Mouse springs trap... and escapes

[Lobster]

Following on from the 'Bat in the Bedroom' thread, we have a Mouse in the Bedroom problem here.

The little bugger has taken up residence in my son's bedroom and keeps him awake at night scuttling about, not to mention the damage it's causing by chewing stuff. We've been making efforts to trap it, all to no avail.

Despite the sleepless nights, son is intent on catching his new friend alive, and refuses to allow a Little Nipper in the room. So I bought a live-capture trap

After some teething troubles with bait selection, we found that bread seemes to work very well. However, every night without fail we are finding that the trap has tripped, the bait has gone, but the bloody trap is empty. I've fine-tunedd the balance the thing with blu-tac weights, so it's now incredibly sensitive; and the bait is positioned right at the far end, up the slope at the opposite end to the door.

I can't figure how it's managing to escape - the only thing I can think of is that the trap is too short and the mouse's tail keeps the door ajar. However, son has seen it several times and it's only a tiny little thing.

Am I missing the bleedin' obvious?

[Bill]

In message , Lobster writes

Son finds it amusing to see you struggling and keeps releasing the mouse?

>

[Nightjar]

Use something it can't grab and run with, like peanut butter or chocolate paste.

I found these very effective for catching field mice:

For a couple of large house mice, I had to use a rat trap and pre-load the platform with magnets, until it tripped if I stepped too firmly near it.

[ARW]

Yes.

Just kill the mouse with a proper mouse trap and tell your son to stop messing about - it's only a mouse. Or buy him an airgun for target practice - the skirting boards needed repainting didn't they?

[eastender]

On 2014-09-22 19:20:34 +0000, Nightjar Use something it can't grab and run with, like peanut butter or

I used peanut butter to trap squirrels in our loft with a homemade trap

- it's an irresistible bait, to squirrels at least.

E.

[Dave Liquorice]

Then what is he going to do with it? Unless you have a cage suitable for a mouse it'll have to stay in the trap until you take it outside for release. Which is technically illegal.

Looks like a knock off of the Rent 'o Kill live trap. They work well for us, we occasionally have one escape but not often. They have gnawed their way out as well, but that takes several mice being caught and all having a go around the ventilation holes.

That might be a mistake, you don't want it to trip untill mousey is well inside. The tail can stick out and stop the door latching shut properly. How are you making sure your bread bait stays up at the cap end and doesn't dry and fall down? Chocolate hazel nut spread works for us and stays put.

See above... it can happen. Mice aren't daft either if they work out how to do something they remember. Rent 'o kill are 85 mm from cap to pivot and 80 mm pivot to door.

he he, quite a possibilty.

[The Medway Handyman]

Ninja mouse?

[Jeremy Nicoll - news posts]

When I first moved into this house I realised there was a mouse coming into my bedroom around 1am, regularly. I made a mouse trap by putting an upturned plastic ('tupperware')sandwich box on the floor with a small block of wood propping up one edge. There was a long piece of string tied to the block and the other end was tied to the bedpost. I put some sort of tasty morsel under the propped-up box, at the edge furthest away from the block of wood.

Later, rustle, rustle... I grabbed the string and pulled. The block of wood came out and the box settled on the carpet. YES! There was a mouse inside, not as terrified as it would be in a tiny trap.

In the morning I slid a bit of card under the box and took it and my new friend, soon to be an ex-friend, to work and released it in the bushes around the car park.

[Richard Tobin]

Set up a webcam to film it. You'll find out how it's doing it, and become a big hit on youtube.

-- Richard

[Tart on Toast]

Forget the trap, 12 bore, both barrels. Come back here for replastering tips.

[Brian Gaff]

Well for a start, there are probably several of them by now, and they breed very fast. Yes, the tail keeping the trap open is a common issue. It needs a very strong spring to make it too stiff for the mouse to be unable to lift it once triggered. maybe his mate is keeping it open with his body while the food is retrieved. Mice learn very quickly.

Brian

[Brian Gaff]

The obvious answer then is to get the Son to stay with grandparents or something and then use a real trap in his absence. Brian

[Lobster]

On 22 Sep 2014, [e-mail] (Richard Tobin) grunted:

Hmm, now I think about it I'm sure I've got some motion-sensitive webcam software somewhere. Watch this space! :)

[Lobster]

On 22 Sep 2014, "Dave Liquorice" grunted:

Ah, but my son is a rebel without a cause - has total disregard for the law. Plan is to mount a black-op mission and release it in the local park...

Well my blu-tac weight is actually inside the trap, forming a ridge at the top of the 'ramp' which holds the bread in place. But I think switching to chocolate spread's a good ides, so it can't 'grab amd run' as someone else suggested

Son reckons there are a team - one holds the door open while the other nips in to grab the goodies...

:) nah, it's been driving him nuts, as it's been waking him up at night. He's actually just gone off to Uni though, so it might be Little Nipper time now. TBH I'd rather catch it alive myself though, and in any case, it's now a challenge...

[Nightjar]

On 23/09/2014 08:23, Lobster wrote: ...

...

Probably. When I realised I had mice, I caught about a dozen field mice and, eventually, two house mice.

[Richard]

WTF? Touchy-feely has gone a tad too far: To minimise distress to captured mice, traps must be checked regularly (preferably every 2 hours), and should not be left overnight.

Either the mouse is a pest or a pet. Make the call and take appropriate action.

[Nightjar]

On 23/09/2014 09:01, Richard wrote: ...

The Animal Welfare Act 2006 doesn't differentiate; Provided you have a live animal in your possession, you are responsible for seeing to its welfare needs. Personally, I only view mice as a pest when they are running around uncontrolled in my house.

[Richard]

Really?

[Nightjar]

That tells you how to kill them. The Animal Welfare Act kicks in when you have caught them alive. Then you need to see to their welfare, even if you plan to kill them humanely later.

[Richard]

Wrong, you do not plan to kill 'em: Live capture traps should be regularly inspected and captured mice humanely dispatched.