The fear of mice is a very common phobia known as musophobia or miceaphobia, people who deal with this fear can experience anything as small as a start, or as detrimental as full blown anxiety attacks and, as a psychotherapist, it’s a phobia I encounter quite often. I also work from my home so that clients are more comfortable opening up to me, hopefully you understand where I’m getting with this. A few weeks ago I discovered my dog, Ruger, barking and scratching at my dishwasher of all things, it was odd behavior but I just brushed it off; until I opened the pantry door and a mouse ran across my foot right underneath my stove! I cannot afford to have the nasty, little creatures running wild in my home, especially if I’m in a session with someone who suffers from musophobia!
I took action immediately, I laid traps in the pantry, behind the dishwasher, and underneath the stove, and even laid poison outside (in places my dog couldn’t get to it). I took every precaution I knew to take, but last week I found another mouse in my food storage, perfectly content and snacking on a Hershey’s Almond Chocolate bar. I tried to catch it but the darn thing was too quick, there was no way I could grab it, so more traps were bought and set up. I thought I had it under control until, DURING A SESSION, one of the little rodents ran right through my office. Luckily my patient wasn’t particularly afraid of mice, but it did give us both a start. After that I called in the professionals, I just couldn’t risk it any longer.
Now these guys were fast, they were at my house three days after I called, and they could have been the ghostbusters with all the gear they had ready for me. They set up nine traps total, seven in my house and two in my garage, placed kill boxes (small poison boxes) outside to stop them before they could run in, and they sealed up any hole the mice had chewed in the wall so they couldn’t keep sneaking their little butts around. We’ve already caught two and it’s a huge relief for me. Now any client in my home, with a mice phobia or not, won’t have to ever see them again.
Category Archives: Mice
Anything to do with mice
Mice in the Walls
My mom told me that it was just mice in the walls, that the scary scratching, running sounds were nothing more than that, but daddy told me a secret. He said that when little girls like me turn 6, the boogie monster will hide in the closet and under our bed to steal all my stuffed animals, and I just had my birthday! I want to believe mom that it’s just a little, fuzzy mouse, but sometimes at night, the walls and floors make creaky sounds like it’s coming for my favorite stuffed bear and I know something as cute as Mickey Mouse wouldn’t do that. When I told my brother Joey about it, he told me I was being a baby and put teeny, tiny traps in my closet, but monster’s aren’t that small, so I came to my own rescue.
My unicorn is stationed with Growly the bear inside the closet by the traps, just in case he gets past them, and for double back up, I put all my Barbie’s and my brother’s old army men around my bed just in case he came from under there. Then, all I had to do was watch and wait for it, but he must have put a spell on me because I fell asleep. When I woke up all the toys were gone, shoved into the toy dresser! He snuck right under my nose, and so that night I set up an even BIGGER army, this time I put thumbtacks I found on moms desk under the window and locked it shut and I dumped my brother’s Lego’s right in front of my door, I wasn’t going to let him get away this time! The last piece of the puzzle was bait, I set out my favorite animal, Mr. Fuzzy, right in the middle of the room. Then, since he made me go to sleep last night, I pretended this time so he would think his spell worked again.
It took a long time but eventually it got dark enough and late enough that the monster woke up, I heard him start scratching in the walls and my closet, then I heard a ‘SNAP’ sound, a few seconds later there were big footsteps in the hall. I couldn’t take it, I hid myself under my covers and hoped he wouldn’t see me, and then it opened the door. Luckily my trap worked and the monster stepped on the blocks and let out a howl, then it said my name! I peeked from under the blanket to see my dad on the floor holding his feet, he was coming to check the mouse traps because sure enough there was a big fuzzy something in the trap. I guess it was just mice in the walls after all.
Mice in the Pantry
Quitting my diet cola drink is hard enough. The headaches, mood swings and general feelings of “unwell” are evidence that those little cocktails of carbonated water, caffeine and chemicals are not exactly healthy for the human body. When I’m going through diet soda withdrawals, normal life is difficult enough, and then today I discovered mice in the pantry.
