Mouse in house - scratching in wall and ceiling
I'm hearing what sounds like a mouse in one wall on the first floor of the house and in the ceiling adjacent to that wall. The scratching sounds only seem to happen at night over the last couple of weeks. There are no obvious openings (but it has been very cold outside these last few weeks so I'm sure a mouse could find a way). I see no signs (droppings) anywhere in the house. Because the mouse is behind drywall how can I go about getting rid of it? I don't want to have to break down the wall. You can do a search on this forum for mouse control. Trapping is the most recommended option. Placing baits and poisons indoors is not recommened because mice can die indoors inside wall and other inconspucous areas and you have to live with odor until animal completely decomposes. First off you might have to cut open the wall. I deal with this problem frequently. There are three things to rid it. The mouse finally chews it way out, it dies, or have it removed. If the mouse chews it way through you probably will never find the hole and it wont be a problem. but their always is a possibility of them chewing on a wire if one is present in the section they were stuck in. They usually fall down in between two studs and cant climb back out. We would drill holes in each section and use a boroscope to see what is in each void if you called us to get rid of it. The misconception is if anything dies in your wall smell it for weeks. That is not true. Things die in peoples houses and they never know it. I have gotten into walls and found families of birds, mice, etc. You would smell the birds most likely, but one mouse, you probably will not notice anything. The body mass of a mouse is so small and being enclosed in a wall should mask any smell. I just did a house where three little mice were decomposed and the owners did nto smell anything. They heard the sound and called a few days later and didn't want them in their. If you have had not problems with mice, it probably just a stuck one. It is up to you in what you want to do, but if the noise does not go away in a while it might be an infestation making travel holes. If it is stuck you should hear it all day. Also, when using bait 75% of the time you will not smell, hear, or see anything, as in dead mice. Just make sure you keep the bait from children or pets and READ THE LABEL on any chemicals you use. Hi, I live in a townhouse complex and have been experiencing a problem similar to yours. The sounds are coming from my ceiling. Above me is a two-story townhouse, and the tenants upstairs claim they don't hear any noises. I, on the other hand, can hear them all throughout my unit, especially in the wee hours of the morning. The sounds are so loud, they have awakened me several times, and I'm a fairly sound sleeper! In fact, tonight the sounds were louder than ever, which prompted me to e-mail my property manager and do some research on the internet, which is how I ended up here. The sounds are mostly scratching sounds, but lately, I can hear scurrying sounds and what sounds like the pitter-patter of feet. Tonight, it sounded like something even fell, and I was almost certain the ceiling would cave in--that's how loud it was. The sounds occurred at about 4:30 am, and they mostly occur about this time (3 am to 9 am). They start occurring again towards evening, which seem to indicate nocturnal activities by whatever's in there, but I HAVE heard some faint scratching sounds even in the afternoons. I have e-mailed my property manager many, many times in the last couple of weeks, so hopefully something will be done about it. It seems like I'm the only one who is hearing these sounds. I see no visible evidence of rodents (ie., no holes in my walls or ceilings, no droppings, etc.) No, the only evidence I have are the super annoying sounds I've heard. I just hope the critters are not going to chew through any electrical wires or anything like that. With my luck, nothing won't be done until the creatures (it sounds like there's more than one) have actually chewed right through my ceiling! Anyway, I just wanted to know... have you solved your problem yet? If so, can you offer some suggestions as to how you did it? The pest control guy who was here earlier this week said the outside perimeter was secure, which I find very difficult to believe, since I am the one who has to live with this problem. I am starting to get desperate for answers. Thanks in advance for any suggestions. Allan When dealing with rodents it is very hard to tell where one would be getting in. It amazes me that the exterminator just inspected and left without doing anything. I would try another company. Did the exterminator go up on a ladder? If not he did not inspect well enough to tell what is actually causing the noises. If it is very loud it very well could be squirrels. Squirrel activity is easy to pinpoint because of their size and they are active all day around the entry/exit point on the outside. But, with the nocturnalness of the noises I would say mice, or rats. 9 times out of 10 not rats, but don't count it out. Now for mice in the void between upper tenants and yourself. Holes should be drilled in the voids and a rodenticide tracking powder should be the best bet. It will kill whatever mice or rodents are up there. People will tell you that the smell would be bad, but most likely you would not smell anything. The body mass of a mouse is very small and enclosed, the smell should not even be noticeable. It all depends on how many there are. But, look at the other options: Trapping , or baiting. Trapping would be time consuming and large holes would have to be cut, I would not advise. Baiting would kill them same as dust, but large holes would needed to be cut. I am saying these techniques guessing the entry/exit points cannot be found. Every state has different laws