We have a female Russian Blue cat that digs gophers and mice and birds. She has 3 kittens now that are about 2 months old and it is fun to watch her training the kittens. Just 2 days ago she was teaching then how to climb trees. We had her fixed a week ago and I have told my wife that those kittens have got to go. Every time I go to the garage I have an enterage of kittens. Finding them to get them out before closing the door isn't easy. The only way that works that we have found is to rattle the food can. You can't lay down on the floor to change oil without a critter in your face. Mother is an outside cat and loves being out even in sub freezing temperatures. She is a very pretty grey cat and her babies have leopard spots on tabby stripes of grey and white. The one male has lighter skin.
Don’t use peanut butter on your glue mouse trap warning?
- Thread starter GON
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At least those kittens sound friendly and precocious! I’ve thought of letting Binks into the garage to do some mousing, because he’s a professional chipmunk hunter, but I worry about all of the chemicals and poisons I keep in there affecting him. He’s a very sweet cat and prefers the company of people rather than being alone. He just moved in back in October, lol.
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One of our neighbors is harboring rats that like to poop in our yard. I tried to bait rat traps with peanut butter but to no avail. What ended up working was blocking off their entrances and forcing them into a small opening in our fence, where they were caught by the trap (with no bait).
One was trapped just behind its nose and still died. Another set the trap off but died a few inches away from the trap? Not complaining... Cute little buggers but not so cute when they poop everywhere.
One was trapped just behind its nose and still died. Another set the trap off but died a few inches away from the trap? Not complaining... Cute little buggers but not so cute when they poop everywhere.
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GON
$175 Site Donor 2026
How about a 15 day update?
Eight hours after placing the traps, I departed CONUS. Wife asked me not to leave the traps, which I quietly didn't accommodate. Mice cause huge damage to property, and I need to mitigate the risk. Supplemental, I placed bait packs next to the tires of the vehicles stored outside.
Wife just sent me a picture of the traps. One trap the mice escaped, one worked. Of note, it has been cold in New Mexico, not sure the effectiveness of the glue when the trap is outside in the cold.
The issue is now, Wife wants the traps GON, and she won't touch them. Guess I have to hire someone to remove the traps......
Jury is still out if peanut butter impacts rat sized glue traps with the goal of catching mice. More testing needed.
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I've had good results with dry cat food(*) in the old fashioned Victor snap traps.
As shipped, they tend to be difficult to trigger and the mice will eat the bait and get away. Use pliers to slightly flatten the little hoop and also if necessary bend the end of the hold down wire to a different angle so that the trigger pedal is barely holding the wire. You want the trap to trip easily at the slightest touch.
Also as noted figure out where they run and place traps so they will run over them even when they're not hungry.
*Yes that means I have a cat who should be catching them, but she's old.
@GON you're using way too much peanut butter. They only need to smell it. They're not going to get close enough to eat it.
As shipped, they tend to be difficult to trigger and the mice will eat the bait and get away. Use pliers to slightly flatten the little hoop and also if necessary bend the end of the hold down wire to a different angle so that the trigger pedal is barely holding the wire. You want the trap to trip easily at the slightest touch.
Also as noted figure out where they run and place traps so they will run over them even when they're not hungry.
*Yes that means I have a cat who should be catching them, but she's old.
@GON you're using way too much peanut butter. They only need to smell it. They're not going to get close enough to eat it.
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Rats in my area are all Einstein level
They just avoid all traps period
They just avoid all traps period
I have had best luck when placing traps next to walls and structural elements as rats and mice tend to travel along them instead of out in the middle of open spaces.
Edit: maybe switch up the baits. Sardines, banana, tootsie roll, bacon, pet food, etc. My dad used to bait mouse traps with butter. Maybe your rats are high society and won't go for anything less than caviar or pate'.
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Ima try pet food when we get back
I got traps all over. Maybe familiarity breeds contemptuous rats
I bet there is a good chance the same mouse that escaped is the same one you caught in the other trap. What I use is 4 of the poison bait stations in around the house outside. The mice eat the bait and then go looking for water. I keep my boat in a storage unit 150 miles away and use a bait station as well as several of the green peanut butter cubes around the boat. I have never had an incident in the shed where a mouse hurt anything. One time I went fishing and came back and there was a dead mouse right next to the bait. Other than that one time I never seen a mouse
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