I hate those mices to pieces!

cootambear

sirbrainy wrote: »

When I was about 13 or 14 we had mice in the attic. My job was to climb up & set the back snappers.

Often I would only find a gnawed tail or foot, the mouse's mates had eaten the rest of the body!

Very effective mouse killers, though.

more likely that they had chewed their feet off to get away

sirbrainy

Chilling thought! I usecd to find some backbones as well though.

Suzy_M

I'd recommend 'Big Cheese Quick Click' mouse traps for a good 'clean kill every time. Have tried the old fashioned sort in tandem with these and the Big Cheese were far more efficient at trapping and killiing them in one quick move. - And far less hazardous to your fingers!
If you want leave the bodies in an open area plenty of larger birds will enjoy them.

cootambear

cootambear wrote: »

more likely that they had chewed their feet off to get away

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/arts/127-Hours-Tells-True-Tale-of--Climber-Who-Severed-Arm--108730449.html

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

cootambear wrote: »

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/arts/127-Hours-Tells-True-Tale-of--Climber-Who-Severed-Arm--108730449.html

Would be a bit shocked to find one of them in a mousetrap in my back garden.

moonpixiewitch

Personally if the mice are outside , I wouldn't worry about trying to trap them/ kill them as you will never win that battle! Maybe being selective about what you grow in the way of veg (peas are a particular favourite of mice) and washing everything before you eat it would be a better way to go . There was a humane pest control featured on HFW River cottage some years ago , where they used crystals and "asked" the mice to leave nicely !!
I thought I had mice in my garden , I live in a new house built on a meadow , after a little googling I am now almost certain they are field vole holes not mice . Although they might damage my lawn and some shrubs , I am happy enough to let them be as I am the invader in their habitat !:o

w50nky

I once caught a mouse in the chicken wheat feed bins which my daughter had left the lid off after feeding the hens. I caught the mouse live and was not allowed to dispatch it in front of my daughter. I took the mouse in a bucket to release in the paddock whilst my daughter looked on. On releasing the mouse (which probably could not believe its luck) it was promptly chased by the hens which had followed the bucket with interest and torn to pieces!
Daughter was shocked to say the least.

miss_angie1

This is more of an indoor remedy but mice cannot stand the smell of pure essential peppermint oil. Saturate cotton wool ball with it and place it where you know they are hiding. In your case under the shed. It got rid of my problem immediately. You have to refresh the balls every couple of months when the scent wears off. Good Luck!!

nopot2pin

miss_angie1 wrote: »

This is more of an indoor remedy but mice cannot stand the smell of pure essential peppermint oil. Saturate cotton wool ball with it and place it where you know they are hiding. In your case under the shed. It got rid of my problem immediately. You have to refresh the balls every couple of months when the scent wears off. Good Luck!!

I wonder if growing mint (in pots) would help .?.?.?

w50nky

As a child I used to be paid a "Black bullet" sweet by my dad for every mouse that I caught in the greenhouse. Not having many traps I used glass milk bottles set at approx 30 degrees from vertical with some peanut butter spread on bread in the bottom. These were placed in the soil around the tomato plants. The mice could get into the bottle but could not scale the slippery sides. As the mice - sometimes 2 or more in the same bottle, were caught live they had to be disposed of - usually around the park or beck near to where we lived. Having read that some mice can find their way home I now wonder if I had caught the same mouse more than once.