Please help me figure this mouse problem

bui

Sorry if this is in the wrong section.

I need help. I am terrified of mice, or most animals, I don't know why but I am

I've lived in my flat for over 5 years and now suddenly we have a mouse problem.

Where do I start. We live on the 2nd floor, so 2 floors below us, no one above us, flat. A few years ago they did some insulation thing on our flat roof. End of June it seemed like some creatures moved in. We could hear heavy steps above us in the living room in the evenings. Put it down to birds.

Then one day we found droppings in the cupboard next to the cooker in the kitchen. We are generally clean, wipe down surfaces and put away food people but in this one cupboard there was one open pack of nuts, not even small ones. It had been there ages (I was away from home a lot and so was DH so not sure why it decided to come then). Contrary to most posts on the net which say they come during cold weather, it was very hot during those days.

We cleaned up and threw it all away and any food that was not in a tub, we stored.

The steps above could still be heard at times then sort of went away but one day (kitchen and living room doors were open) a little mouse walked into the living room. My DH was sitting near the door and when he got up an exclaimed what this animal was thinking he was doing, it ran back and we couldn't find where it went.

We then put glue traps in every place possible in the hallway that leads to all doors but also kept doors closed but never found one mouse. These were effective at my parents house (London and neighbours two doors away who have a massive problem so the odd one that wandered was caught). Didn't work.

We thought the problem went away and the sounds above us seemed to have stopped (although they could have moved onto the the other two neighbours on the side of us, not side by side but angled). Then one day we heard scratching from the wall between the living room and bedroom. We thought it was in the corner of our bedroom. Went to look and nothing there. Then realised it was in the (let me try and explain this):
We rent from a HA and wherever there is wiring and some piping, it in not hidden in the wall like people who own their homes. The wiring and piping is against the wall, and then that is covered by some long rectangle boxing that covers the wiring/piping. Maybe so if there is every a problem they don't have to rip the wall apart and only need to take off this covering. It is thin (enough to cover the pipe or wiring). In the bedroom there are two pipes next to each other from ceiling to floor and then the thing covering it so it must have been stuck in there and scratching away. It sounded so loud from the living room. After a long time it went away.

We put a glue trap by it in case there was a hole we couldn't see but nothing came about.

Then one day I decided to bake cookies which of course has a lot of smell. When my DH got back from work early one day, he ate then went to take his plate to the kitchen and at 6:22pm he saw a mouse scatter back towards the cabinet next to the cooker (in the gap between it). Once again we put down glue traps but nothing.

Then one day we were tidying and clearing out and ended up eating late after 9pm. I went to warm food in the microwave and a few seconds later you hear massive thumping/scratching at the wall behing the microwave (which is next to the cooker). DH stayed to see if it woild emerge but it didn't.

Environmental health were called and he did a quick job of putting poison down in various places and went. I thought we would get help with covering holes but that was left to us. It seems impossible to do that as there are so many holes in this flat.

The other day my DH asked to bake cookies again so I said OK. I thought the mouse or more will come out of hiding and follow the smell like last time. I kept telling DH it would happen. Then later on he looked under the sink and there was one dying from the poison. It was a small mouse. Imagine a L shape, the sink is on the long part of the L and the cooker, microwave and fridge are on the smaller part of the L. Both are outside walls.

DH for some reason decided to move the fridge, I did tell him before but he chose to that day and there was some droppings behind it. Then he saw that one of those wire/pipe coverings was behind the fridge but it didn't lead to a socket like the others, or the floor but sort of stopped a foot from the floor. It seems like they come from above us in the insulation, came down that empty pipe/wire covering and was hiding behind the fridge and emerging sometimes. He blocked it up for now. But I am thinking the mouse that was behind the fridge and the mouse that was under the sink were two different mice, although I don't know as I didn't see the one behind the fridge and there is probably a massive family as the first sighting was end of June/beginning of July I think. How would it get to under the sink? I don't understand Is it coming from the insulation in the flat roof above us, or also coming from below us? We have a big bin on the ground floor that has a key access and DH saw one run out from there so I assume other neighbours have this problem. I remember the neighour below seeing one a few years ago and not catching it but asked me if I had seen any which I hadn't but it seems like no one is the type to report in this block or use traps.

