Mice!!! Eeeek!!

We had a rat problem a few years back (IN THE HOUSE) it was terrible. What finally worked for us was the simplest thing. Dogfood. We hot-glued a Gatorade lid to a rat trap and in it we put peanut butter and stuck dog-food to it. Then we found the hole they were coming in and we closed it up. It was the only thing that consistently attracted the varmints. If you don't mind emptying the traps, this is the way to go.

I grew up on a farm and the best thing we used to get rid of the mice was a mouse trap the snap kind with bacon tied to it. They have the sticky kind too but they don't work as well. You can use the poison but then you risk of them stinking up the place. Good Luck

Hey Margaret! What we have used in the past and has never failed us, is this stuff called bar bait that you can get at a feed store.....it comes in a bag that has 4 to 6 bars in it and is fairly inexpensive, i think like 6-7 dollars.....all you do is break it into pieces where you see "evidence" and the mice will eat on it and go dehydrate and never stink......very convenient if you have a barn/well house like we do....

Good luck in your adventure!
check out my profile......bet we have a lot in common!

The best thing to do is to clean out the storage unit. Get rid of the nest, because there's probably one in there. It'll usually be a whole bunch of papers, plastic, grass, etc. all bundled up. Then, seal all the holes you can see with the foam type sealant (not sure what it's called), but they sell it at Home Depot or Lowes. Then, you can put some glue traps in there. You may not see anymore mice. Not even on the glue traps. The key is to seal all the holes! That's exactly what the exterminator will do. If you do not want to clean out the storage, call the exterminator. I used Accurate Pest Control and they cleaned out my storage... showed me the nest and sealed all the holes. I never saw them again.

You are a HOOT! We did the green bomb clay things...I didn't really see what it was, but hubby put them in the attic. They are suppose to be the best at getting rid of the rodents. No catch & release here either. I figure it's survival of the fittest around my house...have fun!

Hello Margaret:
I too, have just been informed of mice in my carport area., and one made a nest in the air filter in my van! Am using one of the stick-to pads near the engine (not near anything that would affect one's breathing).
I plan to order the Rid-X electronic wall "things" that are supposed to help rid the spiders, roaches and mice. I'm not bothered by mice in the house, but am the spiders occasionally. Perhaps this would be a solution for you too. Good luck! F.

At Lowe's or Wal-Mart you can buy mice killers. I can not remember the brand right now, but they come in a box with several wedge shape boxes with the posion in them. It works very good, we use it. This is a very clean way of killing them. You may put them in the attic also, because they may have gotten up there as well and you do not know about it yet.
You are smart getting rid of them, because they mulitply very fast.

Try throwing moth balls under the shed, it will get rid of all creatures and since children or animals are not there it is reasonably safe. Just make sure that if children or any pets are going to be around, that the moth balls are not accessible.
Hope it works.
Blessings,
D.

My neighbor had rats. I used Tomcat ready to use place pacs for rats and mice. They're paper packets that you place outside. The rats ate them every time and died. You will have dead bodies though - if so you might have a smell issue for a couple of days, unless you find the body and throw it away. The smell does go away - I would just use a ziplock bag as a glove inside out to pick up the rat and then seal it. You might throw in some moth balls to help with the smell - or vinegar. Then put it in your outside trash. I always placed the pace where I could see if it was missing or not. Then would add new ones until the pacs were left alone and I knew there were no more rats.

HI Margaret,
they make lots of thing so be careful there is 1 thingi use i live in the country it is bars they come wrap in a see through package its called mouse and rat killer it is usally 3 or6 bars you can break them thats easy through a few pieces in the biiuildind and someout side ,an under it check about a week they should have eaten it then there gone no smell no mess no nothing GONE
good luck L.

well hmmmm...Typically I would tell you to leave out 2% boric acid which is safe for houshold pets and children as it's main cause of death is dehydration...but as they live outside I am fairly certain that they can find a ready source of water...