against pesticide use, I would call around different pest companies and see what they say. Many companies would not like to touch this job because it might be time consuming and problematic for the company. My company handles these types of things, we are small but take care of the problem. I have a rule: If they don't have ladders, don't hire them. Most pest companies that don't have ladders are lazy, I believe anyways because most animal problems are above human height. Any questions let me know. weekendwarrior0, Thanks for your lengthy reply. I was just awakened now (at 5:30 am) by what sounded like chunks of wood falling onto my ceiling. I've heard stuff being dropped by my upstairs neighbour before, but these were usually dull, muffled thuds followed by the sounds of human footsteps. The sound I heard tonight was very loud and clear, like it was just on the other side of my ceiling! They were followed by sounds of scurrying and scratching. From time to time, I also sometimes hear what sounds to me like pellets are being dropped, which bounce around. These also occur in the wee hours of the night, while everyone else is asleep. So you may be on to something when you say it might be squirrels. I shudder to think if there are rats right above my head! I think the pest control guy that was hired is either not taking my complaints seriously or else the full extent of my complaints has not been communicated to him. I was supposed to meet with him last Tuesday--I wasted an entire afternoon waiting for him--and then I found out the next day that he decided that the perimeter was secure and didn't feel the need to go into any unit or meet anybody. Needless to say, I was very frustrated and disappointed by this. You seem to know what you are doing. Are you a professional pest control person by trade? If so, would you mind if I show the pest control guy (if I do eventually meet him) what you wrote? These sounds are literally driving me to tears because they are depriving me of a good night's rest as well as being worried about major structural damage being done right above me. And the thing is, no one seems to really care since I am the only one who is reporting these sounds in my ceiling. And to make matters worse, the people upstairs are extremely shy or something like that, because they don't answer the door whenever I knock--even though I know they are home. asmack, I feel your pain! I live in a 3 story apt complex in northern VA and I am having similar problems! I live on the first floor and almost 3 months ago I started hearing what sounded like mice in the wall behind my bedroom wall (between me and another unit). I would hear them scurry through periodically through the night (almost like making a beeline from one unit to the next). Then about a month ago I started hearing one in the ceiling. It sounded like it was just passing through...I would be laying there...hearing nothing...and then I would hear a little pop noise...(my brain thinks they are squeezing through a small hole)...and then it would run from one side to the other. And then it was gone! Well...now I have more than one little creature up there scurrying around all over the place. Around and around and around. Almost like in circles up there. Dragging stuff...pushing stuff around. I swear they are rearranging up there! I don't think that they are squirrels...we don't have any trees nearby and I don't actually think I have seen a squirrel in the 5 years I have lived here. I have complained on at least 7 occassions to my rental office and they always come in and put glue traps in my apt. I have tried to explain...I don't have mice IN my apt...they are above my apt!! I begged them to put traps outside where I think the mice might be coming in but instead they put traps out on my patio (not near my bedroom). As soon as the snow melts, I intend to move their trap over by my bedroom but I really am at my wits end. I actually met the exterminator and he and our maintenance guy actually had the guts to tell me that what I was hearing was the heat coming on. And then they put down yet MORE glue traps. Because it is an apt, there is nothing I can do as far as drilling holes in the wall. Are there any other suggestions? I have air vents in the ceiling. I took the grating off and looked around up there but the vent is directly connected to a flimsy hose at a steep angle. I can't see any way to get to the actual area above the ceiling. Any ideas? And since I am getting no useful response from my apt complex, is there anybody I can complain to? Thanks! Mebbie, I also feel your pain. I met with the pest control person yesterday, and they're going to put a trap. They think it's a squirrel or a rat. I suggested drilling holes and injecting rodenticide as per weekendwarrior's advice, but the pest control person suggested this can't be done. If the trap doesn't work, I will print this page off and show it to them and my property manager. A few hours after the pest control person left, the loudest sounds yet occurred in my ceiling. It sounded again like crumbling pieces of wood falling on my ceiling. Some metallic sounds were also heard. This lasted for several minutes, of which I have recorded here: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/mouse/rodent.mp3 My upstairs neighbor has carpeted floors and no pets, so it's not coming from her unit. Like I said in my earlier post, I've heard stuff being dropped before upstairs, but it's usually very dull and muffled. These noises, however, are right on the other side of the ceiling, followed by scratching and scurrying sounds. The microphone which I used to make the above recording was at least a good three feet away from the ceiling--that's how loud these sounds are! Whatever is up there, it's causing some major damage. Needless to say, I am starting to get a little desperate. I have e-mailed my property