Mice in apt
Haven't seen any posts about this lately-- does anyone know what the landlord requirements are about mice in an apartment? Are they only required to put down poison-- or do they need to hire an exterminator/plug up holes? We've got a recurring mouse problem and it's clear that they're coming in through the many gaping holes around pipes, walls, etc. Any suggestions?
Comments
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Cats...it seem to be the sure way to keep mice out of an apartment.
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If cats are not an option, put some steel wool (you can get it at any hardware store - not Brillo pads - the loose stuff) around the pipes and any areas where the mice have access into your space. Glue traps are gross and cruel and poison is dangerous to humans as well.
I don't know the extent of the mouse problem, but until the landlord (who is responsible) can either get extermination done, this is the best bet. I would also suggest keeping all food in cannisters - esp. rice, cereal, grains.
I lived across the street from the park and the downstairs tenant would get field mice during the fall/winter seeking shelter. Since I had cats - did not get any mice, but took precautions anyway. -
I've had good luck with a combo of steel wool around openings and Shake-Away:
http://www.critter-repellent.com/mice/getting-rid-of-mice.php -
My solution has always been to catch one or two in glue traps and then put their heads on toothpicks as a warning to other mice.
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Also, peanut butter. One year my housemate at the time got reusable traps (plastic spring-loaded thingees. I know you can get them at Duane Reade). Anyway, we put peanut butter in as bait and couldn't keep up with the little buggers. One night we tossed five of them.
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it is a landlord's job to get rid of them - not just say "well, i put down traps..." if it didn't get rid of them, it's not good enough. that said, landlords can be uncaring/unavailable and you may want this problem solved whether he/she is doing it or not. i would use either the steel wool mentioned or wire windowscreens cut to fit into the holes and then caulk them up. i 100% agree about putting all food in plastic containers - they will eat anything. keep everything clean, take out the trash as often as possible, and (while they are so gross!) i found sticky traps were the only ones that worked. good luck.
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I'm not sure about the legality, but I think they just have to put out poison or offer traps and fill large holes.
Check with tenant.net
In the meantime, I highly recommend a mouse zapper trap over snap traps and glue traps because it seems to work well enough to be much more humane. I've seen them in many hardware stores. I put a little PB or some tomato sauce inside the vent and didn't turn it on for a day or two. That way they got comfortable with it and I could catch, dump, and catch another as long as they kept coming.
http://www.victorpest.com/store/rodent-control/M252 -
OpossumQueen wrote:
devious! I like it
the vent and didn't turn it on for a day or two. That way they got comfortable with it -
Mouse electrocution device is outstanding. I got rid of a major infestation in my bird room by caulking up all holes and baseboards, and deploying this device with peanut butter or chocolate.
Kitty just couldn't keep up with the rampant rodent breeding but she killed her share. They were actually spreading from the bird room to the rest of the apartment. Kitty wasn't allowed in the bird room during the day and my pit bull would chase her out at night, alas, so it wasn't her fault lol.
I've rarely seen a mouse since 2003 when the filthy little things invaded. Construction in adjacent apartments drove them into mine. When I do see them the electrocution device gets em sooner or later. I hate mice and don't care about "ethical" killing but the mouse zapper is the most efficient means of taking them out. Got to keep checking and emptying though. -
I just can't stand when there's a squirming little critter stuck on one of those glue traps or you find pieces of them in the glue or snap trap. The zapper gets them and does it quickly and is really easy to reset (just open the top and dump out the catch). I got three in less than 10 minutes, in the same location one night back when I lived in Cinderella's quarters where the mice like to romp and play with no fear.
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Place squirming critter's glue trap into plastic bag
Place bag on floor
Stomp.
Problem solved. :cat: -
I have tried putting steel wool in my entryway but it doesn't keep my tenant out so we are keeping him.
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You should foster a cat - that will take care of it.
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Leozoeypiper wrote: You should foster a cat - that will take care of it.
a female cat. Stella sat in the kitchen of my old place for SEVEN WEEKS standing guard. She got mama and 2 baby mice (and brought them to me in bed while I was sleeping to give me a present because she loves me...gross).
My boy cat just sat around looking all sensitive and saucer eyed. -
Our current predator Gypsy stalks EVERYTHING - from bugs, to birds, to mice to small children. Rumor has it that the neighbors saw her dragging a rottweiler into the park.
Female cats HAVE to provide for baby kittehs so are much better hunters.
Stella wuvs you - she wants to feed you and thank you for taling such good care of her. I keep telling Gypsy she could get into Tiffany's and bring momma a little blue box with a white bow with something sprakly we BOTH could play with. So far no luck. -
stewart wrote: My solution has always been to catch one or two in glue traps and then put their heads on toothpicks as a warning to other mice.
