mice in coop?

[steve&kris]

I agree, I don't want to kill anything inhumanely. I did see those rubber band traps somewhere, I'll hunt those down and order them. I've never even heard of a tin can trap, but if there's a humane one, it sounds great.

Thanks!

 

[Nostalchic]

Like good old fashioned mousetraps, the Tin Cat - which is just a metal box with entries for mice which they can get into, but can't get out of - works well at first. I once caught 8 mice in it in one night. HOWEVER, if you wish to be humane, you MUST check it every day and dispo the mice somehow. And it seems that they do catch on to it at some point and it no longer works as well. I have to say, a good barn cat has proven to be our best solution. I haven't seen a live mouse in our barn for years, ever since our old Lizzy took up residence there. She also keeps the young rabbits and voles thinned out, or we wouldn't have much of a garden. I can't let her in the chicken coop/yard when I have baby chicks, of course, and I do see occasionally see evidence of mice there for that reason, but not otherwise. She's 12 or 13 now, still going strong. PS: chickens will also kill mice if they catch them in the open, and seem to find them delicious, but of course the mice generally come out at night when no chickens are on patrol. In my broody area, I pick up the feed at night to discourage them and alway store feed in mouseproof containers.

 

[Judy]

steve&kris :

I agree, I don't want to kill anything inhumanely. I did see those rubber band traps somewhere, I'll hunt those down and order them.

They are advertised on BYC, and post #4 gave you a link to them.

I never had much luck with anything but poison -- I use Just One Bite, which supposedly will not harm an animal who eats a dead mouse. Never had it harm any of mine, but definitely not claiming it can't happen.

Here's a thread about another brand of the same stuff, bromadiolone: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=606272#p606272​

 

[woodmort]

steve&kris :

awesome suggestion! thanks a lot for that. I know this sounds dumb, but I may try without the water so I can let them go in the woods. If that doesn't work, I'll drown the poor little things. One way or another, it makes sense that I need to get rid of them.

Thanks!

Trust me the world doesn't need anyone to catch and release mice. As cruel as killing them may be to you, there is no chance you're ever going to run short of them. When I was in HS I worked at a mouse farm--where they raise lab mice--and you won't believe how prolific these critters are. On the other hand, any mouse that gets into the coop with my birds is taking a chance because the chickens will kill it--they do a better job than my cats because they don't play with it so there is no chance of it getting away.​

 

[Yetti]

I was going to suggest that if you don't want to waste a perfectly good mouse you could always take them to a local pond where you know there are big bass. they love them. make great bait.

 

[Meara]

Drowning is inhumane plain and simple. There have actually been scientific studies. For those interested in reading about this here are several links. The first one is a publication by the American Veterinary Medical Association evaluating various means of humanely ending an animal's life.

http://www.avma.org/issues/animal_welfare/euthanasia.pdf

http://www.jstor.org/pss/3784087

http://www.aspca.org/about-us/policy-positions/euthanasia.aspx

No, a wild rodent can not find its way "home" from miles away. Relocation may not be the best solution, but it's far better than drowning. You might consider a classic kill trap that takes their life instantly and without undue suffering. An even better solution is to live trap them (or remove the bodies from the kill trap) and donate their remains to a local wildlife rehab center or any local individual who is doing wildlife rehab. These folks have many animals like inured owls and eagles, abandoned fox kits, etc. that must be fed. If you need help finding a rehabber try here: http://www.nwrawildlife.org/page.asp?ID=214

And finally, be sure to keep all your extra feed in mouse proof containers. You may also consider placing your feeder in a plastic tote with a lid at night and putting it back out for the chickens in the morning. I'm having the same trouble right now in my coop with deer mice. However, mother nature is solving the problem for me because a local pair of barred owls have taken to sitting in the back tree at night and picking the mice off one by one!

BTW A smear of peanut butter is a great bait for traps and something else that works really well is placing some bedding from a pet mouse, rat, hamster in the trap. rodents are extremely territorial and will charge into the trap to see who's on their turf, seriously it works.

 

[Laigaie]

The idea that a rodent will come back after being relocated miles away is simply a misunderstanding. If you had mice in the first place, removing the existing mice isn't normally enough to get rid of the problem. You have to relocate existing mice and then CLOSE UP THE COOP. Find some way that the feed can be stored where the mice can't get it, or keep the feeder in the area right next to the chickens, where any mice attempting to steal feed will be eaten. If you don't seal up the feed the mice are after, killing/trapping/relocating won't be enough. The same mice won't come back, but you'll constantly get new mice.

 

[La Mike]

Ok Dont want to ruffle anybody but mice have to be removed for the health of your flock , period.
I dont think poisoning,drowning,snap trapping,or any killing could be considered humane. Dead is dead. However that comes about.
Live trapping and relocation, donating a mouse ,uhmmm. If you have the time and effort for that I can understand but odds of dumping any wild critter out somewhere else is 50/50 something else dont get it, wether thats a somebody or another critter. IMHO a mouse or rat invading. leaves by whatever means.

 

[Nancerina]

I'm going to try the Nooski traps...they're available on Amazon for about $10. I have discovered mouse burrows in the chicken run (don't want my birds to injure a foot/leg!), and droppings in the coop. Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[cafarmgirl]

I know this is an old thread but .... I really like the battery powered Rat Zapper traps, kills instantly, just dump dead mouse out and your ready to go again.