# Well, it is winter and I have a mouse in my hive!



## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

Mice are mostly nocturnal. Place a nice big ole mousetrap baited with peanut butter on the front porch of the hive. Get that little bugger!


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

Mr.Beeman said:


> Place a nice big ole mousetrap baited with peanut butter on the front porch of the hive.


Careful here....what if the neighbor's dog finds it first? Or a raccoon or skunk? On a warm day...chase it out and put a mouseguard on...would be my advice.....of course with my luck it'll move into the house


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## jmgi (Jan 15, 2009)

I know they make mousetraps with the trap inside a little black plastic box so nothing can get into it except what you want to get into it. John


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

Careful here....what if the neighbor's dog finds it first? Or a raccoon or skunk? 

Either way it would be near the hive someplace. lol


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## jdmidwest (Jul 9, 2012)

beemandan said:


> Careful here....what if the neighbor's dog finds it first? Or a raccoon or skunk? On a warm day...chase it out and put a mouseguard on...would be my advice.....of course with my luck it'll move into the house


I put bigger traps than that out and raccoons and skunks gets skinned, dogs sit their till I let them out. If they resist, I have a choke stick on them and hold the head away till I release the foot. You should be fine with a mouse trap.

Or get a cat


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## rmcpb (Aug 15, 2012)

Mouse trap will not worry anything bigger than a mouse. Might sting a bit but that is all.


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## Kavius (May 23, 2012)

If you are worried about protecting larger animals, I have used a home-made version of the plastic boxes with a lot of success. It also turned out to be a lot more humane to the mice.

I have a pet rabbit that runs around the house. He chases mice, but he's old and blind... I wanted to put traps out, but had concerns about the rabbit getting a broken foot.

Solution:

Take a small (6x6x2 inch) cardboard box, cut 2x1inch holes on either side forming a tunnel. Place a standard snap trap inside up against one of the holes (I prefer the ones with the big plastic triggers). Place your newly formed tunnel up against a wall.

I don't even bait mine. I've watched a mouse see the box, head directly for it, and cannot resist going through the tunnel. As for humane, I haven't had a maimer since using this method.

Obviously cardboard is the wrong material for outside use...


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## Shaun Ananko (Jul 16, 2012)

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I am going to try the box mouse trap method and hope for the best. We also have a 50 degree day coming up so, maybe I will get lucky.


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

jdmidwest said:


> You should be fine with a mouse trap.





rmcpb said:


> Mouse trap will not worry anything bigger than a mouse. Might sting a bit but that is all.


I’m not sure what kind of mousetraps you use but those I use are powerful enough to nearly cut a mouse in half. Otherwise...what's the point?
A raccoon, skunk, possum or whatever will run away with the trap clamped on their tongue. When they finally get it off, much of their tongue will be lost and they will likely die. They depend on those tongues. Your neighbor’s dog? She may make it home with the trap still on….and will likely have to be put down. Have you ever seen a dog lap water with half a tongue?
I am amazed at this advice.


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## Dave Burrup (Jul 22, 2008)

Beemandan I think you are fear mongering. I have caught every cat and dog that I have ever owned in a mouse trap. I have never seen one get more than a slap on the nose. I have never seen anything get caught on the tongue. After getting hit on the nose they never bother another trap again.
Dave


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

Dave Burrup said:


> Beemandan I think you are fear mongering.


 I can assure you that any critter that sticks its tongue in a good mousetrap trap will be damaged. If you've managed to catch all sorts of animals with your traps and all they've ever gotten a tap on the nose...you've been lucky. In these matters...I choose to err on the side of caution. If that's fear mongering...so be it. If you think it is worth the chance of injuring a neighbor's pet or local wildlife....who am I to argue?


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

I can ASSURE you beemandan that the odds of ..........."A raccoon, skunk, possum or whatever will run away with the trap clamped on their tongue. When they finally get it off, much of their tongue will be lost and they will likely die. They depend on those tongues. Your neighbor’s dog? She may make it home with the trap still on….and will likely have to be put down."
is ASTRONOMICAL, if not impossible.
Trust me... I know.

Rest easy now my friend.


