Eeeeek! a Mouse in My Kitchen! Don't Want to Use Standard Trap. Any Recomm?

Oh Lynn, that's terrible! What a scare!
I don't really have any recommendations on traps, but I would advise against using glue traps. They are extremely inhumane to the mouse, and they are not toddler friendly.
Good luck!

Hi mom sorry if it was me I would have to move I am so scared of those things!!! anyway get you some glue traps they will get stuck on the glue all you have to do is pick up the trap and put it in the trash EEEEEEEE!!!!! Good Luck!!!

There are several designs of live traps available. You put peanut butter or some other kind of bait inside and they crawl in, but can't get out. Then you can bring them to a forest preserve, or the river, and give them a whole new life!! Much more humane.

I've been hearing about these traps on tv that are white and cmpletely enclosed so you don't see anything. I don't know how well they work, but I would check into them and see. Check your local Walmart or like store and see what you can find.

Ick--we too have been battling mice now that the weather has changed. We've been finding them in our attic and have been using a snap-type trap that you don't have to look a the dead mouse once it's done it's job. There is one kind that is reusable (it's more of a rectangle shape) then there's one that is disposable (a disk shape) I've found both at Target or Walmart and they seem to work well. If you continue to have mice coming in the house, you'll have to figure out were they are getting in and seal that opening up. Good luck!

And don't worry too much about the cat...our cat got backed into a corner by a mouse and the mouse was hitting him on the nose with it's paw. It was funny to see but made us realize our cat was way too domesticated!

I hate mice. Ugh. I used to use the glue traps. I bought the bigger ones for rats instead of the little ones. These are the trays not the little triangle things. The triangles do not have enough glue so they get away. You put the traps against the wall since mice tend to run along the wall. But we also have a cat and since we put her in the basement, no mice at all. This is the time of year those things come in since it is getting colder. You can use the traps since they are pretty safe and you just toss it out. Tip: If you get glue on your hands, baby oil gets it off. Another thing you could try to do is get the cat to stay more in the lower levels of the ouse for periods of time each day. They can smell dogs and cats and usually stay away.

I too don't really have a great recommendation for traps, but another mouse story. In Sept. I went to get clothes out of my CLEAN laundry basket for my son to wear the next day and a mouse jumps out at me!!!!!!!!!! I started SCREAMING!!!!!!!!!!! My husband and father-in-law came running in the house. I was so offened that that little thing picked my CLEAN laundry to be in!!! We made our living space like Fort Knox. We have every kind of trap in all spaces imaginable. I won't go in our crawl-space anymore. I feel for you cause I don't know how you avoid your own kitchen. Best of luck to you. P.S. My dog did NOTHING to help me. I was yelling "Kendall get the mouse". No luck. I guess it's just a myth!!!

We had mice last fall (we live in the country) and we tried the 'houses' that entice the mice to go into them and then cna't get out. All that did was give a mouse a place to go and have her babies. Not sure how she got out? But those never worked for us and we tried 2 kinds. We then tried the 'traditional' ones but that were plastic instead of wood. It caught one mouse but then it let another go. We also tried the sticky traps which caught one or two mice. We also used the bait (poisonous) and after using that, have not seen one in the house since. I guess that's not an answer for you but just know that you may need to try a bunch of different things to get it to work!

Lynn,

I don't have a suggesion for you as far as a mouse trap, but I did want to say thanks for the story it put a smile on my face, I love your cat's reaction. Good Luck!!

A.

Hi Lynn we had this problem once and we got this paper that's real sticky and once the mouse gets on it they can't get off and they die. It can be purchase in the section for pest control in most store or call someone in to get rid of the pest. Because if you seen one, chance are there are more around!!

Put mouse glue traps in your garage. It helps and this way they will get trapped before the come in.Then alls you have to do is throw them and the trap in the garbage. Good luck!! I would of freaked out also!!!

go to ace hardware and purchase a black box electric mouse trap
(sorry i don't know the name). it it battery operated. The mouse runs in and a small light flashes when you have caught the mouse. the trap zaps the mouse dead. you dump the mouse out and you are all set to catch another mouse. i believe it is about $30, but you will never need to buy another trap again. let us know what you decide to do and what works.

