![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
When the cat's away ...
Apr. 23rd, 2026 10:30 amIt's been a few years now since we shared our house with anywhere from one to three resident cats. In those days, we were generally alerted to the presence of any mouse who dared to encroach on our living space, usually by the sound of feline paws racing up and down the hallway at around 3AM. We tried in those days to capture and humanely release the poor victim ourselves, although once in a while that didn't work and we would find a pathetic little corpse in the morning, just outside the bedroom door.
During pandemic lockdowns, we were shopping for groceries less frequently and had more food stored at home. One day, we went to get our weekly chocolate ration (we had opened the bar earlier and re-wrapped it, but it was not in a cupboard or the fridge) and discovered some distinctive tooth-marks in the remaining chocolate. So we put down a few (humane, live-catch) traps, after ensuring that any non-mouse-proof provisions were safely stored in canisters or behind closed doors of cupboards, fridges, breadboxes, etc.
We did have to evict a few mice over the next two or three weeks but eventually the rodent activity seemed to taper off. We left the traps in place but they stayed unoccupied for weeks on end, much to our relief.
Last summer, we replaced our moribund oil furnace with an electric heat pump. It's functioning well but the work involved having hydro folks and electricians and HVAC people tromping through the house and garage and back yard; the electrical panel had to be moved and upgraded ... in short, it was disruptive although ultimately worthwhile. We've also had plumbing issues to deal with - fortunately nothing urgent but with the rainy season upon us, we decided it was time to replace our elderly sump pump with a new one, plus an additional battery-powered one for back-up. Next step for the basement? Radon remediation - it looks to be borderline down there.
But back to the mice. As summer segued into fall, we became aware of new holes or gaps as the mice came in from the cold. Back to Home Hardware for mouse traps, spray foam and steel wool.
These are the type of traps that seem to be the most effective for us:
Victor:
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/victor-live-catch-mouse-trap/1001835448
Wildcat:
https://www.homehardware.ca/en/live-catch-mouse-trap-2-pack/p/5442007
In both cases, the mouse walks the (spring-loaded) plank to get to the bait. Entry door springs shut behind'em, and Mousiekins realizes there's no exit through the back door either, except through human intervention. Well, not quite true. Mice have sharp little teeth and once captured, they gnaw away at the plank and the back door of the trap. I'm surprised they don't expire from BPA poisoning after ingesting all that plastic! The Wildcat traps are made of sturdier plastic than the Victor ones. The entry door is hinged at the bottom rather than the top, and they are one-piece with a door at the back that must be opened by a human. The Victor traps are two-piece with a removable back section.
Anyway, we distribute the traps throughout the kitchen and dining room. Usually they stay vacant during the day but in the morning when I get up, one or two are invariably occupied. We're still not sure exactly where the mice are getting in - I'm pretty sure it's somewhere along the back wall of the house, although my partner has been diligently filling cracks with spray foam and steel wool.
For a variety of reasons - practical, ethical, emotional - we don't want to resort to poisons, which in any case could give rise to a whole host of new risks. So our next plan of attack? My partner is now looking into motion-detecting cameras to locate the scene of the crime.
During pandemic lockdowns, we were shopping for groceries less frequently and had more food stored at home. One day, we went to get our weekly chocolate ration (we had opened the bar earlier and re-wrapped it, but it was not in a cupboard or the fridge) and discovered some distinctive tooth-marks in the remaining chocolate. So we put down a few (humane, live-catch) traps, after ensuring that any non-mouse-proof provisions were safely stored in canisters or behind closed doors of cupboards, fridges, breadboxes, etc.
We did have to evict a few mice over the next two or three weeks but eventually the rodent activity seemed to taper off. We left the traps in place but they stayed unoccupied for weeks on end, much to our relief.
Last summer, we replaced our moribund oil furnace with an electric heat pump. It's functioning well but the work involved having hydro folks and electricians and HVAC people tromping through the house and garage and back yard; the electrical panel had to be moved and upgraded ... in short, it was disruptive although ultimately worthwhile. We've also had plumbing issues to deal with - fortunately nothing urgent but with the rainy season upon us, we decided it was time to replace our elderly sump pump with a new one, plus an additional battery-powered one for back-up. Next step for the basement? Radon remediation - it looks to be borderline down there.
But back to the mice. As summer segued into fall, we became aware of new holes or gaps as the mice came in from the cold. Back to Home Hardware for mouse traps, spray foam and steel wool.
These are the type of traps that seem to be the most effective for us:
Victor:
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/victor-live-catch-mouse-trap/1001835448
Wildcat:
https://www.homehardware.ca/en/live-catch-mouse-trap-2-pack/p/5442007
In both cases, the mouse walks the (spring-loaded) plank to get to the bait. Entry door springs shut behind'em, and Mousiekins realizes there's no exit through the back door either, except through human intervention. Well, not quite true. Mice have sharp little teeth and once captured, they gnaw away at the plank and the back door of the trap. I'm surprised they don't expire from BPA poisoning after ingesting all that plastic! The Wildcat traps are made of sturdier plastic than the Victor ones. The entry door is hinged at the bottom rather than the top, and they are one-piece with a door at the back that must be opened by a human. The Victor traps are two-piece with a removable back section.
Anyway, we distribute the traps throughout the kitchen and dining room. Usually they stay vacant during the day but in the morning when I get up, one or two are invariably occupied. We're still not sure exactly where the mice are getting in - I'm pretty sure it's somewhere along the back wall of the house, although my partner has been diligently filling cracks with spray foam and steel wool.
For a variety of reasons - practical, ethical, emotional - we don't want to resort to poisons, which in any case could give rise to a whole host of new risks. So our next plan of attack? My partner is now looking into motion-detecting cameras to locate the scene of the crime.