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

I've snapped those Victor mouse traps on my finger just to show the kids, and there is no way that it will mame or "kill" anything other than a mouse. What kind of mouse trap are you using beemandan? Sounds like you could catch a bear with that thing!


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

I don't have a dog  in this fight, but _Beemandan _is not the only person who has issues with mousetraps injuring domestic animals. From a Dog forum:



> I once assisted in the surgical amputation of the tongue of a dog. The dog tested a training mousetrap with his tongue first while the owner was gone all day. By the time the owner came home, removing a third of the tongue was the only solution.
> 
> http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/livestock-forums/pet-forum/220379-mousetraps-training-aids.html


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

Heck, it is on the internet.... so it must be true. lol

Is this the dog?


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

BeeGhost said:


> I've snapped those Victor mouse traps on my finger just to show the kids, and there is no way that it will mame or "kill" anything other than a mouse.


I use Victors. I've accidentally tripped them and mine will put a bruise on your finger. Now...I dare ya. Set one and trip it with your tongue. I'd dare you to test it on ol' Fido's tongue...but he doesn't deserve it.

As I advised the op...I'd run the mouse out and put a guard on the entrance.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Mr.Beeman said:


> Heck, it is on the internet.... so it must be true. lol





Mr.Beeman said:


> The odds ......is ASTRONOMICAL, if not impossible.


The odds of any given person buying a winning Powerball Lottery ticket is what is _really _astronomical, but that doesn't stop millions of people. And eventually, _somebody _collects.



Mr.Beeman said:


> Trust me... I know.


You haven't provided any information as to why we should trust _you_, who after all, is just another anonymous person on the internet!


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## FlowerPlanter (Aug 3, 2011)

If it get above 45 deg go in and get him. If it get away it might come back.

Top entrence will keep mice out and make it hard for skunks to feed.


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## jdmidwest (Jul 9, 2012)

beemandan said:


> I’m not sure what kind of mousetraps you use but those I use are powerful enough to nearly cut a mouse in half. Otherwise...what's the point?
> A raccoon, skunk, possum or whatever will run away with the trap clamped on their tongue. When they finally get it off, much of their tongue will be lost and they will likely die. They depend on those tongues. Your neighbor’s dog? She may make it home with the trap still on….and will likely have to be put down. Have you ever seen a dog lap water with half a tongue?
> I am amazed at this advice.


Funny, I have seen dogs sit all night with a #3 Duke on their paw and still walk away just fine. The toes are numb for a while till the blood starts flowing again, but they do not need amputation or put down. They don't even need to see a vet. They may favor it for a while.

A little mouse trap will get pulled off pretty easy by anything bigger than a mouse and will not be any worse for the wear.

If you are really concerned about traps, most farm stores sell nice little bricks of poison that kills them quick.


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## Riverratbees (Feb 10, 2010)

Kill it and dont give it a thought.


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

beemandan said:


> I use Victors. I've accidentally tripped them and mine will put a bruise on your finger. Now...I dare ya. Set one and trip it with your tongue. I'd dare you to test it on ol' Fido's tongue...but he doesn't deserve it.
> 
> As I advised the op...I'd run the mouse out and put a guard on the entrance.


Ive never bruised my fingers setting off the small mouse sized Victor traps, ever. Now I might have some localized swelling if I was to set off a rat sized trap, but thats a different story!! 

As for a dog getting a SMALL mouse sized Victor trap stuck on its tongue..........cant see it happening. The springs are weak and a dog will step on it with its paw and pull it right off. A rat trap might hurt it a bit though.

As for me sticking my tongue on a trap..........I know better and it would probably hurt like heck..........and you have to remember, animals are A LOT tougher than humans are, well, some humans anyhow!!

I met an old trapper while goose hunting up in Tule Lake, CA. We talked for well over an hour about everything under the sun. He had some dead muskrats in the back of his truck and some boards piled up, I asked him how he traps the muskrats and what the boards with a nail protruding from the center of it is for? He took a board (it also had #1 leg traps attached to it) and put a piece of turnip on the nail, then he set one of the traps and proceded to explain what happens.........then all of a sudden the crazy fella dropped his thumb down on the pan and set the trap off!!! I jumped back probably 5 foot with eyes as big as saucers!! Him and my buddies were rolling with laughter while he opened the trap to remove his thumb!! 