Our exterminator recommends keeping bait in your house 100% of the time, not just when you see the mice. The bait we use are little white bags that you can buy at Home Depot. Just punch a hole in the bag with a pencil and put the entire bag (don't scatter the pellets, leave them all in the bag) in the hot spots. The hot spots are behind the fridge, under the dishwasher, under the kitchen sink, behind the stove and behind the washer & dryer. And remember, if you can stick a pencil through a hole, a mouse can fit through it-so fill all those holes! Good luck!

Hi, you can look on-line for a company/ store selling Humane" traps, but you had better plan on driving those little mice (yes, plural... they say you never have just one mouse!"), because they will find their way right back in from where they came. A good "bait" is a raisin with a dab of peanut butter on it. Good luck. (eek!)

Oy! We have a mouse (mice?) too...yuck! I tried glue traps...the next morning it had been dragged across the room - had fur and paw prints on it, but no actual mouse!! We have since resorted to the old fashioned snap trap. We caught one within hours of putting it out (use peanut butter as bait). I hate it...but I hate having mice even more :-)

Good luck

Here's a cute story for you. First of all its that time of year so my cat did catch one in our finished basement which my husband told me and we think she played with it and scared it to death. Anyway one day the cat and I are watching tv on the couch lol, I turn around and at the top of the stair in the frontroom is a small mouse. I start sreaming Bailey do something well anyway I pich her up and put her next to the mouse they just look at each other like no big deal for quit some time, anyway I took matters in my own hands got a big glass from the kitchen covered the mouse put a plate underneath to keep it captured in the glass a put it outside. So cat stats this year Bailey one and Mommy one!!!!!!!!!! Have a good day

I'm not sure what to use to catch the ones in your house but I have a solution to help keep them away. Use peppermint extract. You can get this from a cake decorating store. I called the one in my town and was asked if I was using it to keep mice away. I was told that you didn't need to use much because it is so concentrated. Just put some on a cotton ball and place it around any hole you could find or think they were coming in at. After doing that, they didn't come in. Behind my house is a farm so I have a lot of mice and the neighborhood cats leave them for me sometimes, which they wouldn't though.

I'm really surprised at the responses for glue traps, I get they(mice) are a terrible nusance but they suffer tremendously with glue traps (ie tearing off limbs, suffocating, etc)use the quick, simple and humane old snap traps with peanut butter on them. Ask a friend or neighbor to come by once a day and check the traps for you. That's what I did. I fortunately have nice neighbors he came everday for 2 weeks, the mice had come in because I had gutted the house. Yes it's awful but they die quickly whereas the glue traps are agonizing for them and you too especially your son if he should hear the awful screams that come from them when they get stuck.
Good Luck in an awful situation!!

V.

Lynn
I have had mice on and off because of where we live. I now have a couple of those sonic noise things that only mice hear it drove them out quick. I purchased them from Menards they are pricey but much better then traps or posion. Good Luck!
J.
PS If you have caught only one or two there are probably 4 times that many or more.

Hi, Lynn. I have a way to do this , but if the cat doesn't want to participate, you may have to succumb to the trap:(. We had a mouse in our garage several years ago and got this idea from a handyman. Take a large empty mayonaise jar. Put a piece of bread or cheese in the jar smothered in peanut butter. Put it on the floor. When you hear the mouse scurry in (could put a tiny jingle bell in the jar so you know) call the cat in the room. If the cat still does nothing let the mouse just eat the food and then put more peanut butter in the jar for later once the mouse leaves. Hopefully he will come back later for more. Instead of the bell next to the pb, put in a trap. At least you tried the cat first. Once the trap activates, close up the jar with the poor little mouse inside. Poor little thing.... Glad I haven't seen any mice for years! Good luck.

