New mousetrap is Muttley's oyster

I got two electronic ultrasonic mouse repellers and a "Tomcat" live catch
multi-mouse trap at Tractor Supply Company last Thursday. I plugged in the
repellers, one downstairs and one in the attic, but the mice are still
running around and driving me and Muttley nutzo.

My multiple catch trap is a little different than these, and it cost about
$20:
http://www.backyardstyle.com/shop/in...p-flypage-5218
http://www.tomcatbrand.com/product/2...tch-mouse-trap

On Friday night, I set the mechanical trap near the sink where some of the
mice come in, and Saturday morning there was a mouse in it. I took it with
me on Muttley's walk, and let the mouse out on top of the hill, but Muttley
snatched it and dispatched it. He played with it like a cat, even tossing
it around and rolling on it. I don't blame him - these mice are very
annoying.

Saturday evening I went out for some groceries, and when I got back, the
trap was pulled apart on Muttley's bed, and there was a dead mouse next to
it. I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage. It was pretty badly scratched up,
and one small piece was broken, but it still seemed to work, so I put it in
a different place harder for Muttley to get at.

Later, I found a mouse in it, but an hour later it was gone. Apparently the
broken piece was necessary. So today I fixed it with a steel pin and epoxy,
and it seemed OK, so I put it back in service. I went out for some
firewood, and as I was coming back in, I heard the distinctive sound of
plastic, and caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him to
get at.

BTW: Here's a joke I found on
http://www.piercecollege.edu/faculty...rls/Jokes.html while looking for
this trap:

Mouse Trap
A technology buff spent a good long while puzzling over the
overly-vague ad in 'Popular Engineering' for a ball-bearing
mousetrap. He tried to figure out how it could possibly work,
then finally gave up thinking and just sent away for one.

A week later, a tomcat arrived via parcel post.


Paul and Muttley

In article ,
"Paul E. Schoen" wrote:

I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage.

caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him to
get at.

Where on earth do you think it's fair or reasonable to use a live catch
trap, and expect a dog, who you've ENCOURAGED to kill mice, to leave it
alone? What do you think he thinks you're scolding him for? Truly
Paul, you've hit a new low.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

On Feb 18, 3:31 am, "Paul E. Schoen" wrote:
I got two electronic ultrasonic mouse repellers and a "Tomcat" live catch
multi-mouse trap at Tractor Supply Company last Thursday. I plugged in the
repellers, one downstairs and one in the attic, but the mice are still
running around and driving me and Muttley nutzo.

My multiple catch trap is a little different than these, and it cost about
$20:http://www.backyardstyle.com/shop/in...tch-mouse-trap

On Friday night, I set the mechanical trap near the sink where some of the
mice come in, and Saturday morning there was a mouse in it. I took it with
me on Muttley's walk, and let the mouse out on top of the hill, but Muttley
snatched it and dispatched it. He played with it like a cat, even tossing
it around and rolling on it. I don't blame him - these mice are very
annoying.

Saturday evening I went out for some groceries, and when I got back, the
trap was pulled apart on Muttley's bed, and there was a dead mouse next to
it. I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage. It was pretty badly scratched up,
and one small piece was broken, but it still seemed to work, so I put it in
a different place harder for Muttley to get at.

Later, I found a mouse in it, but an hour later it was gone. Apparently the
broken piece was necessary. So today I fixed it with a steel pin and epoxy,
and it seemed OK, so I put it back in service. I went out for some
firewood, and as I was coming back in, I heard the distinctive sound of
plastic, and caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him to
get at.

BTW: Here's a joke I found onhttp://www.piercecollege.edu/faculty/shapirls/Jokes.htmlwhile looking for
this trap:

Mouse Trap
A technology buff spent a good long while puzzling over the
overly-vague ad in 'Popular Engineering' for a ball-bearing
mousetrap. He tried to figure out how it could possibly work,
then finally gave up thinking and just sent away for one.

