
And if you do have a cat that hunts mice, be aware that they could catch a disease or parasite from their prey.My girlfriend came up with the idea to do this one night and we were all pretty psyched to have fun. Scared mice hiding in your walls does not resolve the problem. We didn’t strike gold looking for scientific research on domestic cat and mouse behavioral dynamics either, but we found it notable that a 2010 Scripps Research Institute study observed mice that had been bred in a lab for a hundred generations-and have never seen a cat-“reacted fearfully” when they smelled a cat. If mice responded similarly, it could complicate the infestation, with mice leaving their nest infrequently and stockpiling food, leading to odors and bugs. For example: This research was not conducted on mice specifically, but a 2016 study focused on rats found that they hoard more food when they know a predator is near. But because of the variabilities among cat personalities and their behavior with mice, and the unpredictable reaction from the mice to the presence of a cat, we really can’t recommend a cat as a primary course of action against an infestation. And there’s no denying the satisfaction of a proud cat bringing you its trophy. There’s plenty of material online about what cat breeds and dispositions make the best hunters, and exactly how cats sniff out their prey.

No guide to catching mice would be complete without discussing the most timeless mousetrap of all: a cat.
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Some people will call a pro before getting to the point of needing the RinneTrap, but for those willing to take on a large mouse infestation themselves, this trap will assist quite a bit. The Rinne is a bulky trap, and if you don’t want to deal with either a bucket of live mice or a bucket of drowned mice, it’s not a fit for you.

With four different styles of traps set up, the RinneTrap caught 10 mice over a two-night period, while the other traps caught zero. In our testing, the Rinne was so successful and trapped so many mice that we needed to remove it from the test area (an old barn) in order to catch mice with the other traps we were looking at. The other option is to fill the bucket with a few inches of water, which drowns them. With an empty bucket, the mice are trapped alive, so they can be released. Once a mouse falls through and into the bucket, the trap is immediately ready again and will continually catch mice with no human intervention. The Rinne trap attaches to a 5-gallon bucket and lures mice onto a trap door that is weighted to reset itself. If you want a low-maintenance way to catch a lot of mice at once (and we mean a lot of mice), it’s hard to beat the RinneTraps Flip N Slide Bucket Lid Mouse Trap.

Usually priced between $35 and $45, this is an expensive item, and we only recommend it for those who really have trouble monitoring their traps. Attics and basements may be beyond the range of your Wi-Fi and will render the notification system useless. We had success with the Victor M1 and its app, but we strongly recommend making sure you have Wi-Fi in the area where you’re planning to use it. Multiple traps can be connected to the app, and it keeps a running tally of kills for each trap. Because of the way the mouse is killed, cleanup is easy and has little to no gore. This means you’re not wasting your time constantly checking the traps, which often requires multiple trips up and down either basement or attic stairs. This trap kills mice with an electrical shock and then sends a notification to your phone, letting you know it’s time to clean out and reset the trap. If you’re someone who has trouble getting to the areas where you set your traps, you should consider the Victor M1 Smart-Kill Wi-Fi Electronic Mouse Trap.