We've bought some foam expanding thing and ordered mesh wire and will be getting brillo pads but can anyone explain the theory of them coming from the insulation above? As it is not a attic, no one can go there and see and then kill them off so I am thinking they will keep breeding there and visiting various flats and keep trying to come to ours especially when we cook or bake something where the smell might be stronger and it's been so hot so the cold isn't a explanation.

Sorry for the long post but we really to tidy, wipe down, keep minimal and it hurts that these animals can take over and think they can roam. I have been hearing the same walking sounds (heavy too but I'm thinking where there are mice there are no rats) above my bedroom ceiling in the corner and it really upsets me.

rich13348

I thought glue traps were inhumane and made illegal?

srm1

rich13348 wrote: »

I thought glue traps were inhumane and made illegal?

Might be worth checking this as they are available everywhere.

The original spring traps are cheap and work very well when baited with peanut butter or chocolate. Wear gloves when the time comes.

OP - don't wish to alarm you but by the time you have seen 1 mouse - expect to see a few more.
Certainly seal up all of the entry points around cables and pipework - these little blighters require the smallest of holes to get through.

Happy hunting....& hope you get this sorted out soon.

elsien

I've had mice a few times. They use the central heating pipes to move around. As far as I could work out they were based in the attic, with an outpost of nest building under the bathroom floor, and heading down to the kitchen when hungry. The only room I didn't find signs in were my bedroom, thankfully.
Get some spring traps - the glue ones are cruel. Mice run along the skirtings so the traps need to be at right angles so they run across them. Put them where ever you see droppings - behind the fridge, behind the cooker, under the sink, under furniture, where ever the runs are. Carry on cleaning up as soon as you've cooked. And expect it to take a while - took me a couple of months the first time they got in. And don't be surprised if another lot turn up next year - the traps in my attic are now permanent fixtures.

Edit - and remember where you've put them. They really hurt if you stick a finger in the one under the bookcase by mistake.

Norman_Castle

rich13348 wrote: »

I thought glue traps were inhumane and made illegal?

They are inhumane and should be illegal. A friend used one and found a mouses leg on it. The mouse had bitten its own leg off to escape.

http://www.humanepestcontroltips.com/sticky-glue-mouse-traps.shtml

rum1

Find out where they are getting and put some wire wool in the gaps they cant eat through it like they will expanding foam. I would also get environment health back out

maninthestreet

'Heavy steps' - do you have a mice problem or an elephant problem?

stator

Sonic deterrents work well. One in each room.

jamesd

rich13348 wrote: »

I thought glue traps were inhumane and made illegal?

Nothing illegal about them. However once you've caught the mouse you have to treat it humanely, which means killing it with minimal stress and pain. Like say putting the glue trap into a container and within a container inside that pouring some vinegar onto baking soda to produce carbon dioxide to rapidly kill it.

jamesd

Romax Rodent Seal can be a convenient sealant to use since it's flexible initially and has embedded steel pieces that mice can't chew through. You'll need a standard sealant gun if you don't already have one.

For mouse poisons you should ideally have lots of different bait stations every few feet, placed along the skirting boards or wherever you see mouse droppings or signs of chewed things. Bait stations are to protect children and pets from the bait.

The bait is what you should rely on to do most of the killing. Ideally you'll find and seal all of the entry points. Glue traps are a fallback to protect food that might be ruined if the mice get to it.

It's very unlikely that you only have one or two mice. One or two dozen is more likely even though you only see one from time to time.

There are baits that have fluorescent dyes in them that will show up the trails made by mouse urine as they move around when you shine black light on them. This can be useful to track where the mice are getting in and identify the best places for poison or traps.

pineapple

OP I have just moved into an old cottage with a zillion possible entry points and suddenly it is mouse city.
I already had a humane trap and have caught two small ones with that. I released them as far away as possible and across a river. I also have some killer traps but so far they have been able to lift the bait on those without springing the trap.But at least they are usually a quick kill and kinder than the glue ones, And with the poison ones you don't want them crawling away to die in some difficult to get to spot.
I have dug out my sonic repellers. They worked in my last house. Plug them in where you hear scratching behind the wall. Oh and spray your worksurface with something like eucalyptus or peppermint.
I hate the damn things. Even if you are not terrified of them it's not nice having one suddenly scuttle past you. Plus they are a source of disease.