lot quicker.

Be careful... We called the experts and they put down poison... As soon as the rats ate it they headed for water (which is a thing).. that was the water tank in the attic. They lay there drowned and stewing for 2 months until after umpteen tummy bugs from whole household and funny smell from shower water I decide to take a look in attic.
Then came the mammoth task of thoroughly cleaning out the tank and subsequent air traps that came in the pipes.

Any expert can throw down poison.

Tl:Dr cover your tank in the attic.

JMR

Treppen wrote: »

Be careful... We called the experts and they put down poison... As soon as the rats ate it they headed for water (which is a thing).. that was the water tank in the attic. They lay there drowned and stewing for 2 months until after umpteen tummy bugs from whole household and funny smell from shower water I decide to take a look in attic.
Then came the mammoth task of thoroughly cleaning out the tank and subsequent air traps that came in the pipes.

Any expert can throw down poison.

Tl:Dr cover your tank in the attic.

The experts you used were less than experts

Banana Republic 1

bri007 wrote: »

Hi all.

As the title suggests I write this with dread!

We have mice in the kitchen. Came down yesterday morning to get cereal out of the press and the bag was all eaten and ripped with lots of small poo droppings all over the kitchen press.

They had also made their way into the porridge pack and of course left their droppings all in it.

They appear to be getting up to the lower presses from the floor boards... we have suspended floor so they have free run.

I got trap yesterday and set them up, looked up old posts on here for tips and used the peanut butter, Nutella, Mars bars etc and fully expected to have caught some over night but nothing when I came down this morning.

My partner is pregnant so we are more anxious to get rid of them. Anyone any tips or advice on what we should do?

Thanks

I came down one morning turned on the kettle. I caught a glimpse of something from the corner of my eye. A rat on the back of the hob not 2 feet away from me.

I also have a suspended floor but at the time I was convinced it had come in through an open door the day before. It was the last mistake that one ever made but after months of “what was that” I concluded that there was a more were trafficking under the floor. On day I just happened to be looking in the kitchen window and saw another inside enjoying the central heating. I found a hole under one unit going down and I mined it with traps.

Weeks went by and suddenly one day all eight traps went off, something in me cracked and I pulled out the units and cut a slice in the floor. I discovered that plumbers when fitting the boiler had just burst out a block with a lump hammer to put the pipe through instead of drilling a hole leaving free access to the house from within the cavity I also concluded that the rats probably gained to the cavity through a sewer pipe somewhere else. Needless to say you have to find were they gained access otherwise it’s pointless check the attack for droppings.

catrat12

I agree with the traps someone posted earlier much easier to use than the wooden ones and easy to dispose of too.

I just used Nutella or peanut butter and that worked a treat

Be patient and try not to worry too much
The key is to make sure the food is not accessible and they should go for the traps

LenWoods

gozunda wrote: »

Cat in Kitchen = no mice in kitchen

Get a cat call it John whick

The Continental Op

The normal suggestion for baiting traps is to use whatever they have been eating in the cupboards.

So If they have been eating some form of breakfast serial then use that to bait the traps.

They love chocolate and peanut butter but they are also wary of anything new so may avoid new food.

They also have a good sense of smell so if there is a good supply of food they may avoid a trap with a fresh human smell. Handle traps with gloves not just the traps with dead mice in them.

ampleforth

bri007 wrote: »

Hi all.

As the title suggests I write this with dread!

We have mice in the kitchen. Came down yesterday morning to get cereal out of the press and the bag was all eaten and ripped with lots of small poo droppings all over the kitchen press.

They had also made their way into the porridge pack and of course left their droppings all in it.

They appear to be getting up to the lower presses from the floor boards... we have suspended floor so they have free run.

I got trap yesterday and set them up, looked up old posts on here for tips and used the peanut butter, Nutella, Mars bars etc and fully expected to have caught some over night but nothing when I came down this morning.

My partner is pregnant so we are more anxious to get rid of them. Anyone any tips or advice on what we should do?

Thanks

If you don't mind killing them, get a few of those old-fashioned traps and put some bacon / cheese in them.

https://hardwareheaven.ie/wp/product/luna-mouse-trap/

Had one and it only took a day to solve the issue.