manager the sound file and hopefully this will communicate to him the seriousness of the matter. I suggest you do the same--make a recording if possible. Document every communication you have with your property manager and pest control person. If nothing is still not done about it, I don't know what else to do... take legal action perhaps? I'm definitely not going to wait until some electrical wires are chewed by the critter, thereby causing a fire. If a fire does occur, or if my ceiling starts collapsing on me, at least this way I have proof that I tried in vain to communicate the seriousness of the situation, and this would definitely go a long way towards helping me in any legal situation. Needless to say, I would like to avoid any legal action of any kind, but if I have to get tough about it, I will. I'll keep everyone posted as to my continuing harrowing experience... You guys really have me intrigued. Especially you Asmack with your audio clip. Those noises do indeed sound really loud. I would say it's definitely not mice or rats, squirrels or a raccoon perhaps. It's difficult sometimes to deal with an animal or rodent in a void space, especially if there is no access to these areas, such as a finished ceiling. If it was just mice in a wall or something like that I would just drill a couple of holes and inject a tracking powder, usually that does the trick. But a squirrel or raccoon in a finished ceiling - man, I don't know what to tell you. How long has the animal been in the ceiling now? If it's been a while - more than a week - then I would say it has to be travelling back and forth from the outside to find food. There must be some kind of entry point outside where they could place a live trap. Usually upon visual inspection one can see an entry point from the outside. If the pest control dude says he can't see any openings, I would go outside and look for myself. Mebbie - has the maintenance guy caught any mice on those glueboards at all? If not, then there must be a way for them to take that ceiling vent back off and disconnect the ductwork. This would allow them to at least try to put some bait or traps up in the ceiling. Traps would be preferable, as they could remove the dead mice once they're caught. But baits would be used more often I would say because they are....ummm....less labour intensive. Alot of guys would just rather throw some bait up there and that would be the end of it.(Hopefully) Good luck guys, hope you can get some results. Jay Thanks Jay - I complained AGAIN to the rental office today and I think I used the magic word...infestation. They sent somebody out today (I wasn't here) and I don't know if he actually heard it this time but all of the sudden we now have an official extermination of the entire building going on tomorrow. Maybe the idea of a bunch of baby mice in the ceiling got to them. Anyway, I have hopes that they will do something now. Several years ago I had field mice coming out of a construction site across the street. They were coming through my neighbor's apt and getting into mine through a hole behind the stove. My neighbor has 3 ferrets so I think that has something to do with why the mice never stick around for long over there. Anyway, at that time I was catching mice at roughly 3 or 4 a day. It got bad enough that I had to move my entire pantry into the trunk of my car because the mice were eating all my food. The rental office told me that they were cute and I should think of them as Stuart Little. I resorted to taking 3 dead bodies over to the rental office and suddenly all the holes in my apt were fixed. Since then I have never seen or heard a mouse until these past 3 months. There has been a new construction site next door and now that I think about it, I think it started about 3 months ago. Anyway...the long answer to your question is no...there have been no mice showing up in my gluetraps. I even put actual traps outside by my hot water heater (in a closet on my patio) and no mice turned up there either. Anyway, I have hopes for tomorrow. I'll keep you updated on what happens/doesn't happen. Thanks for the moral support! Mebbie PS asmack, that sound file is impressive. My sounds are not as loud...it sounds like something is rearranging the duct work in your ceiling! I hear lots of little feet running around and often the sounds of things being dragged around but not nearly as loud as what you have! It's been a week since the squirrel traps were put in place, with no results. The pest control guy came again today and said he is baffled. He suggested that it might be pipes expanding and contracting. I've been here almost 7 years (I'm the first and only owner of this unit) and have never heard such noises. If it is pipes, then how do you explain the scratching sounds, the sound of falling wood and metal, the pitter-patter of feet traveling all around my entire unit's ceilings, the scurrying sounds, etc. Needless to say, we're both completely mystified as to the true nature of the sounds I am hearing. The sounds are still occurring, mostly at or before dawn, but also at noon, late afternoons, early evenings, etc. If it's an animal, wouldn't it have a set sleeping/waking/activity pattern? We walked around the outer perimeter again looking for possible entrances. We're investigating one area underneath the stairs that leads to the upstairs neighbour's place. Some panelling has to be removed first, though. I'll post any progress regarding this. Meanwhile, here are some pictures of what I'm referring to: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/rodent/ The pest guy suggested cutting a hole in my ceiling as a last resort. The hole would have to be big enough to stick his head through to see what's up there. Needless to say, I don't want to do this if I can avoid it, but if that is the only remaining option, I may have to go through with it. Oh, woah