Question for MetalDog

[bayonetbrant]

Appealing to your professional expertise...

We can hear something scratching around inside one of the walls here at the house.  Dunno if it's a mouse or something else.  It's on an interior wall - nothing coming in through the outer walls - but may have come up through the crawlspace.

Short of tearing a hole in a wall, what's the best way to get at this critter to (a) figure out what it is, and (b) kill it... ?

[LongBlade]

[bayonetbrant]

I'd like to have a house left afterwards, thanks.  ::)

[LongBlade]

Exterminatus is the only way to be sure.

[eyebiter]

Glue traps?

[MikeGER]

hmm ...strange noice in the wall, he can help


Father Gabriele Amorth

[bayonetbrant]

Glue traps?

sure, but how to get them into the wall without cutting a hole in it?

[GDS_Starfury]

how old is the house?  you might be able to get into the wall through the electrical sockets.  turn off the power to the room or rooms.  take off the electrical plates, remove the sockets and cap the wires.  then see if you can remove the box as these are usually screwed to the studs.  tada!  premade holes.

[mirth]

I recommend these guys. Very professional.

[bob48]

I'ts the inmates of Stalag Grog IV trying to dig into where you stash your games......

[MetalDog]

Sorry, Brant, just saw this.  Couple of questions: 1) Has it moved or been heard anywhere else in the house?  2)  Have you noticed any pellets (polite name for rat poop) anywhere in the house?  3)  In any place that you store soft material, i.e. toilet paper, paper towels, washcloths, etc, have you found them disturbed or visibly torn and shredded?

[bayonetbrant]

1) Has it moved or been heard anywhere else in the house? 

Haven't heard it elsewhere, but it's usually kind of loud in our house during the day so it's hard to say for sure.

2)  Have you noticed any pellets (polite name for rat poop) anywhere in the house? 

we had some in the pantry where they were getting in there through a duct.  that's been cleaned out and sealed up - lots of foam along the edges - and a few traps reset but not expecting to catch anything in there.

3)  In any place that you store soft material, i.e. toilet paper, paper towels, washcloths, etc, have you found them disturbed or visibly torn and shredded?

we have a pretty robust linen closet, but no damage in there as of last check (2-3 days ago).  I'll be pulling it out this weekend to repack some of that closet w/ some stuff I recently unboxed from our move last February...

[MetalDog]

1)  How long has it been since you cleaned up in the pantry?

2)  Have you done a perimeter check of the house looking for entry points?

3)  Are there any trees or shrubs touching the house?

4)  It only occurs during the day time and always in the same place?

[bayonetbrant]

1)  How long has it been since you cleaned up in the pantry?

Less than a week.  It was Monday

2)  Have you done a perimeter check of the house looking for entry points?

I haven't, but I'm sure we have some b/c we're on a crawlspace foundation.

3)  Are there any trees or shrubs touching the house?

There are some close, but I don't know about touching.  I'd have to look.  Probably, but I can say for sure.

4)  It only occurs during the day time and always in the same place?

No, it was happening at night (1130ish) but only noticed in the same place.  We didn't wander the house looking for other signs of noise yet.

[MetalDog]

Alrighty then.  Without actually being there, I can say it's probably a mouse.  He's got to be getting his food and water from somewhere, so keep an eye on the obvious sources; kitchen, bathroom, laundry room.  You'll have to pick your method of catching the little booger; catch pads, snap traps or poison.  I prefer poison, but, if the mouse dies in the house, it will stink for four or five days while it decomposes.  Catch pads and snap traps are less humane in my opinion, but, you have to deal with the dead body.  And if you have sensitive children in the house, a dead mouse in sight might be slightly traumatic. 

As for the outside, take away all entry and exit points.  Look for openings around the air conditioner, where the pipes or wiring enter the house or anything that obviously presents itself.  Mice only need a quarter inch of space to get in.  Foam sealant is your friend in this endeavor.  If they choose to get in that way, you will see the hole they gnawed to get in.  Steel wool is good to block holes and entry points as well.  They won't chew through that.  And it's always a good idea when dealing with critters to keep landscaping a foot or so away from the house.  It gives the creatures pause with so much open space and allows you easy sight lines to check for trouble.  And last but not least, keep tree limbs off the house, mice, rats and squirrels are great climbers.  They will use overhanging limbs, touching or not, to invade from the top down.  Touching limbs are also a good avenue of approach for ants, too.