You might try it and see if some of them die off...If it appears to be working put more out...keep in mind the in the texas heat their little rotting carcasses are going to stink to high heaven for about a weak or so...

Try some moth balls on the outside of the shed.

I have had excellent luck with the glue traps. Put an oreo or something in the middle. I've seen three mice to a trap before. They are really unbelievable. They catch them and quick!!

Good luck!

The bait packs at retail stores have worked for me. You'll just need to dispose of them when you find them in your yard. Yech!

Dear Margaret;
There is such a simple answer to this>>>pick up a stray cat!
Put water out for the cat but no food!
Since you also have an open field behind your property the
cat will serve as one other thing>>>a snake repellent!
Make sure it's a mongrol cat, one that is smart enough to make
it on it's own and has a MA in street smarts!
Best,
B. C

I urge you not to put rat poison there! Any neighborhood cat will think that it is a treat for them and will die! I put it very carefully once and my dog got hold of a little piece that the mice moved into an open area (I placed it where the dog would not go) and he almost died! It was awful. You may not care about your neighbors pets and you may not be aware of whether or not there are any cats in the area, but do you want to be responsible for that?? The only safe way, is to place traps under the shed, or in a pile of wood where a cat couldn't get to it, you will have to dispose of the mice afterwards, but it is fast and humane. beyond that you would need an exterminator. but we took care of a small colony in our house and attic (once they are in the attic, they are getting in the house!) and we ha rats not mice, they were living in a pile of wood out in the back yard, seemed harmless enough until they got in the attic! best of luck!

are you interested in getting an outside cat? i grew up on a large ranch and we had cats in the barn....never had a problem with mice in the house!

Ugh, i recently had the same problem. They were living in a crack in the concrete between our house and the patio.
Here's the real deal. You have to clean your shed out and try not to push anything against the walls. Clean it out with a strong soap or preferably bleach. Mice will follow a scent trail and are attracted to well protected areas like sheds and wood piles. Plus, if it's clean in there, you will see if they are still there by droppings etc.
I used vitamin d12 and it worked. Glue traps work well also.
Really after i removed everything from the perimeter of my house, they were gone.
Make sure all the vents on your roof and to your attic are sealed, so they don't get in your house.

I'll be interested to see your responses. We cannot have a cat due to my son's allergies, but the addition of an outdoor cat has dramatically reduced the number of mice (and the evidence of them being there!) that we see around our home.

D-Con is the poison of choice around here, it is also what another person was trying to think of further down that comes in yellow wedge shaped boxes. be sure to leave a little plate of water out for them to drink after they eat the bait, i think that is what activates it and you don't want them coming in your house to look for water and die. I would also suggest putting this all outside of the shed not in it, maybe under the edge and you can also put a little peanut butter on a knife and smear it on the inside underneath of the box to attract the little boogers. best whihes...we are fighting them right now because the city finally made the next door neighbor clean her yard and the mice ran this way, go figure.

PEANUT BUTTER!!! Crazy I know but when I managed an apartment property and had to deal with field mice I immediately called the exterminator. Soon to find out, he set out traps w/PEANUT BUTTER to catch the lil'suckers...and it worked!!

All the best to you,
Caroline

I have caught a couple of mice in my house and I bought the "sticky traps". Of course, since your problem is outside you will probably end up with all sorts of insects stuck to them but who cares as long as you get rid of them. The mice will get stuck to them and then you can just dispose of them however. It is a little "stomach turning" when you go to throw out the trap with a little mouse stuck to it trying to get up. I tried a couple of other traps too but that one worked the best!! Good Luck.

Have you considered getting a cat? I would adopt a big kitten from a shelter (young enough to learn where its home is and big enough to get the mice) and they are fixed so they wont attract other cats or run off. We have a lot of land and have three and they keep the mice, rats, snakes, and any other little critter away. We do feed them quite a bit of cat food too, just mentioning that cause some people think if you feed them they wont be hungry enough to get mice but its instinct. Good luck with whatever you go with.