is me! The sounds are still occurring, mostly at or before dawn, but also at noon, late afternoons, early evenings, etc. If it's an animal, wouldn't it have a set sleeping/waking/activity pattern? Generally speaking, activity is mainly heard most at dusk and dawn. That being said, I don't know about your place but at my place squirrels are active all day long. I don't know what else to tell you without seeing it myself. I'm fresh out of ideas. Just curious, where are these traps being placed anyways? Jay One of the snap traps was placed at the gap right at the rear and bottom of the stairs that lead upstairs: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/rodent/index-Pages/Image1.html You can't see it in the picture, but it was there for a week. The squirrel cage trap was placed along the fence between me and one of my next door neigbours: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/mouse/index-Pages/Image5.html Again, you cannot see it here, but it was there for a week as well. Now, the pest guy has placed the squirrel trap in a tree in my back porch and the snap trap behind my bedroom window in the back. We'll see how it goes. I hope these noises go away soon because my nerves are beginning to become frayed. I can't escape the noises because they can occur anywhere in my unit at any time. Listen to this, folks: http://homepage.mac.com/rodentsinmyceiling/rodents.mp3 This recording is raw and unedited. At about the 5:20 mark onward, you can hear... SQUEAKING sounds! This is undoubtedly (at least to me) proof positive that whatever's up there, it's an animal, and it's alive. I've never heard pipes sound like that, that's for sure! Oh my God! The racket that it creates! This happened between 3:30 pm and 4:00 pm. It would have gone on longer but I got tired of holding the mic up. After stopping the recording, I rapped the ceiling with my fists a few times and the noises stopped. For this recording, I held the mic up right to the ceiling. A couple of times I had to switch arms because I was getting tired--you can no doubt tell when I did this. I also dropped the recorder once. However, these instances were very brief, and you can be assured that the vast majority of the recording consists of noises solely coming from the other side of the ceiling. It sounds to me like there's no insulation at all up there. These sounds were crystal clear, sounding like they were just on the other side of the ceiling. Oh dear God. Please have mercy on me and end these noises soon. I am getting very little sleep--I can't even take an afternoon nap for crying out loud! I can't watch movies, I can't think, I've lost weight because of all this--I am seriously getting very stressed out over this, and can you blame me? God I hope this can be resolved soon. Anyone else out there have any ideas what we can do? The traps that were setup yesterday are still empty. SQUEAKING sounds! This is undoubtedly (at least to me) proof positive that whatever's up there, it's an animal, and it's alive. I agree. It is definitely an animal of some sort. This is the audio clip that you want to play for your landlord. There is no arguing that something isn't alive up there. There may be no way around having to cut a hole in the ceiling to gain necessary access. I hope that something gets done soon for your sake. Jay The question is: what is it? The pest control guy said that mice make squeaking and scratching sounds, but they don't push around objects or make a big racket like what I'm hearing. He said that rats also generally don't make such noises and are nocturnal (the noises I am hearing occur at just about any time of the day now). Squirrels make a big racket, but then, why aren't the squirrel and snap traps working? Also, are squirrels known to make squeaking sounds? So if it's not mice, rats or squirrels, what is it? Why aren't the traps working? It's gotta come out sometime, right? Neither I nor any of my neighbors have reported seeing any squirrels or rats around. Maybe the pest control guy and I can be even more diligent in looking for the point of entrance. So far, the only possibility (according to the pest guy) is underneath the front stairs. If we remove the panels covering the backside of the stairs, I'm sure we will be able to find a hole. The question is this: If we find the hole, should we make it bigger so that we can put traps or poison in? Or do we seal it in and hope the thing(s) die in there from starvation? If there is no hole, then I would really, really like to investigate more closely the insides of the units above and beside me for signs of entrance there. It's gotta be going in and out of SOME hole, right? Also, my next door neighbor's two little dogs have been barking incessantly the last couple of days. They usually don't bark unless someone is at the door, but for the past two days they have been barking non-stop for about half-an-hour until their owner (who lives by herself) comes home. Perhaps they are hearing or seeing things related to what I'm hearing? The pest control guy came again today, along with the contractor. They took apart the panelling that covers the backside of the stairs and found no hole. About 20 minutes before they came, at about 8:45 am, I heard the loudest sounds to date. Loud, clanging sounds--destructive sounds, followed by squeaking and scratching noises. Definitely animal noises and not pipes! The pest control guy and the contractor could not find ANY signs of entry from the outside. There is no visible, physical evidence of rodents of any kind inside my unit: no droppings, no holes in my walls or ceiling, etc. I've had traps in my unit for several weeks now (rat traps, mouse traps, fresh peanut butter, etc.) with NO results whatsoever. The rat, squirrel and mouse traps placed outside my unit have also yielded nothing after two weeks or more. Our next step? We have to talk to the