Getting rid of mice…..a few questions

So it seems we’ve got some visitors living in the loft.
I’ve used a live-capture trap and caught 2 in about 48 hours. Hoped that was the end of I but the trap was tripped again last night, although no mouse caught.

Anyone got any idea how any would typically live in a domestic house environment? Hopefully not dozens of the little sods!

Also how far from the house do I need to release them to ensure they don’t immediately return?

Cheers.

Anyone got any idea how any would typically live in a domestic house environment? Hopefully not dozens of the little sods!

well since you’ve got three then assume there is at least 1 male and 1 female in that mix…

If they’ve been there long enough to breed (20 days) [or arrived pregnant] then you could have a litter (half a dozen to a dozen!). After about 8 weeks the litter will be old enough to start breeding and then it really explodes – assuming there are no predators, and sufficient food. After 6 months you could have hundreds of mice!

Also how far from the house do I need to release them to ensure they don’t immediately return?

I think you are wasting your time. Even if those exact same mice don’t come back others will. You need to stop them getting in.

There was a thread on this not too long ago

here

I found that the live traps, while they may catch them, are a real hassle so I reverted to real traps.
If you do care about the little critters you need to check the traps very regularly and take them a heck of a way away – half a mile or more, to ensure they will bother other people rather than yourself.

edit: I caught about 12 in total in our garage. I’ve put sonic repelling devices in there and had nothing for quite a while now.

You keep setting the trap until it doesn’t get tripped any more. Then you’ve got them all. You can’t calculate an answer.

Cheers Poly…. you’ve made my day!

DaveRambo – what type of sonic thingy are you using?

Me! Me! I’m a sonic thingy. If you live in Lancashire, I’m available for hire!

we used to get loads in our kitchen, only real traps and poison seem to cut down numbers. We’ve just ripped out kitchen and found about 10-15 dead mice under kitchen cupboards spent ages sealing all the holes. in floorboards etc…

I have caught 18 of them in my garage over the last 3 months.

Oh, and 1 in my kitchen as well, it ran over my feet when I was having breakfast.

Careful, If you get rid of the mice the rats will take their place. 😀

EDIT : This time of year is a good time to get rid of them if you can, and the real trick is to find all the places they are getting in and blocking them as best you can. You should if lucky find the main entry point at least.

Our cat delights in bringing us live presents and then only toying with the mice/voles that then bolt for the most difficult to get to crevice. Humane traps (with a cat biscuit inside) work well for us although they’re always DOA – just make sure they’re lined up against the wall.

Making sure there is nothing edible around helps too. Testament to the cleanliness of our kitchen, my girlfriend’s sister managed to accidentally nuke one in a toaster looking for crumbs. I bet she’ll never forget the high-pitched, fast and panicked sound of “eek-eek-eek!” 😛

it ran over my feet when I was having breakfast.

Ho hum indeed!

A word of warning if you are planning to use a feline mouse deterrent.

Mice are horribly crunchy 😐

cricket bats and leki poles good at dispatching the rouge ones that are too ballsy and sit in lounge watching you watch tv.

3rd one caught, they just can’t resist the peanut butter!

Globalti, does he kill them or hypnotise them?

Nutella was quite effective at tempting the bastard that ate my week old saddle.

Dust off and nuke, etc, etc…