Mouse in walls/ceiling!!


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Old 02-18-18, 01:09 PM
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Mouse in walls/ceiling!!

Hello everyone ,

I seem to be having an issue with mice.

I had pest control out and they've told me they cannot find how the mice are getting in. There's no obvious entry or exit points. Where the mice have been seen and heard is right underneath a cupboard which backs on to a wall where my boiler pipes are. I have heard sounds from my ceiling but my neighbour in the flat above has dogs and I assumed it was them running around. However heard the scurrying at 2am the other night!

My neighbour has recently had carpets replaced and I'm wondering if that has disturbed something causing the mice to come into my flat. Does anyone know if this is possible?

Also, pest control put down poison. There was an indication that mice have been at the poison but no dead mouse. Why would that be? Doesn't the poison kill them instantly?

I've laid traps at the base of my boiler. Does anyone have a suggestion what else I can do?
 
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Old 02-18-18, 01:47 PM
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Welcome to the forums.

No...the poison does not kill them instantly. Most of those mouse poisons are anticoagulants and some cause the rodents to seek water. It can take take several weeks of them eating the poison to thin the herds.

Our resident pest control expert will be by.
 
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Old 02-18-18, 03:03 PM
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You don't say what poison was used but almost all of the rodenticides used today take a while for the poison to work (some in only 1 day) in order to maximize its impact on the mice family. Keep in mind, there's generally no such thing as a mouse problem as most issues involve a substantial number of mice. This is particularly true in in multi-family homes such as yours appear to be.

Beyond poison, there's two other things you can do. First, do what you can to minimize the rodent's access to food. This won't harm the mice but they'll choose to bother your neighbors. Second, look into traps - either snap traps or glue traps can work well.
 
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Old 02-18-18, 03:24 PM
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If you are still hearing sounds in the ceiling, which would also be your upstairs neighbors floor, I suspect that their dog food could be an attraction for the mice. It would be worthwhile to talk to them, though don’t do it in an accusatory manner.

The rodenticide would not kill them quickly; more like 2 to 5 days depending on which anticoagulant they used. Sometimes it takes more than one feeding, but most are now single-feed.

Removal and replacement of carpeting could have disturbed them, but they would still have been close by. There is more than a couple mice nearby especially if the dog food is the attracting culprit.

Traps are a good idea to keep out. How many days since the rodenticide was eaten?
 
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Old 02-18-18, 04:36 PM
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Hi PABugman ,

I heard them earlier around dusk so within 24 hours.

I don't know what poison was used as I didn't put it down - it was the pest control from the council. However it's in what looked like a pellet format and if I remember correctly, the pellets are coloured blue .
 
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Old 02-19-18, 03:06 AM
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In all likelihood it was difethialone, a common second generation rodenticide. (Second generation meaning after warfarin type products so rodents probably have not built up a resistance.) Like some other rodenticides for mice it is a single-feed product but can take several days to kill. You may want to let your neighbor with the dog know about this or ask the council to notify neighbors. Difethialone is not among the most toxic if dogs eat the mice but it could still be harmful, particularly to small or unhealthy animals.
 

Last edited by Tony P.; 02-19-18 at 04:27 AM.
 

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