Mouse/rats in the kitchen (Page 6)

Zanjan: YW. I should mention mouse intelligence.

Our lawns here aren't city grass; they're fast-growing, tall, natural wild grasses peppered with dandelions. We never water these; if dried up and brown, they come back green with first rain, overnight. Seriously, like magic; and can grow waist-high if permitted.

This grass can't be mowed as often as needed because it stays rain/dew fresh for a long time. Mice gather in the grass. They hear the lawn tractor coming and feel vibrations but won't leave the taller grass area to scoot away over the shorter grass. If you're doing the last strip, they won't flush and run off like a sensible creature so, the tractor chops them up too ......unless there's a gopher hole in that patch.

Meanwhile, some mice can be smart in other ways where suspicion and escape is their specialty. I find those both frustrating and endearing. They're the sassy kind, who will sit in the room, staring right at me, then run over my feet or across the top of my shoulder and down my arm to get where they're going. You give up and call it your pet mouse but the moment you do that, giving it a name, they get killed. ~sigh~

Corwin: Wow. That's interesting stuff.

I was born in Alberta, but haven't been out that way since I was a kid, so I don't remember much about the province... other than camping in the Rockies in the Summer. I've lived in Ontario for most of my life.

It's an interesting perspective to learn about other provinces from the standpoint of rodent/vermin wildlife. Eight different species! That's kind of neat.


And my wife and I tried the bubblegum method. We've recently had a new rat visitor, and a problematic one. It picks the traps clean without setting them off, it seems to be immune to the poison pellets, and it's heard but never seen for more than a split second (so I can't get it dialed in on the red-dot sights of my air-rifle).
For me, that was the trifecta of rat extermination... if none of those three methods worked, I'd throw my hands up in failure.

So, we picked up some Hubba Bubba, and left a few pre-chewed pieces on the stove... and they were gone an hour later. We're leaving a few more out as I write this.
AWESOME tip!

Zanjan: I guess you'll know it worked if you start smelling the stench of death. Indoors, you'll have to search for the body. Ugh.

The Norway Rat isn't native to Canada. It can't survive our winters in cultivated fields so they have to live with humans or in buildings. Ergo, one needs to treat the buildings.

When bait stations dont work, its because the rodents already have plenty of food. What they need is a drink or they'll dehydrate terribly in just a few hours. They can smell water from a distance and will do dangerous things to get it.

For me, killing is a last resort, reserved for situations where that's the only solution.

For mice, one can use DIY drowning traps in closed spaces like barns or garages - very effective. See on Youtube how to make one. I had one inside a van, which I parked for a few weeks. Was just a simple open bucket with water. Caught a lot of mice. Once wet, they can't climb the walls. A bulging flower vase also works.

Corwin: Hopefully it'll go outside to die. They usually do.

Only once, years ago, a rat got himself mortally wounded in the big Victor trap I set up in my kitchen, but not "caught" in the trap... and it died behind the stove. The smell gave it away.

I'm not sure I'd opt for the drowning-bucket method. That sounds like an unpleasant way to die.
Although as I type this, my wife pointed out to me that starving to death after eating bubble-gum likely won't be all that pleasant either. But hey, this is a last resort when my preferred three methods failed.

I have no choice but to exterminate them, which is bad enough, but I prefer a quick and painless method if possible. I have a certain respect for the rodents as intelligent mammals, and I have no wish for them to suffer in any way. I'm a bit of a "softy" when it comes to wee critters. I have more "farmer" in my blood than "hunter".


We once raised baby raccoons to adulthood when their momma got hit on the road. They had taken residence in my attic... but I considered them more like "tenants" than an "infestation". Well, and to be fair, raccoons don't damage your property, they don't poop where they live, they don't attempt to pilfer your resources, they keep pretty much to themselves, AND they're AWFULLY damn cute.
It was quite the experience inviting raccoons into my home and raising them up like my own children. And let me tell you... in my heart and mind, after that experience, raccoons are NOT "vermin"... they're practically "people". They're so smart, they have the capacity to "love", and they even have a sense of humour. "People" by any definition of the word.


I had this friend who tried sticky-pads to solve his rodent problems. That is a 100% guaranteed method. But... the HORROR... the little guys chew their own legs off trying to escape. Sometimes he'd find the pad with a dead mouse who had chewed a few of its legs off... sometimes just little chewed-off legs stuck to the pad, and no mouse. That's AWFUL.
Those sticky-pads should be illegal in my opinion. My friend stopped using them in favour of other methods.

To be honest... I'd be happy to feed the rats, and include them in my repertoire of the wonderful wild wee critters that we invite... my wife loves leaving out feeders for the hummingbirds and the chipmunks and any other kind of bird that happens along. Sometimes the critters pilfer our vegetable and herb garden a bit, but to a minimal level, and worth the price for the entertainment they offer just to watch them and appreciate them...
... but the RATS... they intrude where they are NOT invited, and chew holes, and spoil my goods, they DAMAGE my house and home.
I mean... I don't "hate" them... it's not their fault... they just "do what they do", and have no choice than to be what they are born to be.