I say just trap the sucker on your landing board to the hive, a dead mouse is a good mouse.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Shaun,
shovel the 18inches of snow off the top of your hive, tilt the hive back on the bottom board and the mouse will probably run out. Stick your hive tool up between the frames and drag the nest out from between the frames. The bees will be so tightly clustered that they won't bother you. Then set things back in place and add an entrance reducer to keep mice from coming back.


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## Widdy (Jan 12, 2012)

Stick a flashlight in the entrance and find him, then shoot him with a low powered BB gun.


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

Widdy said:


> Stick a flashlight in the entrance and find him, then shoot him with a low powered BB gun.


"You'll shoot your eye out kid!!":lookout:


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## Widdy (Jan 12, 2012)

BeeGhost said:


> "You'll shoot your eye out kid!!":lookout:


Then wear safety glasses


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Widdy said:


> Stick a flashlight in the entrance and find him, then shoot him with a low powered BB gun.


Do you use hammers to kill flys Widdy? How many of y'all have BB guns?


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## jdmidwest (Jul 9, 2012)

Widdy said:


> Stick a flashlight in the entrance and find him, then shoot him with a low powered BB gun.


That might ricochet off and kill one of the bees. Use a trap or poison.


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## jdmidwest (Jul 9, 2012)

sqkcrk said:


> Do you use hammers to kill flys Widdy? How many of y'all have BB guns?


I have a small collection of about 25 vintage air rifles of different power levels and 15 pistols. Some even shoot BB's, mostly just pellets.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Well, there's one person. Would you please ship the appropriate weapon to Morristown?

Maybe Widdy was being sarcastic.


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## Widdy (Jan 12, 2012)

sqkcrk said:


> Do you use hammers to kill flys Widdy? How many of y'all have BB guns?


No I use a shot gun for flies, you should see the wall in my house. I then take that dead fly and have it mounted and hang it on my wall like a trophy near the back door. other flies see what could happen to them and they just stay out of my house.

A BB gun is $20 at Walmart. A weak BB gun serves multiple purposes. It kills small objects in tight places, can stop the neighbors dogs for killing my chickens without wounding them, ect.

I wasn't kidding about shooting it. 

I had a gorilla crab in my 150 gal saltwater reef tank that was eating my fish and I could not catch him. A local saltwater store said one of there customers had one and stuck a BB gun in there tank and just shot it. It was either that or drain and empty the tank. It ended up dying while I was in Iraq after eating a few hundred dollars worth of fish.

Things are only as dangerous as you allow them to be.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

How many shots do you think the average person, not someone trained in firearms, would have to take to kill a mouse w/ a BB gun? I kill mice w/ my hive tool. It usually takes more than one whack. How many BBs does it take to kill a mouse, if you can hit it? I bet a mouse can take more than one body shot before dying.


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

You can use one of these. This will ONLY catch mice! I build lots of them.


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## lazy shooter (Jun 3, 2011)

Bait and set your mouse trap and set it inside a large mouth quart jar. Cut a small portion of the lid off so that just a mouse can get into the jar. Place the lid on the jar and attach it with the jar cap (referred to as a ring). I do that in my flower beds to keep from catching small birds. It will work.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Where is there any room in a single story beehive for any of these devices? Keep it simple.


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

Right on the front porch. Or you can place it on the ground somewhere close to the hive.


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## BMAC (Jun 23, 2009)

sqkcrk said:


> How many shots do you think the average person, not someone trained in firearms, would have to take to kill a mouse w/ a BB gun? I kill mice w/ my hive tool. It usually takes more than one whack. How many BBs does it take to kill a mouse, if you can hit it? I bet a mouse can take more than one body shot before dying.


Excellent safety point Mark. Everyone needs to understand how to user THEIR power tools safely and correctly before operating them. We see this as common sense and often dont give it much thought, but all too often people are hurt, or hurt others from misuse of tools or simply not understanding the safety issues involved with such tools.

Regardless of the tool being used to get rid of said mouse, I know it has been mentioned twice on this thread but heres a third. REMEMBER your MOUSE GUARD!


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