Last time, on Mouse Update we were at 5. I don’t really get livid very often, but this morning we went to a new count. Leah herself stepped on a blanket in the living room that squeaked. Under the blanket was a mouse who had dragged a glue trap under there, freaking her and me out.
I was pretty upset of this, but not extraordinarily so. It was another near the back wall of the house, which is really not news to speak of. They seem to all get trapped near the chimney, they are caught, and then killed. Done.
This morning I had an instinct to make a sweep of downstairs, seeking droppings. I found none in the living room, but I did make a discovery of some mice droppings under the kitchen sink. My blood boiled. It’s time for war. I called the property management company and left a message of the latest count and asked what they intend to do. For our part, we’re laying out more traps, and I made another sweep of the cabinets. I moved a box of saltines a level higher, and juggled some plastic containers downward. Otherwise our packages are intact even if they get into the cabinets. When we were in San Diego we lost a fair amount of foodstuffs to the mice: flour, cereals — things packaged in paper that mice could knaw through.
I fear though, that it’s not so much the food that attracts them as the climate. We have air conditioning, and summer is commencing, and I think the critters are attracted to the cool.
We will not be beaten by these critters. Mice are fascinating and wonderful creatures, supposedly the third most successful mammal on the planet. Anymore, though, not in my house. I’m tired of this game. It’s not where I want my mental attention.
