Pictured above are my boys. The oldest boy Massimo is on the left, and the baby Nicco is on the right. My feline children are 8-year-old Turkish Angoras and are still extremely actively. In fact they still act like kittens. They run and play multiple times everyday and love toys, particularly chasing toy mice.
So, you would expect them to catch a wayward mouse that found its way into our house, right? Well I thought they might do something. No chance. I think they believe the mouse is a new show on television to be watched and nothing more.
Not only are my felines terrible mousers but the no kill traps are completely ineffective. I have had the traps down with peanut butter for a month and we have not had a nibble. Either this little mouse is a descendent of Albert Einstein, or I have the world's worst luck when it comes to removing “unwanted houseguests”.
If anyone has a suggestion for humanely catching a little field mouse I would love to hear it. I am a city girl and this is my very first mouse in the house (I had one at work but that is long story) and I am not too happy about sharing my home with the little puffball. I want him to return to his native outdoor habitat, and the sooner the better. Any suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Check out this post about cleverly catching a little mouse:
ReplyDeletehttp://journal.chrisglass.com/2005_09/how_to_catch_a_.html
You might also try an ultrasonic plug. It's a device you plug into an outlet and it emits a high pitch noise that hurts the mousey's ears so he will leave the house. Dogs and cats can't hear it. I think there's also a subsonic device that emits a very low sound/vibration, but I've never used these.
Some people say that these don't work, but it worked for us when we had a problem with rats. And our kitty didn't seem to notice anything...so I don't think it bothered her at all.
Depending on how big your house is, you may want to put in 2 or 3. I think they cost around $15-20 at the hardware store.
Outside of that, I've caught mice/baby rats by hand using a jar and heavy gloves, then releasing them out in the garden. But the little guy has to be cornered somewhere in order for you to be able to do this.
Rose,
ReplyDeleteWow, you are good at this. Thanks so much for the suggestions. I will definitely share your ideas with my husband. When I see little mouse I am up on the closest chair very quickly. It really is rather embarassing for me that I am terrified of a tiny little grey puffball.
Alicia
I just tried to copy and paste the link and it didn't work...did you get the chris glass link to work? It's really clever.
ReplyDeleteRose,
ReplyDeleteThe link came through perfectly on the notification email for your comment. You are right it is very clever. I think my little mensa mouse may know how to beat it since he seems to be so clever.
My husband has reminded me many times that mice are the smartest creatures in the universe according to "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy". That is his favorite excuse why we can't catch the mouse. He loves his scifi.
Alicia