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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 8:14:33 GMT
Ok, so I have no idea which topic to put this under.
I saw a mouse in my bathroom, then minutes later saw it (or a different one...) scurrying around my living room. Ive contacted my landlord, so hopefully she will be helpful.
My question is this: should I stop giving the goos play time for a bit until this is resolved? Or just make sure to clean the floors before each and every play time?
Also, should I be in the lookout for anything health wise with the goos? They've been enjoying playtime everyday because I had no idea there was a mouse.
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Post by savvy on Oct 7, 2020 9:34:06 GMT
I very much doubt it's the same mouse - sorry!
See if you can get your landlord to provide humane traps, the ones that catch them alive for release outside. You may need to inspect the external of the property to see if you can spot entry points where mice can get in. This time of year they are looking for warmth.
You may find that they've been around the cages anyway as they provide a food and bedding source. Mice are soft boned so they can squeeze through the narrowest of gaps.
As for free time, a lot depends on what traps etc are used, if you clean everything before and after it should be fine.
I think the usual health lookouts would be prudent and check for any bites etc if the mouse has been in the cage, but as food would be fairly abundant in there, mice tend to do a very quick snatch and run and avoid confrontation where possible.
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 11:52:38 GMT
Yeah, I kind of figured that! Especially since I spotted another one right after writing my initial post.
I think I have a decent idea where they got in from, but I do have additional issue--my apartment is just one story of a house that has been converted to apartments.
Ah, that would make sense. I'll hope not, especially since the bases are over a foot off the ground? But nothing I can do about it if the mouse already got in. I was surprised--I saw the last one squeeze right under my bathroom door! I was kind of impressed!
Sounds good, I may just have them hold off for a day or two anyway, just to see if I can get this under control.
Great, I'll definitely do that.
Well, they apparently feasted last night though. I must have left my small bag of sunflower seeds on the floor. Completely empty this morning!
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Post by savvy on Oct 7, 2020 12:55:38 GMT
They'll have hidden them, like most rodents, they store for the winter.
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Post by bouncy on Oct 7, 2020 17:00:44 GMT
I hate to say it, but it's likely the mice have been getting into the goo cages for the food.
I've had rats before, which can get in through a hole the diameter of a BIC biro, so I can imagine how small the mice holes are. They came in through my neighbour's property (semi-detached), but managed to get into the attic, wall cavities, etc. I had a long discussion with a local pest guy (a uni professor who also helps develop new industry approaches). He told me that traps are all well and good but, with the rate they breed, it would be a losing battle. He recommended a toxin in a mouse traffic area that they would take back to the nest........... Not popular, but........
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Post by moletteuk on Oct 7, 2020 18:09:31 GMT
Can you pull the cage a bit further from the wall to make it harder for the mice to get into the cage? (they can jump quite a way from a skirting board or climb a wall if it has some roughness to it)
In my experience eradication method depends on the scale of the problem and where they are. Have a good hunt around the edges of all rooms looking for mouse poo.
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Post by winic1 on Oct 7, 2020 18:51:39 GMT
If you saw three mice within a few minutes of each other, in different rooms, then your overall building has a serious mouse problem. Have to agree with Bouncy, it is not going to be solved by traps. Nor can you solve it by finding and fixing holes, because they can squeeze through tiny spaces, and can and will come in where the pipes go into the walls in your cabinets, heating pipe spaces (which must have some wiggle room as the pipes need room to move and expand as they warm up), heating ducts, wiring, plumbing, skirting boards, etc. You will need to poison them, which in your own apartment means being very very careful that the goos absolutely cannot, no way no how, get to the poison; not just by it being in a closed cabinet but by it being where they cannot possibly ever get to and it cannot fall down into a space they can get to. More importantly, your building needs to be treated by putting poison into attics and basements/crawlspaces, etc, as they travel through the walls and live in the no-people parts of houses.
Keep all degu food and treats in tightly sealed containers. Keep an eye on your own food. Don't let spare food build up in the degu cage as much as possible.
I started having mice in an apartment I was in, which puzzled me because I had a mousing cat, and kept things very clean and controlled. Until the Saturday morning when the neighbor whose kitchen backed up against mine (so I could hear her) started washing dishes at 8am, and went non-stop for the next three hours. Reason for mice explained--imagine how many dirty dishes and pots a single person would have had piled up, and for how long, in order to be washing them (by hand) for over 3 hours. Gross.
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 19:07:15 GMT
So I searched all around the apt for mouse droppings. I think I only saw them near the oven, in the bathroom, and maybe near the goo cages? But very very few droppings, even in places that I don't clean often (tiny area beside the oven).
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 19:13:32 GMT
Yeah, that really worried me Winic. I try to keep my place really clean and sweep up after the goos multiple times a day, but the floor below me has two kids and several pets.
I'm waiting to hear back from my landlord. They don't seem very responsive though, which is what worries me. I'm kind of afraid that this is something they let the tenants go through every year during fall/winter (just my feeling based off of the fact they didn't care about wasps, and never followed up on active water damage).
