Big Mouse Problem...

[swimmer]

Try the bucket mouse trap. You can kill several mice in one night. I made one and put it in my shed and keep it there all the time. Simple to make and you probably have all the supplies at home. It would be a start.If I can find the site on how to make them, I'll post it.
Try and google repeating mouse traps.

 

[dgeter]

Well the peppermint definitely doesn't work. We've got it in there now and it hasn't phased the mice. We've been keeping traps in their consistently. The only place the mice are coming in is through the coop hole that the chickens go in and out of. Can't really close that up :-(

 

[Tdub4chiks]

Cut off their food supply. Take the chickens food out before night and maybe the chickens will be hungry enough in the am to kill the mice. JMHO.

 

[NYREDS]

How big is the mouse? I've only ever seen little ones.

 

[DawnM]

An easy but kind of inhumane way to kill mice is to get the kind of sponges that shrink a lot when they dry. Soak them in broth or some other liquid that smells and tastes good. Let them dry and then put them where the mice go. They will eat them and the sponge will blow up in their stomachs. I know a couple people that have done this because they couldn't poison the mice and have another animal eat the contaminated mouse. They swear by it. My grandmas Dachshund mix is also very good at keeping away rodents. Cats like to play with mice, she just wants to kill them and get another.

 

[Jenviro]

Dawn thats a great theory, i havent heard that one before.

the only thing I can recommend in this situation is to proof all the possible points of entry.

fyi, cat/ rat/ dog urine are good deterrants for mice.

a pet one of either of these will surely help.

 

[purpletree23]

I've used this before and it worked well for me.

Mix 2 cups plaster of paris (found cheap at craft stores)
1 cup of peanut butter and add vegetable oil until a thick mix forms. Really thick. Almost breaking the wooden spoon. Do not use ANY water.

You can leave the mix on a paper plate where you see a lot of mouse activity or you can roll it into golf ball size balls and throw them under the coop.

The mice eat the mix, drink water (leave a source of water also) and the plaster of paris turns into a lump they can't digest and die. If the chickens do come across a dead mouse and eat it theres no harm done. No harm to other animals either.

The 5 gallon bucket of death is great and I like the small dehydrated pieces of sponge method. It's new to me but sound's like it would work.

 

[dgeter]

These are some awesome ideas!

I'm gonna try the sponge method first and then the plaster one. Mouse traps are more humane and Id rather do those but we've kept continuous traps going for months and they're reproducing too fast to keep up with. I guess its time to fight hard!

 

[Renee']

Quote:
I have tons of blue/green mouse poo in my wood pile; the stuff definately goes through their system.

 

[dgeter]

Renee' :

Quote:
I have tons of blue/green mouse poo in my wood pile; the stuff definately goes through their system.

Yep, agreed. We keep mouse poison in the garage and we see the blue poop. We looked at the poison at the store as well and the package says that it takes 3-4 days to kill the mouse!​