...

Ger Roe

My late father once had a battle of wits with a mouse in his kitchen, for about three months.

Various traps and bait were employed but the mouse kept clearing the traps, without being caught. Bait was glued on, tied down with thread and fishing line, trigger hairs were set, specific hairy rashers were bought and all to no avail. The mouse always got the bait and survived.

My dad was an ex army man and he insisted that the mouse must have had strategic training. The battle between them kept him amused for months. When the mouse was finally caught, it was given a burial with military honours (last post played from dad's phone), out in the back garden.

ampleforth

Ger Roe wrote: »

My late father once had a battle of wits with a mouse in his kitchen, for about three months.

Various traps and bait were employed but the mouse kept clearing the traps, without being caught. Bait was glued on, tied down with thread and fishing line, trigger hairs were set, specific hairy rashers were bought and all to no avail. The mouse always got the bait and survived.

My dad was an ex army man and he insisted that the mouse must have had strategic training. The battle between them kept him amused for months. When the mouse was finally caught, it was given a burial with military honours (last post played from dad's phone), out in the back garden.

Love that story!

I think this was turned into a movie: Mouse Hunt (1997)

looksee

Since I mentioned a mouse in the house earlier in this thread - this morning - the area has been cleared and it is overwhelmed with mouse droppings. Worryingly very tiny ones and more mouse sized ones so at least one family has been been reared, apparently in a sports type bag.

It was all in an open wardrobe inside a room that functions as a walk in wardrobe and the mouse had carefully selected which clothes should be sacrificed for nest material. They had taken a six inch ragged patch out of the centre front of a rayon summer dress, and a similar selection of patches out of a polyester lightweight blouse. Very specific, they had had to bypass all kinds of other clothes to find these two - separately placed - garments.

The hanging rack was only purchased during the summer, and one place where there were dropping had been cleared and reorganised just before Christmas, so they did a lot of damage in a short time.

The kitchen is closed off and not even a mouse could access it - and we have had no problems in there. So its a mystery what they have been eating, though I suppose the bird feeder could be an option, or otherwise the cat's dish, though that seems unlikely.

I have one of those humane traps that is like a tube that tilts up and the door closes when a mouse goes into it, I watched a mouse run into it and it is exceptionally efficient, the mouse was decanted well away from the house.

Treppen

JMR wrote: »

The experts you used were less than experts

That's true. They were "one of the most well known killers of rodents to rent"

charlesanto

peanut butter works

Sleeper12

Ger Roe wrote:

My dad was an ex army man and he insisted that the mouse must have had strategic training. The battle between them kept him amused for months. When the mouse was finally caught, it was given a burial with military honours (last post played from dad's phone), out in the back garden.

Caught? Mouse died of old age!

moceri

Check the outside vents to the space under a suspended floor. Repair/replace any broken vents. A mouse can squeeze through the width of a pencil.

bri007

I think you hit the nail on the head with how they are getting in. I just looked there now and I think that’s how they are getting in. Should I block it up, it’s a sort of concrete vent built into the brickwork? Not sure how I would go about replacing it.

moceri wrote: »

Check the outside vents to the space under a suspended floor. Repair/replace any broken vents. A mouse can squeeze through the width of a pencil.

greasepalm

You dont block up needed vents but could add a small bore wire mesh over it.

bri007

I had a good luck around the vent. They definitely got in this way...

Is it mesh wire (like chicken wire) I should get to cover it?

greasepalm wrote: »

You dont block up needed vents but could add a small bore wire mesh over it.

greasepalm

Smaller as chicken wire is too big.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rodent-Mesh-1-19mm-0-4mm-Stainless/dp/B07L5N8WT5/ref=asc_df_B07L5N8WT5/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=265064983195&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6881952735624843688&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1007850&hvtargid=pla-715938597506&psc=1

The Continental Op

You need a fine wire mesh chicken wire is no good holes are far too big.

This is the sort of thing you need https://www.amazon.co.uk/URATOT-Stainless-Control-Proofing-Kitchen/dp/B0887V6KGJ/

Treppen

Put down white pepper too. When they sniff it they sneeze and smash their heads off the ground and kill themselves.

byronbay2

bri007 wrote: »

I think I’m actually going crazy!!