upstairs neighbour. This is the last course of action before cutting a hole in my ceiling. It HAS to be my upstairs neighbour--I can't think of anything else. Her unit has NOT been thoroughly checked yet, so it HAS to be the source of entry. Either that, or it's one of my next door neighbours to the left and right of me. Needless to say, this whole ordeal is VERY, VERY frustrating. Oh asmack, I am so sorry! I only have some mice and I feel like I am going crazy so I know for sure that you are tired and frustrated beyond imagination. Since I last wrote, my mouse has multiplied. (yuck!) Instead of 1 little mouse, I have several running around over my head. It's like romper room up there. My neighbor actually had a mouse in her bedroom (adjacent to mine where I am hearing the mice above my head) under her bed. Or at least that is what she thinks...she was too afraid to get out of the bed to look. She has ferrets so she moved their cage into her room and she hasn't had a problem since. I continue to hear the mice mostly at night (I work during the days) and sometimes in the morning before I go to work. There is a dryer vent that is above my bedroom window that I don't believe is connected to anything (never seen it open) and I *swear* that is where they are coming in. Now that i have been listening closely, I swear I can hear them coming through the flaps. Though, I don't know that mice have the ability to push open those flaps. Anybody have any idea? Anyway, on the suggestion of my neighbor, the apt complex has bought those mice deterrant things that emit a high pitched noise. I am a bit jaded and doubt that it will work but I guess it doesn't hurt to try. Good luck asmack. Some progress today. After work, I spoke to the lady living above me. She said she caught a mouse a few days ago in her unit. She KNEW I was hearing things in my ceiling (we finally spoke a week-and-a-half ago); why didn't she let me know earlier? Anyway she has agreed to meet with me and the pest control guy on Monday so we can do a thorough search of her unit for holes. I REALLY, REALLY hope we find something this time because this is the best lead yet. I'll keep you posted as to the results. Mebbie, as far as those ultrasonic pest devices go, I've heard good and bad things about them, but I am getting desperate enough to try ANYTHING. If you do get one, can you please let me know the results? I don't care how much they cost; if they work, I'm getting one ASAP! I hope you and I will get rid of our pest problems soon! Tonight, shortly before 8 pm, the lady from upstairs came knocking on my door. She said she saw what looked to be a HUGE mouse or rat. I asked her how big, and she gestured with her hand about 8 inches big! She said she saw it very briefly in her kitchen and it disappeared behind one of her appliances (fridge or stove). She said it was dark in color and was VERY fast. This is by FAR the best evidence of rodents in my ceiling. We have finally actually SEEN something! Needless to say, the lady is now afraid to go back and sleep tonight. I would be too if I saw something that huge in my unit! She has no idea how it got in. My bedroom is DIRECTLY under her kitchen, so this will definitely explain why the noises originated there and have been coming mostly from there lately. I hope there's only one hole so this problem won't happen again. Now that we have finally found out where the source of the problem is, I hope to God that we can finally solve this so I can get a good night's rest for the first time in months! I am so sorry to hear about your situations... I recently went through a situation of my own with mice in my wall, so I know how frustrating it can be. Mebbie, you mentioned the dryer vent above your bedroom window... It is definitely worth having someone check into that. I had mice coming in through my dryer vent as well, and for weeks, no one believed me until they saw some activity outside for their own eyes. There was a flimsy little screen on the inside of my vent, and the mice just barged their way in. I have not had any problems since the pest control guy secured the vent for me. As for the ultrasonic devices, I read that there is no proof that they work... But I was desperate and bought a few to plug in around the house anyway. (Boy, do the salespeople at Sharper Image love me!) From my personal experience, I can tell you that while it didn't scare the mice out of my walls (before the vent was secured), it did stop them from chewing on the walls. Whenever I would hear the dreaded sound of the scratching and chewing on the other side of the wall, I would plug in my ultrasonic device and hold it up to the wall. (Having an extension cord made it easier to do so.) I swear it would stop them every time! Thank goodness, because that sound always gave me the creeps and I was paranoid that they were about to break through the wall at any moment. If I banged on the wall instead, they would stop for a few minutes, then resume a few minutes later. I hope you are able to resolve your issues soon, so you can get a good night's sleep once again! Good luck to both of you! Hmm! Interesting. I just might pick one of those ultrasonic things after all! Do you mind telling me what make and model you got and how much it cost? Edit: Just as I am writing this, I can hear sounds in my ceiling again. This time, I've heard something I've not heard before: scratching sounds in my kitchen and in my den simultaneously. That means there's more than one of them! I've suspected this before, but now I know for sure. I hope the pest guy will use strong enough poison to put these things down, and down for good! The unit that I purchased can be found here... http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/ca...html?sku=LT164 The maker of the product is Lentek and the model number is PR37, so you could probably look it up at http://www.lentek.com, as