Englishmum

OMG - I went into the kitchen at 6.45am this morning and went to put the kettle on. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something move.....and nearly had a heart attack when I saw that it was a dark grey mouse... :scared:

Unfortunately I don't have a cat as I'm allergic to them, but I did think of Tom & Jerry cartoons where the mama of the house spots Jerry, jumps onto a chair and screams THOMAAAASSS!

Being the wimpy coward that I am, I screamed and the mouse seemed to jump and ran behind the oven. I ran straight up the stairs and my heart was pounding very fast indeed. My husband had left the house at 5.30am to go to an early meeting in NYC, so I called him and he burst out laughing - saying they're "only little and it's cold outside for them" and said to call pest control. At that time of the morning all the pest control services listed in the Yellow Pages just had answerphones on. My son just laughed at me and he went off to school (without any breakfast...).

I then legged it up to the gym where I go to aqua-aerobics, had tea and a cake from the vending machine and made some calls at 9am. The earliest anyone could come was between 2pm and 5pm so after my class I went out shopping and got home at about 1.59pm and stayed upstairs, wrapping Xmas gifts...didn't want to be downstairs LOL! The pest control guy turned up at about 5.50pm (grrrr) and found mice droppings behind the oven and near the wet bar in the basement.

He says that as soon as the weather gets cold, the mice first look for somewhere warm to go, then they look for food, but warmth is their no.1 priority. Favourite spots are the warm places behind the oven, behind the fridge and next to the dishwasher.....mice love the lining at the side of them. They can get through a hole the size of the diameter of a pinky finger (ugh) and possibly it/they came in the house where the tumble dryer outlet flue pipe goes.

The pest guy was going home for the day, so has put some mousetraps with peanut butter down. He checked the pantry which was fine - but we did eat out tonight. I'm still freaking out....I've just sent my husband to the Home Depot to get sealant and extra mousetraps (ugh, ugh, ugh) and nagged him into working from home tomorrow and the pest guy will come back with bait in boxes. In the meantime I'm staying upstairs as much as possible and avoiding the kitchen and basement for the next day or two.

I don't know why I'm scared of them...but it creeped me out. Oddly enough I used to love having geckos running up and down the walls when we lived in Singapore, but mice and spiders give me the willies.

hayley82

WOW...you're very brave to back in on your own, I don't think I could have!

If it happens again, get on a train and we can go afternoon drinking again!!!

Bob

oh there so cute

anyway, sealant, get wire wool first and fill the gaps in walls with that as they can't eat through it, and then sealant otherwise they'll chew through it.

And you can get little boxes that'll trap them, far more humane that the spring loaded traps, but it's all mute if you throw them outside to freeze

TruBrit

i have a mouse phobia..can't stand the vermin...we had one once in the house in the uk about 10 yrs ago and i packed up and moved out until it was caught and then all holes were filled in...ugh i HATE them :scared:

Englishmum

[QUOTE=Bob]oh there so cute
anyway, sealant, get wire wool first and fill the gaps in walls with that as they can't eat through it, and then sealant otherwise they'll chew through it.

And you can get little boxes that'll trap them, far more humane that the spring loaded traps, but it's all mute if you throw them outside to freeze [/QUOTEt!

Yikes....it didn't occur to me that they might eat through the sealant...thanks for the heads up, I guess I'll be off to HD in the morning for wire wool then...

Pete's just arrived home.....whilst he was out a mouse was killed in one of the traps and he's disposed of it and re-set the trap.... :scared: God knows if there are any more of them... And now he tells me he's already put the sealant around the gap in the flue so it's too late now...

I need some I'm still freaked out.....

Englishmum

That's an excellent idea!

Are you around in the Christmas period or are you going home to England? I need to catch up on all your news & wedding plans!

Possibly going for Sunday brunch in Hoboken or NYC a week on Sunday - fancy meeting up?

NC Penguin

I think this is a job for a couple of rats. My rats will come over and chase out the mouse. They would like to be paid in Yogies, tomatoes and soy nuts.

I'd like to see how my two deal with a mouse. It'll be Kodak moment for sure. It could be curtains for the mouse though...


NC Penguin

Jerseygirl

When we lived in England...we had patio doors fitted in the lounge and dining room a few days before Christmas. The night before Christmas Eve we were watching TV and suddenly my dogs jumped up and ran towards a cupboard in the corner. I knew they must have seen a mouse...I don't mind them but not in my house. We couldn't catch it and as it was late went to bed....stuffing towels either side of the door so it couldn't get out. I insisted we did the same to the bedroom door and slept fully clothed that night...sounds daft now LOL. The next morning I had to go to work but told my husband if he hadn't got it by the time I finished work...I was going to stay with his mum for Christmas.

He put traps and poison down that morning and by the afternoon it was dead. It was a tiny little shrew....it looked to cute and peaceful...I felt like a murderer.

BigDavyG

Wish I could do the same with that bloody avatar of yours.

Jerseygirl

Davy....I'm upset you feel that way.

Bob

Aye, there smart little buggers and if you haven't got a deterrent, they'll just come back, and they'll chew through the sealant, it's how they probably got there in the first place....just get the cheapest wire wool from the grocery store and spread it into the gap before sealing...well next time

Jerseygirl

Lets face it...these plastic and wood houses...the mice can chew straight through them.

Toontje

Mice are capable of chewing their way through almost anything, even steel and concrete. There's only one thing that stops them and that's glass.




Have a good evening.

Sally

Have you never had mice before?

TRPardoe

It's only a mouse FFS, get a grip. I gather that you never lived in a rural area in the UK. They have mice there too you know.

They sell traps (live and dead) at Home Depot. They are cheaper than pest control. A mouse will not harm you, just do not eat the droppings.

If you put poison down be prepared for rotting mice in the dry wall.

p.s. I don't know where you live but don't move to Florida. We have far worse things than mice.

p.p.s. Maybe you should get a moggie and some Claritin, or perhaps a Jack Russell.