I thought it may have been the fridge freezer but I’m certain it wasn’t as it stopped soon after I came in.

Mice will have no interest in the fridge/freezer!

Dynomutt

A mouse moved into my bedroom and I tried everything to get rid of it. Finally, I rubbed peppermint oil all around the skirting boards and left a window open. The house smelled like a Polo Mint for a week but it did the trick.

Atlantic Dawn

Cut off access, cut off the food source, place traps, case closed.

everlast75

I think UB40 had a similar problem back in the 80's...

Doctors room ghost

Treppen wrote: »

Put down white pepper too. When they sniff it they sneeze and smash their heads off the ground and kill themselves.

I’ve heard it all now

The Continental Op

byronbay2 wrote: »

Mice will have no interest in the fridge/freezer!

Apart from making a nest up inside the insulation. Same with cookers.

antodeco

You can create a "run" for then into a trap. Double sided sticky tape with only a walkway upto the trap clear.

bri007

Thanks everyone for the tips and advice. Came down this morning to two mice trapped in the traps. I had 6 traps down and it was the two with Nutella on it that did it.

I’ve to go to woodies now and get a new vent cover for the vent under the floor outside and get the mesh as well. Hopefully that does the trick.... have a feeling there’s a lot more but I feel bit less anxious today knowing I caught two!

An Ri rua

If you're in an estate, talk to neighbours. You'll find that, with the same house design, builders took the same shoddy approach in all houses. Whether it's pipe access to the house, draughty sockets, uninsulated boiler pipe coming to the house (in 2010 when pipes froze ones foot down, mine didn't but it did give the garden a great heating, such that there was no snow above it....).
I've used humane mouse traps for years. Take a lot of watching as you've got a live mouse in there etc. But they work well. I had a large metal multi catch one years ago. Worked a treat. Left it stored in the garage once, must not have cleaned it (who does? As there's no blood /guts /drama) and came back to find maybe 8 poor divils in it dead and half eaten. Not a nice way to end poor animals, particularly for a vegan animal lover like myself).
On cats, I have 2 killing machines (18 month old brothers who hunt together) who are NOT vegan and they take great pleasure in playing with mice almost every evening. At least I think they do be playing. They're unreal, like a pair of mad yokes out of Kill Bill. Yes, some cats are mousers. My two live backing on to a cornfield and a river, so every autumn and winter it becomes the killing Fields. I've sat them down to discuss my sensitivities and have the scratches to prove it Pair of furry sh1tehawks

Ps isn't laying down loose poison now illegal (and stupid). It has been in UK for some time.

There's not a lot to be gained from 'experts' if you're willing to buy the right gear and put in the legwork. Short term perhaps, for psychological and stress etc. But if you work a plan, you'll have no more mice problems.

Definitely get secure storage containers, block up presses, use vinegar or dettol around edges of everything (disrupt their smell and hence navigation of pee tracks).

I feel for you. Due to bad tradesmen and flood followed by 2018 drought, I suffered a mouse problem in hot press and attic and an ongoing ant problem in hot press on 1st floor. (For all the smart Alec anti-vegans, I caught and removed as many winged ones as I could (perhaps up to 500 individually across last summer, they only wanted to get up and out) and killed the crawling ants much to my regret. But the die was cast for all concerned.

Hit that problem hard for s few days Op, on a few fronts (defensive, preventative etc) and you won't know yourself. Best of luck.

Humberto Salazar

I've alway used cheese in the traps and it's never failed, but I'm sure the other foods will work. And usually where you think you have one mouse, you have at least 2 so keep the traps set until you're sure they are gone. Just adding to advice, you must find how they are getting in, and be aware they can get through very small cracks, and can also climb rough surfaced walls, I've seen it... Good luck.

bri007

Was just out checking the back garden again and the pipes coming out of the kitchen. I wonder would they be getting in from the kitchen pipes such as sink, dishwasher, washing machine etc or is that a bit extreme.

Why I’m suggesting this is that I noticed some things stuck up in the pipe, bits of leaves and twigs etc from the garden. Paranoia has fully returned! Just thinking if I’m going to woodies to get the vent cover is there anything I could get for the pipes