Mice in the shop

[Animal]

What do you guys do for mouse control. We are infested here in Missouri. Decon seems to get the job done, but sometimes I think the smell is as bad as the mice. They are not only in the shop, but in our cars and trucks too. With all the knowledge on this forum I am looking for new ideas.

 

[David G]

I have a good cat, very few mice.

 

[Married2Allis]

Bucket of water (with a diving board).

 

[Animal]

I have two and they both move around like a brother inlaw at Thanksgiving dinner.....They are full.

 

[Russ from MN]

A good friend shared his solution, buy Tomcat or a simmilar bait block, and quarter them. Then put them in empty beer bottles outside your buildings, under steps, in flower beds, etc. Most of them will die outside, I don't like finding dead mice in a coffee can of nails either!

 

[D beatty]

I use Tom Cat bait stations at corners of doors of shop all year long. The poison is inside station and pets can't get to it.

 

[Greg K]

Well, you could try keeping a bunch of snakes in there to eat them. I'd rather have mice lol

 

[old]

I almost never see a mouse but then again I have a good number of barn cats and when they sleep in the shop and barn and machine shed etc the mice never seem to be a problem

 

[quefan]

Treadmill trap with some peanut butter, if no pets to get at the peanut butter.

 

[GordoSD]

Poison at all four corners of the shop.

 

[jeffcat]

On utube they call it a hillbilly mouse trap. It is neat and there are several ways to build it.

 

[rbhuntn]

(quoted from post at 07:19:38 12/10/15) What do you guys do for mouse control. We are infested here in Missouri. Decon seems to get the job done, but sometimes I think the smell is as bad as the mice. They are not only in the shop, but in our cars and trucks too. With all the knowledge on this forum I am looking for new ideas.

Had the same issue with my camp trailer parked at the hunting property. I ran them off using the following methods.

1 - Every time I leave I throw moth balls around. Mice and rats do not like the smell (Me either but better then having rodents)

2 - Sprayed Fox Urine around all the holes that they can get into on the outside. You should have seen a rat run away when he came over to get in and smelled the Fox Urine.

3 - Placed rubber snakes on the inside areas where they were hanging out.

After doing these no more issue that I have found.

Hope these help

 

[Billy NY]

Mint oil extract, they hate it, dryer sheets as well, they seem to work well in idle vehicles. Multi catch traps, the bucket with the dowel and can with peanut butter on it and ramp made of wood lathe or similar. I have used sunflower seeds floating on top, and just the ramp, but I think the can on the dowel that spins when it lands on it, dropping it into the water below is better for the mice, the seeds sink eventually and reek. That one does work well for chipmunks, just have to get that water level right.

The surrounding environment, clutter, piles of whatever you may have if there are any, food sources must be removed, as well as closing up entrance points.

The problem with vehicles is that they build a nest somewhere difficult to remove, that urine odor will remain and its a green light for them, an invitation for new ones, and there will always be new ones.

I have a ford ranger that was damaged, it had to sit, it got mice, and until I took the interior apart down to the firewall, and cleaned everything, they would come back, there was a nest I missed for years. I'm pretty good at taking apart and putting back interiors because of these pesky little pains in the @ss's. I closed off places they could hide, heat ducts inside, air breather intake, and kept dryer sheets in it etc. they have never came back to that truck as of date, same with my idle F150, they've never been in the cab at least. Just spread out a bunch of dryer sheets, replace every six months or so.

Vehicles, you will need to install hardware cloth somewhere in the air intake tube if so equipped, firewall, any holes in the trunk floor pan, interior floor pans etc. They got into the trunk of my cobra mustang one year, factory hole under the spare, just above the fuel tank, all it took was some hardware cloth in that hole to stop them.

My daily driver, they got in to the fresh air intake along the firewall, I took it apart and cleaned it up, one died of natural causes in the nest and it reeked terrible when I turned the A/C on ! Hardware cloth blocked that entrance. If you are sloppy in a vehicle, food crumbs, any garbage will draw them here, in just one night being parked ! I forgot something, a muffin or some baked good one night sure enough the next morning there was on in there.

