Controlling mice and ants...

[Wayne02]

How do you control mice and ants? Seems like we have some mice under the house (I think they like the insulation in the floor joists) this year and I want them gone but don't want to harm our cat and dog who spend time outside in the yard. What do you use to control mice?

The black ants have arrived with the warm weather and are out in full force around the house and driveway. How do I kill these things and not harm the cat/dog?

Thanks

[mamita]

under the house we put poison, our dogs can't get in there. outside...I bless the many feral cats. some folks complain about them, I welcome them for mice and chipmunk control.

ants. geez...I used to use Seven dust, but this year they just seem oblivious to it. I wish diazinon was still on the market! I've heard many things...from putting table salt around the foundation, to vinegar. I'm not getting them in the house as yet, but I sure have the bumper crop 'nested' in ant colonies all thru some of my flowerbeds. ick...didn't even plant there this year.

[Cocinera]

I can't help you with the mice, but I have had very good luck with an equal mixture of 20 Mule Team Borax and sugar. I sprinkle it around the ant beds - and ta da - gone. This even works for eliminating fire ants - at least here in North Texas.

[turtlehead]

Mint (a few drops of essential oil) or moth balls for the mice.

[mama2littleman]

I use DE, This product specifically for ants:

Diatect V Organic Insect Control

A powerful blend of natural pyrethrins (0.5%) and diatomaceous earth, Diatect V provides quick control of a long list of insect pests. Safe for people and pets. Contains no synthetic ingredients and is approved for organic use. For gardens use 8 oz. Diatect V / 100 sq. ft. Use in animal quarters at 3-20 oz. / 1,000 sq. ft. On lawns use 1 lb / 1,000 sq. ft. Does not contain PBO.


Here's the website for the company:

http://www.diatect.com/organic-insect-control.php

For mice - old fashioned mice traps.

Nikki

[airotciv]

I can't go to ants, we have few. But we use mouse traps, in the house, and Decon under the house. Now the best way to get rid of mice. Two years ago I bought, this new kind of mouse trap and we haven't seen a mouse since. Not that we want mice, but I would like to try it out.

[Paul Wheaton]

As for the ants, I got rid of some sugar ants this year and sort of journaled about it if it is of any help: http://www.permies.com/permaculture-...tter-care/ants

About mice: the best stuff I've read has been in this forum. Good ole mouse traps are probably the best - that way the mouse doesn't go die somewhere and stink the place up. I would check the trap daily, and when I had a mouse, I would feed it to the chickens.

If you have dozens or hundreds of mice, there was once a thread in these forums that had some fantastic information on barrels with water at the bottom.

[Wayne02]

Thankfully we don't have dozens of mice, yet. It doesn't help matters that our cat is a great mouser except for the fact that she likes to play with them and prolong their death over several days. She brings them into the house from outside and lets them go so she can have a play toy for a couple of days. Just this morning I took one of them out of my sons room that the cat was playing with last night. It was not dead but traumatized enough that I could catch it. If we don't happen to notice the cat has one it will eventually die somewhere. She used to play with them for a few days outside and then when they were dead she would leave them in front of the door for us, but I guess that was not enough drama for her.

[Wayne02]

I'm confused about the application of the DE type product. What I've read speaks of applying to plants and the like. What I have is ants congregating by my front door on the cement entryway. They go in an out of the cracks in the concrete and the concrete house foundation wall.

Do the ants need to be baited to the area where the DE is? How do I apply this stuff without having a big mess right at the front door where everyone enters/exits the house? Do I buy one of the puff sprayers and blow it into the cracks. or spread a layer on top of the concrete steps?

Thanks

[Paul Wheaton]

I would put a solid line along the edge and leave it there for a week.

You step over the line.

In a week, you sweep it off.

[scooter]

For mice they have this new kind of trap that we purchased several of. It is a box and it has a hole in it and when they go in it they can't get back out of it. We placed them around the outside of the house and the outside of several of our out buildings. This way all your pets are safe. You have to check them about once a week to empty the boxes, more checking in summer in the heat.

We have had excellent results with these boxes and no mice in the house.

[mama2littleman]

Originally Posted by Paul Wheaton

I would put a solid line along the edge and leave it there for a week.

You step over the line.

In a week, you sweep it off.

Exactly!

Nikki

[Paul Wheaton]

I suppose it is a bit like going hunting with a rifle. Without knowledge about bullets and aiming, a rifle turns out to be a remarkably poor hunting tool. I suppose one could try to chase down a deer and hit it with the rifle - but that will probably make one think that using a rifle to hunt deer will never work.

And then some people get just enough knowledge to make things worse. They now have a hole in their foot and some holes in their car. They might now be more convinced than ever that using a rifle to hunt deer will never work.

And with just slightly more knowledge, the rifle becomes the best tool, by far, for hunting deer.

DE works 100 times better with the smallest bit of knowledge.