A week later, a tomcat arrived via parcel post.

Paul and Muttley

Many years ago I had a multi-mouse trap. We tried baiting it with
everything we could think of and it would not catch any mice. We
eventually gave up on it and put it on a shelf in the garage. A year
later, we discovered a very large collection of skeletons while
cleaning the garage.

Nick

wrote in message
...

Many years ago I had a multi-mouse trap. We tried baiting it with
everything we could think of and it would not catch any mice. We
eventually gave up on it and put it on a shelf in the garage. A year
later, we discovered a very large collection of skeletons while
cleaning the garage.

Nick

You are not supposed to bait this kind of trap. You place it along the edge
of a wall where mice usually run, and they go into one of the side
openings. There is a little ramp, and when they get to a second ramp, it
tips forward, and the first ramp tips up, blocking the entrance. The only
way to go at this point is through a hole that was exposed when the mouse
tripped the second ramp, and once through the hole into the main
compartment, the ramps reset, and there is no exit.

The trap didn't catch any mice last night, but it's been warmer, so they
might be more inclined to stay outside, and maybe the repellers are
starting to work.

Paul and Muttley

"Janet Boss" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Paul E. Schoen" wrote:

I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage.

caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him
to
get at.

Where on earth do you think it's fair or reasonable to use a live catch
trap, and expect a dog, who you've ENCOURAGED to kill mice, to leave it
alone? What do you think he thinks you're scolding him for? Truly
Paul, you've hit a new low.

Muttley is not that effective at catching and killing mice, so if he learns
to avoid that as well as leaving the mousetrap alone, that's OK. He's
learned not to mess with other things, like computer cords, by my scolding
him. But the best solution will be to put the trap where he can't get to
it.

I made sure I banged on the plastic as I was scolding him, so he might
associate that with my displeasure. I'm pretty sure he will not have any
aversion to catching and killing a mouse running free. If it's in
something, like a box or a bag, I'd rather he didn't tear into it to get
the mouse.

Muttley was a little better behaved on his walk today. Maybe it was the
warm weather, or maybe he was being more attentive because I had scolded
him and he knew he had limits and was looking to me a little more for
guidance and approval.

Paul and Muttley

On Feb 18, 1:27 pm, "Paul E. Schoen" wrote:
wrote in message

...



Many years ago I had a multi-mouse trap. We tried baiting it with
everything we could think of and it would not catch any mice. We
eventually gave up on it and put it on a shelf in the garage. A year
later, we discovered a very large collection of skeletons while
cleaning the garage.

Nick

You are not supposed to bait this kind of trap. You place it along the edge
of a wall where mice usually run, and they go into one of the side
openings. There is a little ramp, and when they get to a second ramp, it
tips forward, and the first ramp tips up, blocking the entrance. The only
way to go at this point is through a hole that was exposed when the mouse
tripped the second ramp, and once through the hole into the main
compartment, the ramps reset, and there is no exit.

The trap didn't catch any mice last night, but it's been warmer, so they
might be more inclined to stay outside, and maybe the repellers are
starting to work.

Paul and Muttley

Perhaps I should have been clearer. The one I had was similar but not
the same. The instructions were to use bait, and the mouse was trapped
before it would reach the bait. But it never worked once when we were
using bait, but caught several when it was sitting on the shelf in the
garage.

Any mouse trap, ideally, should be placed in a known path for mice
such as along the wall.

Nick

"Paul E. Schoen" wrote in message
...
I got two electronic ultrasonic mouse repellers and a "Tomcat" live catch
multi-mouse trap at Tractor Supply Company last Thursday. I plugged in the
repellers, one downstairs and one in the attic, but the mice are still
running around and driving me and Muttley nutzo.