well. What I find interesting is that the tiny instruction manual that comes with the unit specifically states that the waves do not go through walls. (I wish I could find it so I could give you the exact wording.) But it seemed to work for me... I guess I must have paper thin walls or something??? Oh you poor thing! It would drive me absolutely insane if I heard scratching on more than one wall at once or if I saw a huge rodent running around my kitchen! I hope that you are able to hold them off until the pest control guy shows up on Monday and that he is able to get to the root of the problem -- for your sake and your neighbor's sake! Good luck! Oh God, I am so glad to hear that someone out there is going through the same ordeal as I am! I am so sorry that you have to go through this... I have only had this problem for about 3 days and I'm just grossed and freaked out, I can only imagine how it is for you! What's the progress? Did they inspect your upstairs neighbor's place? Did they find out what kind of animal it was? I'm dieing to know! I just moved into my apartment about a week and a half ago and I don't have all my stuff shipped from the movers yet. I have a bare kitchen, no utensils, no food except for what's stored in the fridge, and it's clean as a whistle. (I haven't even cooked in there yet). A few nights ago I was up late and heard some screeching noises... it sounded like it was almost right out my window... I didn't think anything of it until I heard pitter patter right above me... I was in my room and it almost seemed as if they were in my vents! I lay there still and immobilized for what seemed like hours as I heard it fall, travel, and scratch until it seemed like it was stuck. I couldn't sleep, I was paralyzed and didn't want to get out of my room that night. I have two cats and I was so scared that it was some big a** possum that I locked them up in their kennel! (I hate possums). Later on, with broom in hand, I finally mustered up enough courage to check in the kitchen, where it sounded like the creature had gotten stuck. The scratching noises were so loud that I thought they were crawling around in my cupboards. To make a long story short, it turns out there were no visible signs of the creature in any part of my apartment - no droppings, nothing. I tried to find a hole and there is nothing to be found - I checked the upper cabinets, the closet ceilings, everything. I can hear the scratching periodically and it's coming from a wall near my kitchen cabinets. It sounds like it's stuck behind the drywall and it must've fallen from a hole from the upper floor... I don't know... I contacted maintenance a few days ago and at first I thought it was right in my kitchen cabinet... I am going to contact them again and tell them I think it's stuck behind the drywall. The walls seem pretty thin so I'm just scared about the creature gnawing its way through it... And if it dies there, I am hoping to God that there is no odor. But like you, I can't sleep and I can't eat. I love my kitchen but I feel disgusted and disturbed by all the noise! Is this something you can break a lease over if it's not resolved? Sorry to hear about your ordeal... It must be especially frustrating for you, since you recently moved into your apartment. I was in a similar situation just two months ago... only my kitchen was fully stocked and furnished at the time. One night, the chewing was so intense that the stove was shaking! I *think* the critter is finally dead... I noticed a funky smell when I opened one of my cabinets. The good news is that it is only noticable when that particular cabinet door is opened. I am willing to put up with it for a few weeks if it means not putting up with the scratching and chewing anymore. I hope that the maintenance people are able to find the source of your problem and resolve it soon. I know what it's like to not be able to sleep or eat, and constantly being paranoid that it will chew its way through the wall. Good luck! asmack, I'm glad to hear that you've finally found some evidence. I bet you wish that you would've talked to the people upstairs before now. The pest control guy should be able to get rid of the mice/rats now that there is some evidence of them. At least it's a starting point. genesis, good luck dealing with your building managers. Hopefully they can get their pest control guy to come in and have a look at the problem for you. I would try some snap traps behind the fridge and stove, the cupboard under the sink. These are usually good spots to catch mice if they are running around the kitchen(although you say you see no evidence of them). These areas should also be innaccessible to your cats. As far as the ultrasonics go, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, however I definitely don't endorse them. Good luck to all, Jay Well, as of Friday AM, I have two medium size room ultrasonic devices made by Black Decker, that my apt complex gave me. One in my living room, the other in my bedroom. So far, I haven't noticed any difference. They are still scratching and running around up there like it's Romper Room. I am 99.9999% positive that they are coming in my dryer vent and then popping out a similar one over my neighbor's apartment. I am going to tell the apt complex that, that is the source tomorrow AM. It's sorta funny...I've read on here that some of you are afraid that they might chew through the walls...I would actually welcome my mice to chew through the walls (I definitely would feel different if I knew they were 8 inches in size...yikes!!) so I could a) prove this to my apt complex (they think I am crazy) and b) then the exterminator could pump something in there to kill these little things. They are driving me up the freaking wall! On a side note, I have heard that if the animal is small enough, it shouldn't stink for too much or too long behind the walls. It would just be larger animals or many animals that would get too offensive if they died in the walls. Good luck everybody!!! Especially you asmack! 