^^^ this -
Domino wrote: Our current predator Gypsy stalks EVERYTHING - from bugs, to birds, to mice to small children. Rumor has it that the neighbors saw her dragging a rottweiler into the park.
She does love me. She should - she's spoiled rotten. She is totally earning her keep as no mouse, cockroach or fly stands a chance while she's on guard. She also sleeps in the window sometimes, guarding the yard for me while I sleep. I love her :-)
Female cats HAVE to provide for baby kittehs so are much better hunters.
Stella wuvs you - she wants to feed you and thank you for taling such good care of her. I keep telling Gypsy she could get into Tiffany's and bring momma a little blue box with a white bow with something sprakly we BOTH could play with. So far no luck. -
My un-neutered male Siamese was hell on mice, killed hundreds of them in his 17 years with me in Prospect heights. Always ate the head, every time. Crunchies!
Cats rule, dogs drool! Though my pit did kill a rat in Prospect once, while wandering on a 30 foot lead in the dark..she tossed it in the air, was having such great fun...but there's this thing called leptospirosis, not cool. -
when i lived in boston, our apartment was infested! you could hear the little squeaks at night - blech! anyway, the steel wool plan REALLY works! we took an entire day to try and get those little buggers to move to our neighbors downstairs. here's what we did: move appliances and anything you can away from the walls. then, shove steel wool wherever you can cram it in and seal it - not just walls, but even the little gaps between the floor and wall...but consider an all out assault on your kitchen because that is probably where they are coming in. don't skimp on the steel wall - they can chew through everything else. after all this, you can put out some traps for those that get "locked out" of their cozy homes.
it was a day well spent. we had 3 mice caught in traps during the week that followed, then nothing! our neighbors downstairs on the other hand...
good luck! -
If you're going to use glue traps, have the balls to put the poor mouse out of it's misery. I was going to say have the compassion to kill it but anyone who uses glue traps probably doesn't give a shit. Mice can live over 24 hours on a glue trap, don't let them suffer.
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Subject: PEPPERMINT OIL WORKS
I know what a drag this this is. I had a mouse problem and was traumatized by having the finish the job of a snap-trap. Discovering and disposing of mice (some dead, some only half-dead) sucked. I didn't want toxic chemicals in my kitchen. I wanted a repellent, not population control. I tried those sonic plug-in devices but they are a total scam and a waste of money.
I scoured the internet and discovered that 100% peppermint oil is a natural repellent and TOTALLY WORKS. You can buy it at health food stores--I got a big bottle on Amazon for around $20--just dab onto cotton balls and stash them in places where you've seen mice. From the first day I used it I never saw another mouse again. You just have to refresh the cotton balls every couple of weeks.
My landlord has an exterminator come every couple months--I told him about the peppermint oil and how since I started using it I'd had no problems. Not surprisingly, he'd never heard of it. If it was a well-know remedy he'd be out of a job. -
Just read about Towser who caught like 28,000 mice in her lifetime. World record!
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Initially the snap traps worked. But for the past two years, the only thing that has worked on the mice has been glue traps. And yes, of course, when you catch one, you have to dispatch it yourself. That can definitely be a downside.
I prefer to take the little bugger outside, set the trap sticky side-down on the sidewalk, and then give it a quick bash with the shovel we keep in the closet. -
This little sucker works like magic. My parents' house in the country had a significant mouse population. They bought one of these and they haven't been able to keep up with all the little bastards that it's snagged.
If you're using a standard trap use peanut butter with a raisin or sunflower seed buried in the peanut butter. That keeps them digging for awhile and makes them put more pressure on the trigger.
http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1279062&cp=2568443.2568444.2598676.2602605.1305668&origkw=mouse+trap -
Yeah, I've had good luck with those Decon traps, too, unless the mouse is too light to trip the thing. The raisin is a great idea, I'll give it a shot.
It's time for me to get the arsenal ready to go...the first real cold snap is when they usually appear here. -
DeWalt_Russ wrote: Initially the snap traps worked. But for the past two years, the only thing that has worked on the mice has been glue traps. And yes, of course, when you catch one, you have to dispatch it yourself. That can definitely be a downside.
WOW
I prefer to take the little bugger outside, set the trap sticky side-down on the sidewalk, and then give it a quick bash with the shovel we keep in the closet.
How about just throwing it out.. it's gonna die anyway -
It dies a long, painful death if you just chuck it in the trash. I prefer to put the critter out of its misery with one swift stroke.
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DeWalt_Russ wrote: It dies a long, painful death if you just chuck it in the trash. I prefer to put the critter out of its misery with one swift stroke.
Exactly, it's the humane thing to do.
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