House Mouse Control

[Deadlawn]

Hi,

This will now be the 4th fall I have been in this house. This has been the worst fall season for mice getting into the house. Before now, I have only had an occasional mouse get into the house and a snap trap usually got him/her and no others were caught. Now I am catching between 2 and 3 mice every night! I sure would like to find where they are getting in, but short of totally emptying the house of all possessions, this is nearly impossible.

I have found that traditional snap traps are the most effective and most humane as in usually a quick death. Sticky traps are just cruel. Some friends swear by the water bucket method, but I would much rather dispose of a dry mouse than a soaking wet one.

What do others here do for house mouse control? Cats?

[Lust4Lawn]

Set some bait stations around your property. This may keep the problem out of your house by reducing the population around the property. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tomcat-Mous ... /300934078

I keep a few of these around the outside of my house, in my shed, in my garage....

[Deadlawn]

Set some bait stations around your property. This may keep the problem out of your house by reducing the population around the property. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tomcat-Mous ... /300934078

I keep a few of these around the outside of my house, in my shed, in my garage....

Does this trap the mouse inside or can they get out? One concern I have with poison bait is if the mouse gets out and then dies where a predator like a hawk or owl can then eat it and get poisoned.

[BobLovesGrass]

Mouse dies elsewhere.

[wiread]

I've photographed owls close enough I could reach up and touch them in a tree if my arms were 3 feet longer LOL, on our property. I refuse to use poison on rodents of any type.

We had a problem with them getting in. I bought a mirror on a handle and went around and checked the entire perimeter of the house on the foundation and the siding and caulked any spaces. There were 2 major ones they were coming in. Another was near where our electric came into the home. One was on the bump out on the garage, right up the siding and wall into the attic in the house.

I also assume they were coming up the corners (vinyl siding) so I stuffed the bottom with steel wool. Somehow something chewed a hole in our ridge vent and they also go in that way. I used aluminum gutter guard and stapled it on the underside of the roof to prevent them from getting in that way, though I suspect that was a ground squirrel.

So, we still catch mice outside and in our shed, but none in the house in 3 years now. I just use snap traps. They're a pain to set and reset all the time, but eventually you cut down on the population. But I can't poison them, it doesn't just kill mice.

[Lust4Lawn]

Then you are going to have to step up your trapping method.
https://www.elitereaders.com/rolling-log-mouse-trap/

[Thejarrod]

Set some bait stations around your property. This may keep the problem out of your house by reducing the population around the property. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tomcat-Mous ... /300934078

I keep a few of these around the outside of my house, in my shed, in my garage....

Does this trap the mouse inside or can they get out? One concern I have with poison bait is if the mouse gets out and then dies where a predator like a hawk or owl can then eat it and get poisoned.

I have not ever thought about who may eat the dead mouse. I need to rethink using poison.