Rodentia Update

This morning I got up just a little bit earlier than usual. Stumbled bleary-eyed into the kitchen, and what should I see skittering across the long counter? Something very “Stuart” shaped. Just a little bit earlier, mind you. They know our habits. I’m convinced of it. The last kill was right as Leah and I turned off all the lights, and I went to the bedroom. Only then are they active.

Last sighting (and first kill) was October 30th. (here’s my and Leah’s account).

I’ve said that the humane traps did not work. Only the traditional one worked.

We placed the last working one down on the floor near the stove, where our previous kill was.

I’m sure these mice only think they’re “testing” our security. But I assure you they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The penalty, unfortunately for rodents, for being a mouse in this house is death.

Add to that that Leah and I beefed up container security in the cupboards. There are no more containers in the cupboards that can bitten through by mice. All cookie and cake mixes, all healthy grains, all yummy chips are now inside plastic containers.

One purchase I almost made last night at Home Depot was more mousetraps. I was sloppy though. I underestimated them. I thought the mouse we had was an anomaly. Time to smarten up.

Today I hope to deploy one of the super-sticky pads, baited of course. These supposedly trap mice very well. But they don’t kill them. I have been told that one has to do the killing with these. I’m wondering if I can deploy it and upon capture, release whatever I catch into the wild. Seems reasonable. But if the mouse is not removable, then I’ve resolved myself to killing it, regardless.

Leah and I have been talking about getting a dog in the past few months. Also a cat, but mostly we’ve been talking about little dogs.

Yesterday we looked at cats. Some pretty nice ones, though none that hit us hard, figuratively speaking, with emotion. Hard to consider an animal. They require attention and love.

We weren’t even thinking of the mice when we did this.

I rather like the idea of choosing a pet for its work capability.

How does one choose a cat for its’ mousing capability?

IF we get a cat (still a moderately big “if”), I will delight in saying “There’s a new Sheriff in town.”

Onward, Anti-mouse Soldiers, Marching As To War!