Storage and Mice

moneybunny123

To cut a long story short, we'll be moving twice in the forthcoming year. We're moving (temporarily) into a house that we previously rented out, and then getting it on the market straight as soon as we've redecorated and moved in. We'll then move again to the house that we want to stay at.

However, to limit packing/unnpacking, we've packed a lot of things that we rarely use into boxes and plan on storing these in the garage and leaving them there, unpacked, until we move to where we want to stay. But I'm worried that all these lovely, warm, cardboard boxes will attract mice.

I don't really want to kill any mice, but would like to deter them.

Any suggestions - traps or deterrents that work?!

poppysarah

Don't put food in the boxes.

Put some mouse traps on the floor but you would have to check them regularly.

moneybunny123

Oooh, traps I'm really reluctant to use them. Not sure I could cope knowing I've killed them (I'm a big softy when it comes to animals)

casper_g

Do you have some reason to think the house the boxes will be in has mice? Every garage and loft in the country probably has a stack of cardboard boxes, and 99% of them aren't housing mice. I'd be more worried about the cardboard getting damp if I were you, especially if they're there over the winter.

googler

moneybunny123 wrote: »

Oooh, traps I'm really reluctant to use them. Not sure I could cope knowing I've killed them (I'm a big softy when it comes to animals)

Use live traps and release them far away from the store.

Don't place the cardboard boxes on the floor - raise them up on racking or similar - don't leave food in the boxes.

ToriF

I bought humane traps and they worked.

Basically the mouse goes in and when he gets to the end with the peanut butter (very good for attracting mice) .. his weight tips it over so it shuts behind him.

I remember taking one to the end of the garden once though, letting him out, and then watching him run back down the garden to the house! :rotfl:

Werdnal

ToriF wrote: »

I bought humane traps and they worked.

Basically the mouse goes in and when he gets to the end with the peanut butter (very good for attracting mice) .. his weight tips it over so it shuts behind him.

I remember taking one to the end of the garden once though, letting him out, and then watching him run back down the garden to the house! :rotfl:

Humane traps are only humane if you are prepared to check them every couple of hours. Mice can die of stress if trapped too long, and they have such a high metabolism, they can literally starve if they do not eat more or less constantly. Told this by the Wildlife officer at our local Forestry Commission site, who regularly traps rodents for study, and he checks his traps every hour and will never leave them set overnight.

You can get plug in electronic deterant devices - never used one myself, but my inlaws had one to keep the neighbour's cats out of the garden, and seemed to work well.

antrobus

moneybunny123 wrote: »

...I don't really want to kill any mice, but would like to deter them ...

I believe that the traditional solution is to get a cat.

GlynD

antrobus wrote: »

I believe that the traditional solution is to get a cat.

Ah but then you have to keep coming back to feed the cat because a regular supply of meeces isn't guaranteed. Otherwise you have a starved cat on your conscience and the RSPCA on your back.

moneybunny123

antrobus wrote: »

I believe that the traditional solution is to get a cat.

We have one but I don't think it has keys to our garage

RuthnJasper

ToriF wrote: »

I bought humane traps and they worked.

Basically the mouse goes in and when he gets to the end with the peanut butter (very good for attracting mice) .. his weight tips it over so it shuts behind him.

I remember taking one to the end of the garden once though, letting him out, and then watching him run back down the garden to the house! :rotfl:

Peanut butter is a good tip. Also (I work in the Countryside Management Service), the little rodent folk REALLY go for chocolate. Seriously. And not just the little lady mice with their mouse "periods" either!

Good luck with the problem. xx