I do feel a certain sense of "victory" with a confirmed kill... but shortly afterwards a certain sense of remorse that I have taken the life of one of God's beautiful creatures.

I guess I'm a bit of a "walking contradiction"? Perhaps part of what it means to be Human.

Zanjan: Indeed, having to snuff animals is one of the most unpleasant things of life, a decision not to be taken lightly. As you say, it can go sideways very quickly, filling one with regret.

I once tried electronic sonar repellants - don't bother. Waste of money. Best practice is to eliminate the source of attraction first. If you have children, it might be them
I mean, kids tend to hide food in their bedrooms and eat snacks in their bed.

Corwin: Yeah. I'm also notorious for bringing snacks to the bedroom.
Fortunately, the rodents have never been made aware of that food source.

I've never considered those sonic repellents. I'm guessing it would annoy my dog as much any rodent. Good to know they don't work anyway.

My kitchen is fairly well "locked-down" as far as any food out in the open that a rodent could get into, but that doesn't stop them from trying. They'll try to chew their own entrance-ways into the cupboards or pantries. But I've long ago found the perfect deterant for that. Hot sauce. The hotter the better. If I find any sign of where they start chewing, I use a little paint brush and coat the wood with capsicum.
There's a brand called Dave's Insanity Sauce that works well. It's a novelty hot sauce that's actually far too hot to put on food. Dip a toothpick into it and touch the tip to your tongue, and you're practically dying. A rodent will rue the day it gets some of that in its mouth.

Or in recent years, my wife and I grow our own hot chilies in our garden... our favourites are Ghost Chilies and Carolina Reapers. Insanely hot. We make tamed down versions of hot sauce recipes that are the perfect heat and flavour for a food garnish, but also a concentrated version for rodent control.

Zanjan: Well, that ought to prevent teething. Like rabbits, mice teeth don't stop growing - they have to chew hard things to wear them down. I'm not fond of them chewing the wires in my computer room and holes in my closet walls.

They say you should remove food sources because they attract mice; but hey, the mice are already in your house so, a little late then, eh.

I'm having good luck with my computer room's trash can lately. Occasionally, I eat a muffin in here (on a paper towel). Sometimes, I throw the baking cup in this open plastic garbage can - it's 15" high and 9" wide - instead of in the kitchen can with the lid.

Each time I've caught a mouse in the humane trap in this room, I've also got one in the garbage can. They really do have powerful noses. My bin sits flush with the desk, close to my chair - a mouse skitters in during the night but can't get back out. Normally, there are only a few papers in there so it's hiding under them. Being so close to me, I can hear it moving.

I like that. Simply take the can outside and lay it down on its side - the mouse runs right out while the garbage stays in. Easy and fast.

Seriously, what are we if we can't outsmart a mouse?

Corwin: Well, in cartoons it's always the prey that does the outsmarting.
The mouse outsmarts the cat. The roadrunner outsmarts the coyote. The rabbit outsmarts the hunter.
But of course that's just cartoons.

In nature there is usually an "equilibrium" between outsmarting and outsmarted. It needs to be that way for both predator and prey to survive. That's why I always say that a cat isn't ideal for "exterminating" rodents -- they merely "control" or "cull" the population. It would be counterproductive for a predator to entirely eliminate its food supply.


I'm not sure if the bubble-gum is working on the rats or not. Since I first mentioned it, about 8 pieces have vanished so far (and they vanish quickly), but I still hear the occasional rustling. So either we have one or two rats and it's not working... or it IS working, but we have a bigger rat problem than I had assumed.

None of our food stores have been disturbed lately, and are all out of reach, but I guess the scent of food is enough for them to keep trying at it. If they were smarter they'd just eat from the free banquet my wife leaves outside for the birds and the chipmunks. And I'd be okay with that if it meant they'd stay out of my kitchen.

Zanjan: I agree ...cats and other predators can't keep the mice population down. They're probably the most prolific creatures on earth next to insects.

They can smell your cooking, eh. I've got a propane BBQ on my deck, mostly used for power outages. One spring, I lifted the lid to find a big mouse nest inside. Must have spent the winter in there.

After getting rid of the nest, I had second thoughts - if I'd left it in, maybe the mice would have chewed off all the crud on the grill bars? We'll never know.....no nests in there since.

This year, I've had the best capture rate on record - yes, I keep a tally. One thing I've done differently is to monitor the traps more often, emptying them as soon as they're sprung. I don't let them sit around in it. I think they talk to each other.

Zanjan: An update: I started counting my in-house captures on April 13th...........now, it's the first week of October. The mouse season is over. My tally during that period is 477.

I've sealed up the cat window for the winter so the only place left to get inside is through the side cracks between the closed overhead garage doors and the wall. Last winter my tally was 3 mice over 6 months. From now on, the cat window stays sealed year- round. My cats are too old and slow to go out unsupervised. Plenty of coyotes around.