I'll put out the humane traps now, and wait for a bit to hear what they say about poison/bringing someone out.
Do you think it would be worth it to get some used litter from a friend who has a cat? Or put peppermint oil scented rags near entry holes?
With the poison, do I need to be worried about the mice dropping it somewhere? The goos never go in the kitchen or bathroom, which seems like the rooms I'd need to concentrate on.
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 19:14:04 GMT
Also Winic, thats so gross! Can't see how someone could bear that for long!
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Post by savvy on Oct 7, 2020 19:29:35 GMT
Years ago I had a neighbour who used to live like that. When she had a property inspection it took 3 of us over 4 hours to wash up. She'd buy new china when she ran out of clean stuff. It was disgusting.
If you have several mice, then the cat litter idea might not work as it would need a very good mouser to deal with an influx and just the scent alone won't put them off. Also, they'd be able to tell if it was fresh.
Some poisons come in liquid form which the mice lick so it's difficult to spread it around, but you need to make sure that the pest controller knows you have pets.
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 19:38:47 GMT
Oh man Savvy, that sounds beyond awful! And you're a better person than I am for helping!
Ah gotcha, that makes sense. Is it bad that I'm tempted to foster cats now (not that I wasn't before, but this adds more motivation)?
So does this sound like something that I'd be better off calling a professional for? I did call Orkin for a quote, and it would be about $300. But I'm worried that if just my apartment gets done, it won't solve the issue.
I just really need my landlord to contact me.
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Post by savvy on Oct 7, 2020 20:17:57 GMT
Well it would save on cat food, lol. Female cats make better hunters than males, but some cats just can't be bothered at all. It really depends on the individual cat.
If it's a bad infestation, a professional would be able to tell you where they were coming from and put the poison/traps in the best place. I'm not sure about the USA, but in the UK the poisons they use are licensed so you can only get them from a pest controller.
Is there a way you can call them in and recharge your landlord the costs?
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 20:55:49 GMT
Haha, maybe I'll bring that up to the landlord! $300 on a one time visit, or just let me foster female cats!
That makes sense. I'm hoping it's not awful, but since I saw several, it probably is. I'm fairly certain I know of at least one place they're entering my apt through, since I saw two run that way. But a professional actually knows what they're doing and has a much better chance of success.
It's currently as good as its going to get. I vacuumed under the goo cages and will sweep again tonight to make sure no food is below them. I put aluminum foil over the two areas I think they may be coming in, and put peppermint oil (liberally) in the entrance in my bathroom, as I think this is the main entrance.
Thats what I'm hoping for, just to subtract it from my rent. I do worry that since they would only be doing my apartment, it would only last a little while. If my landlords ordered it though, they could get a repeat service. We'll see what they say. If they don't take it seriously I may just have a conversation with the pest control people.
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Post by deguconvert on Oct 7, 2020 22:27:04 GMT
They will tear through the aluminum foil easy as can be. You need to use coarse metal scrub buds (I can't think of what they are called, sorry. Like pot scrubbers, but thick and coarse. You would probably find them at a hardware store.) and stuff several of them in the holes you think they are coming in. We had an old opening for our furnace that was not properly closed off and sealed, that became a mouse highway into the our house. We stuffed that thing FULL of the metal scrub thingys and then used two large foam insulation cannisters to fill in all the tiny spaces. After that we covered it over with . . . hmmm . . . I think a grate and then some plywood . . . and since then have been mouse free. At least through there. We may have mice again, but are thinking they have gained entrance through our old screen door. The bottom is no longer flush with the landing and they can probably squeeze through.
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 7, 2020 22:36:55 GMT
Good to know, I'll have to pick some up tomorrow! Like steel wool?
The internet suggested that they hates chewing through aluminum foil, so I was hoping it would at least be a slight deterrent, but oh well.
I'm glad you found something that worked for you! This house also have settled a lot and so doors are no longer flush (lottttsss of bugs got in) but hopefully my weatherproofing will help with that.
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Post by deguconvert on Oct 8, 2020 5:08:57 GMT
THAT'S IT!! ROFL!! Steel wool!! BUT like HULK strength . . . if there are different wire sizes?
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 8, 2020 10:36:40 GMT
I will go to the store and ask an employee to help me find the hull strength steel wool! Hahaha
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Post by hpdegus on Oct 8, 2020 10:46:59 GMT
Ok. Now I'm confused because I clearly don't understand mouse behavior.
I just checked all over for droppings, checked the traps, looked for disturbance in the aluminum foil. Nada. Absolutely nothing.
I did leave all my apartment lights on last night.
If they found a lot to eat the night before, would they just not go foraging the next night?
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Post by savvy on Oct 8, 2020 12:10:07 GMT
Leaving the lights on would put them off as they are nocturnal and hate being seen.
They tend not to go foraging when it's colder as they know food would be limited, and they tend to hunker down in their nests.
It is possible they have another food source and are raiding that.
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