My multiple catch trap is a little different than these, and it cost about
$20:
http://www.backyardstyle.com/shop/in...p-flypage-5218
http://www.tomcatbrand.com/product/2...tch-mouse-trap

On Friday night, I set the mechanical trap near the sink where some of the
mice come in, and Saturday morning there was a mouse in it. I took it with
me on Muttley's walk, and let the mouse out on top of the hill, but
Muttley
snatched it and dispatched it. He played with it like a cat, even tossing
it around and rolling on it. I don't blame him - these mice are very
annoying.

Saturday evening I went out for some groceries, and when I got back, the
trap was pulled apart on Muttley's bed, and there was a dead mouse next to
it. I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while
I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage. It was pretty badly scratched
up,
and one small piece was broken, but it still seemed to work, so I put it
in
a different place harder for Muttley to get at.

Later, I found a mouse in it, but an hour later it was gone. Apparently
the
broken piece was necessary. So today I fixed it with a steel pin and
epoxy,
and it seemed OK, so I put it back in service. I went out for some
firewood, and as I was coming back in, I heard the distinctive sound of
plastic, and caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him
to
get at.


sounds like he thinks its a treat puzzle. yuck to muttley the mouser!!

"Paul E. Schoen" wrote in message
...
I got two electronic ultrasonic mouse repellers and a "Tomcat" live catch
multi-mouse trap at Tractor Supply Company last Thursday. I plugged in the
repellers, one downstairs and one in the attic, but the mice are still
running around and driving me and Muttley nutzo.

My multiple catch trap is a little different than these, and it cost about
$20:
http://www.backyardstyle.com/shop/in...p-flypage-5218
http://www.tomcatbrand.com/product/2...tch-mouse-trap

On Friday night, I set the mechanical trap near the sink where some of the
mice come in, and Saturday morning there was a mouse in it. I took it with
me on Muttley's walk, and let the mouse out on top of the hill, but
Muttley
snatched it and dispatched it. He played with it like a cat, even tossing
it around and rolling on it. I don't blame him - these mice are very
annoying.

Saturday evening I went out for some groceries, and when I got back, the
trap was pulled apart on Muttley's bed, and there was a dead mouse next to
it. I yelled at Muttley, told him that was a "NO!", and put him out while
I
cleaned the mess and surveyed the damage. It was pretty badly scratched
up,
and one small piece was broken, but it still seemed to work, so I put it
in
a different place harder for Muttley to get at.

Later, I found a mouse in it, but an hour later it was gone. Apparently
the
broken piece was necessary. So today I fixed it with a steel pin and
epoxy,
and it seemed OK, so I put it back in service. I went out for some
firewood, and as I was coming back in, I heard the distinctive sound of
plastic, and caught Muttley in the act of once again cracking open his
"oyster" to get at the furry critter that had probably been inside. This
time he did not do as much damage, but I let him know I didn't like his
behavior, and I put the trap back, trying to make it even harder for him
to
get at.

BTW: Here's a joke I found on
http://www.piercecollege.edu/faculty...rls/Jokes.html while looking for
this trap:

Mouse Trap
A technology buff spent a good long while puzzling over the
overly-vague ad in 'Popular Engineering' for a ball-bearing
mousetrap. He tried to figure out how it could possibly work,
then finally gave up thinking and just sent away for one.

A week later, a tomcat arrived via parcel post.


Paul and Muttley

How do you think you two would get along with a cat?

OTH, if he has displayed cat like behavior with the mouse (I had a husky
chow that "killed" things in the same manner), perhaps the behavior could be
encouraged and he could become a fine mouser.

I think it's desert people who do that with Afghans and rabbits.

Kind regards,

(the)duckster

(the)duckster wrote:

How do you think you two would get along with a cat?

I believe that Muttley's history with cats is Not Good.

I think it's desert people who do that with Afghans and rabbits.

I somehow don't think that coursing is quite the same thing as
catching mice.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

In article NJAuj.4352$0%3.1857@trnddc06,
"\(the\)duckster" wrote:


How do you think you two would get along with a cat?

Paul's cat met it's demise because Paul wouldn't get out of bed to let
her in at night. Let's not suggest he get another.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com