I feel your pain on this very subject. We just recently bought a very old house and a few weeks ago I caught the tell tale streak of brown out of the corner of my eye and since then have been seeing a few different ones fairly often. We bought the black boxes that catch the mice alive and caught two that way. It's now been a week or longer without a mouse in a trap, but we're still spotting them. Funny you should write that your cat isn't catching them since I've actually told my husband we should maybe get a cat (even thought neither of us like them all that much).

All my neighbors around us have similarly old houses and one piece of advice I hear over and over is to make sure you have no cracks/holes in your foundation where a mouse could get in. It doesn't do much good to catch them if they keep getting in. The most common mice in houses are field mice and they need only a miniscule hole to squeeze into. Yuck. Even just thinking about how many places they can get in and then how many places they can hide in gives me the creeps. Incidentally they can also spread bacteria and chew on electrical wiring and they can have a litter of babies once every 6 to 8 weeks!

We're going to try a few more types of traps and give a good check to the foundation before we call in pest control since they are so expensive. I'll let you know if we find a sure fire method.

I feel your pain. I "think" we are mice free for the moment. I have my own horror story and my freak moment, but I won't share that with you. I found the wall plugins work..but, i also have the glue traps. I also bought one electronic mouse trap. i put some peanut butter in it and once they enter,they get zapped. it is covered so you don't see anything. then, the light will show you if you caught one. we also bought poison, but from a nasty little experience, beware cuz they will just die anywhere. i recommend getting plastic containers as well. good luck!

We had mice at our old house. I got something online called a "smart mouse trap". It looks like a see through green house. you put a cracker (I used the cheese/peanut butter kind) in a slot and it traps the mouse as it goes after the cracker. You can then take the mouse very far away and drop it off in the woods. It worked really well for us. We have cats and at the time one was a really good mouser-I was trying to avoid the disgusting scene of finding a mouse on my pillow. This worked well for us. You do have to find out how they're getting in and unfortunately they can squeeze through a quarter sized hole! Oh- we tried peppermint oil as well, which works, except when the mouse is already in the house, it'll just move to a different part of the house :) Whatever you choose, use a good bait. Either peanut butter or sunflower seeds work really well. Good luck. K

When I discovered I had a mouse in the house, I knew that it had been on my countertop near the kitchen sink :-(
Before I went to bed for the night, I filled the sink with water and it was drowned in the sink in the morning.

We bought these things from Menard's that you plug into the wall. It makes a noise that drives the mice away (you can't hear it though). We only saw one mouse one time, so it must've worked. I also got plastic bins for all the dried foods that were out (cereals, bread, etc.) and I pitched any open bags in case they got to them. Make sure when you clean, you pay close attention too because you will see the small dark droppings around your house. Once you don't see them anymore, then you should be good.

Good luck!

I think the best thing to do is to put mouse bait out, like you said, behind the fridge, or other descreet places. The idea is that the mice will eat it and it makes them really thirsty so they go outside in search of water and die outside. At least that what they told me years ago when I had mice. I never saw any dead ones, so hopefully that's really what happens. There's no way I could do traps either. Yuck! You can buy it and put it out yourself. A-Alert Exterminators will sell it to you (or at least they used to) They're on the northside around Damen & Grace ###-###-####.

My friends recently had a huge mice problem (lots of mice - not huge mice :) ) They got something that you plug into the wall and it emits a low pitch noise - worked like a charm and they haven't seen a mouse since.

Hi Lynn - We twice lived in an apartment where it was truly infested with mice - I was catching 5-6 mice A DAY! One thing I found out was that you don;t want to use poison. The mice will screech in the walls while they are dying, & you will find ddead mice in unexpected places - one was in my daughter's toybox! - and if you don;t find them in time, they MELT, and in my case, they melted on my favorite pair of boots in a closet, so I had to throw the boots away.