8 inches?!?!!? Plegh!!! Mebbie Well, the pest control guy came by on Sunday and we went into the upstair neighbor's place. While we were there, we saw a mouse in her kitchen. It was small and black in color. Not the 8 inches that she claimed to see on Friday night. So it's possible she was exaggerating or just saw it from the corner of her eye. Anyway, we pulled her fridge out and the mouse actually climbed the fridge and jumped out onto the floor and ran directly underneath her dishwasher. There, the pest control guy put some glue traps and some snap traps. We found no hole, but there were definitely spaces underneath the kitchen drawers where mice could squeeze through. The pest control guy recommended getting these sealed. We found lots of evidence throughout her unit, from footprints on the lower shelves of her bookcases and mice droppings. No hole big enough for a rat, and no rat droppings. I spent Sunday afternoon checking my place again very thoroughly for evidence of mice. I found none, even after pulling my fridge and stove out. Lots of dust, but no droppings anywhere to be seen. I hadn't dusted for a couple of weeks and found no footprints. Today, the pest control guy came again to open up the panelling underneath the front outside stairs and just above my door. Here are the pictures: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/rodent/ On Friday, he told me there was no hole (see my earlier post). Well, there is no hole, but there is NO WALL there, either! Once the panelling was popped open (which was very easy to do), you could see straight in, beams, insulation and all. Shouldn't there be a wall there? The pest control guy also found rodent droppings there. So it's a no-brainer: this is how the rodents got in! Why didn't he say so on Friday? I think it's because he was looking for evidence of something bigger, like rat droppings or a hole where a cat could get in. Remember, the recordings I made seem to indicate something BIG. Anyway, since Friday night, I haven't heard the loud, crashing sounds. I still hear scratching sounds though, as well as the pitter-patter of feet. So there's still something up there. It either got in via the outside, underneath the panelling covering the backside of the stairs, or it got in through a hole underneath the cabinet housing one of my upstair neighbor's kitchen drawers. If it's just mice up there, is it possible that they are the ones making all that racket? For those who have heard the recordings, does this sound like something a little mouse can make? The squeaking, yes, but all the crashing and banging sounds, too? Here are the recordings again: http://members.shaw.ca/asmack/mouse/rodent.mp3 http://homepage.mac.com/rodentsinmyceiling/rodents.mp3 (The first one was in my living/dining room. The second one was in my bedroom. You can hear squeaking in the second recording at about the 5 minute and 20 second mark.) I'm beginning to think it's time to move. I hear Alberta is rat-free. They are also debt-free, with no sales taxes. It's sounding pretty good to me now! Asmack, if I were you I would feel more comfortable that the process of catching the rodents has started. Personally, I also thought it would've been something larger up there, due to those recordings. Maybe it is just mice making all that racket. Only time will tell now. Hopefully the pest control guy can keep busy up there catching mice. And by the way, I also have heard that Alberta is rat free. But I don't know how anybody can possibly prove that. Good luck with the trapping. Jay Okay, I'll be patient and see how this plays out, now that the pest guy will be using all the tools at his disposal. But should there be such a big gaping opening right outside above my door like that, covered only by a thin panel easily removable without requiring any tools? I've never seen anything like that in all my years. And here's a link regarding Alberta's rat-free status. Pretty impressive feat: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0331_030331_rats.html Well, today I received an e-mail from my property manager: Today I spoke with the pest control guy for an update. He said that he had been there this morning and has now caught a total of 8 mice. He is confident now that the noises you have been hearing are from mice. He has put the poison around, specifically around the pipes in your neighbour above and around the stairwells. He thinks that he will have to continue the treatment for the mice outside and of course plans will have to be put into place for the repair or installation of a bulkhead at the top of the underside of the stairs to prevent these rodents from getting back into the ceiling area. The noises have, for the most part, been less frequent and less intense the last week or so. The last time I heard the loud, crashing sounds was last Thursday (March 17). I still hear scratching sounds every now and then, but they are more faint and not as intense as before. So maybe their population is dwindling or the poison is starting to take their effect. Whatever the case, it is quieter now than just a couple of weeks ago, and I can finally start getting some sleep! Genesis, GetMiceOut and Mebbie, did you ever get your problems solved? I hope, for your sake, that you have. Anyway, I will post here again in about two weeks to let you know if the noises have gone for good or not. Hi asmack -- I'm glad to hear that you are finally able to get some sleep... It sounds like the pest control guy has made a lot of progress recently and that the management company is in the process of resolving the rest of the issues. I am out of town on business at the moment, but as of Monday night, I had not heard any signs of scratching in my walls for