Mice :(

Zeromus

My lovely apartment is unfortunately now home to mice. I found where one was coming from under the cabinet, set a trap, got it, and plugged all of the holes in the wall that I could see with caulk and steel wool. For a while, I thought that was that, but another's now reared its ugly head.

Unfortunately, I just caught this one coming out of the stove and running around near our sink and dishes, which made me heave a little bit. I called my super, and he's going to come and help out on Thursday, but for now, I'm wondering if any of you have advice as to how to deal with this.

I live in New York City, and some research on the city government's website has led me to believe that I don't really need to be worried about hantavirus or anything, but I'm still seriously concerned about the hygienic ramifications of this thing living and shitting where I cook food. Is the stove salvageable?

I'm sure it's obvious enough that I didn't exactly grow up on a farm, so excuse my ignorance/concern about all of this. Your advice is appreciated!

ceres

I don't know anything about getting rid of mice, but I know that one of my friends lives out in the middle of nowhere and they have mice they just can't get rid of, even with their cats. The mice do end up in the kitchen from time to time, and have been seen on their counter. Try as they might they can't seem to find all the holes, but anyway they're all still alive and none of her family (2 adults 2 kids) have been sick with more than a cold.

Figgy

I just dealt with this recently (thread around here somewhere). We had a pest control company come in and put down some poison boxes. They came back a week later to refill them.

I also placed two traps in the garage, right next to holes they chewed in the weather stripping. I got one, and I haven't seen any since.

I think your best bet would be a combination of traps and poison. And as far as your stove, that's fairly common. It's hidden, it's warm, and there are usually crumbs of food. You can try pulling it out (electric, I'm assuming) and turning it on as hot as possible to get them out, if they're still in there.

Remember that a mouse can squeeze into a dime-sized hole, so plug up anything even remotely that size.

They also sell these little gadgets that you plug into an outlet and it emits a high pitched sound that's supposed to scare away rodents. I've heard those actually work, but I was reluctant to try. They were something like $30 for 3.

Zeromus

ceres wrote: »

I don't know anything about getting rid of mice, but I know that one of my friends lives out in the middle of nowhere and they have mice they just can't get rid of, even with their cats. The mice do end up in the kitchen from time to time, and have been seen on their counter. Try as they might they can't seem to find all the holes, but anyway they're all still alive and none of her family (2 adults 2 kids) have been sick with more than a cold.

Hah, what can I say, my girlfriend and I are giant pussies. :P

(Speaking of which: this entire situation is salt in the wound of our building's "no cat" policy.)

Ego

I grew up in a house that got mice every winter, no matter how much we tried to plug holes up. If you live near open fields, it's very common. Mice are tiny things and it's really easy to miss a way for them to get into your place. We just set traps every year and lived with it. I'm a fan of the ever effective victor mousetrap, personally, though you can get 'safe' traps if you're so inclined (I don't like the new victor design with a plastic bait plate, though.) If you keep mouse traps out with decent bait, you're fairly well guaranteed to catch them shortly after they get into your place. They're pervasive animals, but not smart ones.

Stoves are a fairly common place for mice to run under / come out from, as the electrical/gas hookups often leave enough room for mice to squeeze through and move to another room or level of your domicile. But it's probably not coming into the house from there, just using it as a regular path of travel. You can always pull the stove out and spray insulating foam to make it a less attractive travel route, but they'll still hide under it occasionally if they move around your kitchen.

mrt144

Zeromus wrote:

ceres wrote: »

I don't know anything about getting rid of mice, but I know that one of my friends lives out in the middle of nowhere and they have mice they just can't get rid of, even with their cats. The mice do end up in the kitchen from time to time, and have been seen on their counter. Try as they might they can't seem to find all the holes, but anyway they're all still alive and none of her family (2 adults 2 kids) have been sick with more than a cold.

Hah, what can I say, my girlfriend and I are giant pussies. :P

(Speaking of which: this entire situation is salt in the wound of our building's "no cat" policy.)

Luckily rat terriers are not cats.

Actual advice - You need to not only kill mice that get to the inside, you need to kill the mice outside as well. Unfortunately this may or may not be possible.

Kato

If you are in an apartment complex, then you may not ever get rid of them as they could be so heavily fortified down throughout the entire building. You also never know about the cleanliness of other tenants and their efforts to rid the place of mice. Do everything you can and work with the landlord, but understand that the issue may never come to a full resolution. I wouldn't worry too much about your food and cooking though. I assume you don't eat raw stuff and you clean your counters and don't eat off the counters

illig

If you've ever eaten in a nyc restaurant, you've eaten where mice live (and do their associated dirty, sinful business)... Bon apetit

Pull out the stove, and seal the gas/electric hookup just like you did the other holes in the apartment. Then clean your stove - I guarantee it'll be as good as new.

If you have radiators, seal the holes for the steam pipes as well. They're like a mouse stairwell.

And finally, relax. At least its not roaches or bedbugs!