You can make a huge dent in them by trapping however you do it, make it an all out assault, I have done it here with snap traps, 2 dozen total in a short time. I have recently trapped 17 from above my front door, the traps are now clean, but I hear one in 1 of 3 attics still, so I can't close that hole, or there is another entrance. I do now want them chewing their way out, soon as its clear, 2 small pieces of hardware cloth should be all I need, but I do need to check for more places they can get in, seems this is the only one unless I missed something and the first night I started trapping, soon as the trap was set, I'd go sit down and it goes off, 8 times that first night. I cram bits of a aromatic granola (Cascadian Farms or something like that, should be in the grocery store) into that metal bait holder, it lasts and they are attracted to it like crazy, the least amount in there will work. it crumble and leaves bits to draw them to the trap, I do this outside. One drawback is it will kill small birds, so put the trap in a tunnel or under something a bird won't see, find or be able to get to.

Lastly, stay on the program of trapping, even when you think they will be gone, sooner or later you'll encounter them again. Doing the above will definitely help, some places are just haven for them, and that has to change, I've seen it here and between 3 idle trucks, wood piles, they can get out of hand.

Cats definitely can work, but here they are just not enough and I have seen some unreal mousers, up close, incredible what they can do sometimes. Problem here is they like voles too, but they are no problem, as they do not behave like deer or white footed mice, can't climb as well and rarely if ever get inside the house, I did have some years ago, found a container of old bird seed that was forgotten or left by someone other than I.

 

[Southern Ray]

Read all the responses. I have been setting traps and catching mice and rats.
I sometimes wonder if some of these are not resident rodents but opportunist from outside looking for a meal.

 

[John(OR)]

Found nest with babies in wife's car trunk got it cleaned up put moth balls in all they did was stink mice back next winter, somebody on this site said to put irish spring soap pieces
around, quartered up a bar some in trunk some under seats, mouse free for 5 or 6 years now
smells better than moth balls or mice.

 

[formenwhogrow]

C.A.T.S.

 

[Bryan inIowa]

Mint oil , dryer sheets, "Cab Fresh " . Poison bait stations .

 

[Charles in Aus.]

Grain producing areas of my state have periodic plagues of mice, literally tens of thousands , too many for cats and too hard to poison with so much other food around . The solution is a simple trap ; on a chair fasten a beer bottle horizontally with the neck hanging right over the edge, use a steel strap or old belt and screws , underneath that put a five gallon drum filled to quarter full with water . In the neck of the bottle place bait , peanut butter , soft cheese etc , butter the bottle to make it slippery .
Mouse smells bait, climbs chair, tries to reach bait , slips into the drum , then drowns . The advantage is that the bait is never consumed so no need to reset or re bait . Up to 50 mice will be caught before they can climb out over the dead .

 

[jeffcat]

Just an update. After reading this I put new bate and reset all of the traps. Came home last night and BINGO. Peanut butter, Bacon, Friskies cat food, and I always sprinkle a little Dyno-Vite on the trap. Mice just can't get enough of that stuff!!!! Try it.

 

[TomR Ont]

animal,

http://www.amazon.com/Bell-Howell-Electromagnetic-Ultrasonic-Auxiliary/dp/B000UXW9QK

Bell Howell Electromagnetic Ultrasonic Pest Repeller With Extra Auxiliary Outlet

These things WORK, I bought 3 at a yard sale, put them in the basement, didn't get my usual catch of 8-9 every fall.
You would be surprised where I found dog food, cat food, apple seeds and also mice bait, hidden in places that were not used. I don't find the mice turds like before I got them, I also noticed, not as many spiders hardly any now.

I now have 4 in the basement and 5 in the garage, don't even hear the mice or chipmunks running across the aluminum soffit overhang. Last batch were $2.50 ea. at a liquidators.

 

[egbinor]

Sounds interesting... Can you add a picture???

 

[Charlie in NY]

CATS as well.

In the barn, coops and workshop I use a Victor product called a "tin cat"

These hold a dozen mice and work great. Put some peanut putter on a piece of cardboard inside and check it weekly. I dump them into a 5 gallon pail with an inch of water in the bottom and use a stick to whomp the little buggers. If you just don't care - 3" of water and they drown eventually. I prefer a quicker end.