over a month. I am hoping that any critters that might have been in there have now gone to critter heaven. I did see a little mouse outside in the common area, but perhaps he was new and hadn't visited the baiting stations yet. As long as it is outside and doesn't find a way in, life is good. I hope that your nightmare will be ending soon. Good luck and thanks for the update! Thanks for the updates folks. I'm glad to hear that everyone is doing better these days. It just goes to show you that with a little investigating and persistence, even the worst of problems can get solved. Take care, Jay Just a quick update. Yesterday (Sunday, March 27, 2005), after about 10 days of relative silence and just faint scratching noises which were getting fainter and fainter with each passing day, I heard loud scurrying sounds once again. They were in the ceiling in my living room and in my bathroom. It sounded like something was moving against metal ducts again, and the motion was quite furious. Not as loud as during the peak time when I was making recordings, but loud enough to wake me from an afternoon nap. I guess this extermination thing is gonna take a while. These little buggers sure are stubborn survivors, that's for sure! Sorry to hear that the sounds have returned, asmack... Have they gotten around to resolving the issue with the paneling underneath your stairs yet? It sounds like you may have problems until they finally get around to doing something about that. I hope that the pest control guy is able to do his thing and that your nightmare will be over soon. Hang in there! Hi folks, I went on vacation for a week in the hopes that I would come back to no mice. No such luck. The apt complex placed rat bait above my spare bedroom dryer vent. Which is not the vent they are coming in...and it has been up there for a couple of weeks with no affect. The sonic things also had no affect. Last night I heard a variety of mice - small little feet running around and big feet that sounded like they were dragging and running into things up there. I called the rental office AGAIN today and they said It's a feature that we aren't even making you pay for! Wow...a comment made is jest can really infuriate me. Anyway, today was the final straw. The exterminator apparently came over, walked around, and walked back out. As far as I can tell, they didn't even make an effort. This has gotten bad enough that I am not even sleeping in my bedroom anymore. I sleep on my horrible pullout couch just so I can get some sleep. I have to ask how I can even justify paying rent anymore. Ugh. Anyway, I have written a nice letter that is being sent to the Regional Property Manager...and I am ccing in the Loudoun County Health Department. Incidentally, Loudoun County has a big website with information about the hantavirus. It worked in nicely in my letter. I'd like to attach copies of websites that provide information on more invasive ways to exterminate the mice. That is, is there a site that describes use of a small hole to look up in the ceiling? Can anybody make any recommendations? Asmack, I am happy to hear you are getting some results, even if they don't last long. At least you seeing (or hearing) some sort of progress. Mebbie EDIT: I take back the part about the exteriminator doing nothing...I found more glue traps behind my bed last night (that makes a total of 4 behind my bed)... Mebbie, I am so sorry for what you're going through, and I can totally sympathize. Have you tried recording the sounds? Also, you may have to get another exterminator. I hope you'll find relief from your rodent problem soon. As for my problem... Well, it's been nearly a week since I have heard any noise. The last time was around 7 am, April the 4th. Since then, not even faint scratching--nothing. And believe me, I have been listening very carefully! The pest guy said that he set up lots of traps and put enough poison to kill an army of mice. I think this is what finally did it. Now all we need to do is get that big hole sealed up so that this will never happen again. Also, the area around the pipes in my neighbor's place upstairs needs to be sealed up as well. This is the only way to ensure that mice won't ever again get into the void space between my ceiling and my neighbor's floor upstairs. At best, traps and poison are only a temporary, band-aid solution--we need to cut off the point of entrance. Anyway, if I do hear any more noises, I will definitely post again. I really, really, really hope the mice are all gone this time. I am soooo glad that we didn't have to drill 8 to 10 inch holes in my ceiling--the thought of mice and mice droppings falling through into my living space gave me the creeps! I guess I got my hopes up too soon. Just now, at 6:40 pm, I heard a loud noise in my living room that sounded like whatever is up there is back. It sounded like a large volume of wood and dust fell directly vertically onto my ceiling as it scurried very quickly across my ceiling. It was probably the loudest sounds I have ever heard to date. I had heard faint scratching noises earlier in the afternoon coming from the direction of high up and outside but these were so faint and infrequent that I dismissed them. I should have known better. if the noise comes back, I suggest getting an exorcist... I agree with asmack, Mebbie... I sounds like you should find another exterminator that is willing to take stronger measures than just putting some glue traps behind your bed. (You could have done that yourself and it is useless if the critters haven't found a way inside your unit.) I hope you are able to light a fire under your property management and get them to finally do something about your problem. Good luck and hang in there! asmack, sorry to hear about your never-ending nightmare... I hope that it ends soon! Hang in there!
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