Get the glue traps. Put them behind appliances or anywhere you find droppings - usually in warm places like under the fridge or under the dryer - and you will catch them. When you find a full trap, take a grocery bag & cover the trap, that way if the mouse is still alive it will suffocate. Then put on a pair of rubber gloves & pick up the bag & carry it outside to the trash. Sometimes I would just fling it out the window if it was inconvenient to take to the trash & pick it up the next day.

Also, make sure there is no food left out on counters, even a bowl of fruit, and especially pet food. Enclose all your flour, sugar etc. Mice love grain. Mice need food & water to survive. Make sure there is no water out at night.

Be vigilant & make sure any openings in the walls, etc and sealed with that expanding foam stuff that comes in cans.

Happy hunting! LOL!

Lynn, I know you said you don't want the snap traps. We had orkin for a while when we had a house with a huge lot. mice all the time. anyway they gave us these sticky traps. the issue with thos is the animals that get caught on them make squeaky noises and chew off their paws etc. very inhumane. if your going to catch them the snap traps are best. they are quick and you hear them when they catch something. good luck
S.
ps: my neighbor had those sonic things. they did no good at all

Just caught a mouse in my kitchen a few nights ago. We had a mouse (mice?) several years ago before our son was born. I used the poison. It worked, but the mouse died somewhere below our pantry, but above our basement ceiling. You could smell it, but couldn't see it. I had to use an air freshener for weeks! This time around, I was afraid to use poison b/c of my son. He can get into anything. I didn't want to use glue traps b/c they are so inhumane. We bought the snap traps, but these are enclosed, so you don't have to see the mouse once it is caught. A flag comes up. We put several out w/peanut butter. No luck. Next night, same thing. No luck. Finally I bought more of those types of traps plus some glue traps. All together I had about 7 traps out in a very small kitchen, 6 snap types, and one glue trap. We caught the mouse in the glue trap (put peanut butter on that too). I hated that we resorted to that, but I can't have a mouse in the house! We have one of those plug in things. I don't think it really works or at least not very well. I live in an 85 year old house. I am sure there are plenty of cracks and crevices. My husband & I are working on filling in cracks any way we can. Good luck to you!

We had mice in our old house. And we tried the regular trap and the ones with the glue. We found the glue ones didn't work at all. And the standard ones they would steal the bait and run off. A very wise professor of mine once said "You have to be smarter than your prey." And I glued pieces of dog food to the regular traps and the i started catching them.

I know that you don't want to use the regular traps but I would rather them be dead than be suffering on a glue trap.

We had mice about 5 years ago that came in through the basement in the Fall. They got into the drywall and entered the kitchen from the wall behind the dishwasher. Anyway, the best thing we found was DE-CON (spelling?). We have two dogs and four children, but were able to place the boxes along the top of half walls in the basement, under stove, refrig and dishwasher. Totally eliminated the problem (if you saw them at all they were completely flat...dehydrated?) so disposal was easy. Have never had them back....each fall I put new boxes just in the basement where they moved in to begin with. Good Luck!

Yikes! I just had the same experience - for the first time in 16 yrs. in my house I saw a mouse running across the family room - the night of my birthday no less! Happy Birthday to me - I screamed, not quietly! I bought the "hotel" type traps to put in my kitchen, right by a spot I saw the mouse ducking into, and the next time I saw the mouse, it ignored the trap, hopped on top of it, and scrampered away. At that point I pulled out the regular traps, even though the thought of them grossed me out. That worked - which is good, because over the next couple of days I had 5 mice running around (and killed) - 4 by the regular traps and one by me, with a broom. Trust me, after being freaked no stop for a couple of days, we'll be able to do it too. Sorry, but my experience was that the "invansive" traps just don't work. One suggestion, check your attached garage. I found a bag of bird seed opened in ours, which I'm sure was the source of the problem. If you find something, clean everything very, very, carefully because you don't know where they've hoarded. A week after I cleaned my husband found bird seed in a pair of old gym shoes he keeps in the garage for yardwork, and I find some at the bottom of a 35 g. garbage can we use to store the kids' bat bags. Good luck!