Life’s been full of big changes for me lately. I just graduated from a masters program in business administration, I just got laid off from my job, my boyfriend and I just got engaged, and I’m putting my townhome on the market while looking for a house with my fiancé. So, of course, I think it’s a great idea to quit drinking diet soda and start an exercise routine so I can look and feel my very best on my wedding day. I’m stressed, on edge, even though most of my life changes are mostly for the good. Well, except for the job loss, of course. That’s a special kind of stress.
After a frustrating wedding planning session with my mother, I decided to clean out my kitchen in preparation for the upcoming move. I’ll admit, I haven’t been in that pantry for a good, long while, subsisting through the last few months of the masters program on take-out and vending machine food. I had no idea there were mice in the pantry until today.
I pulled items out, wondering what those little black things were on the shelves and the tops of the cans. I finally realized those little black things were mice poop around and on top of my food when I saw little holes chewed into pasta and cereal boxes. That’s really put me over the top today. Mice in the pantry! Right when I’m trying to sell the place. Crap.
I easily got the pantry emptied out by throwing everything away. I called Allstate Animal Control to get rid of the mice from the pantry. And, I am now enjoying a heavily caffeinated diet soda. Fine. I can quit some other day.
Mice in the House
It was hard enough to throw a big multi-family Thanksgiving this year, and then the uninvited guests showed up. One week before Thanksgiving, I discovered we have mice in the house.
Thanksgiving dinner had usually been a difficult juggle between my husband’s family and my own family. We tried attending two dinners in one day, and that turned out to be a disaster, with siblings and aunts feeling slighted that we didn’t eat as much the second dinner that day. Then, we tried alternating years for a few years. That also was difficult, because each family had some special “reason” we had to throw off that schedule and attend their dinner each particular year. Finally, I said enough was enough. I informed everyone we would not be attending anyone else’s parties this year, because I wanted to cook a special dinner for my own family. My statement got misinterpreted by both families. They figured if I was going to cook on Thanksgiving, then everyone would just come to my house. Instead of a quiet special day enjoying my own husband and children, I found myself stressing for an entire month. That was even before we discovered mice in the house.
(Artwork by Sharon Davis. Contact us for her contact info.)
I assigned my husband certain jobs – he was to make the yard look nice and neat, put up the Christmas lights, and re-stain the banisters. My children were all given serious talks about getting their rooms neat and clean and keeping the rest of the house pristine. I flew into full-on cleaning mode. Carpets were cleaned, I deep-cleaned the stove, the kitchen, the front room, and the living room and put locks on all the doors for rooms guests would not be allowed to see.
I designed the menu, and redid it many times, remembering a certain niece’s allergies, my mother-in-law’s aversion to vegetables, and my sister’s vegetarian preferences.
Then, one week before Thanksgiving, right when I was heading out to purchase a new tablecloth and an extra table or two, I saw a mouse run across my kitchen floor and disappear under the kitchen sink. I ran to the kitchen sink and threw open the cabinet door, surprising two more mice rummaging around in the garbage can. Nothing could be worse for me at this moment in time than mice in the house.
I panicked. I admit it. I called my husband at work, in full-on tears. Everything was ruined, what could we possibly do, I just couldn’t take it anymore. Bless him, he listened to me, quietly calmed me down and reminded me there are great services out there that get rid of mice. I should just call Allstate Animal Removal and schedule mouse removal service.
He was right, and Allstate was great, saving my Thanksgiving. The day came and went, and it took me another week to do the post-party clean up and regain my sanity. I wish I could say no to family, but I’m afraid next year, we’ll probably just agree to show up and then have to bag out at the last minute because “someone got sick.” Then, my family will just go see a movie
Mice in the House
Decorating for the holidays is not one of my favorite things to do, especially when you make the discovery you have mice in the house at the same time.
I wish I was one of those women who look forward to the holidays, who has the house perfectly decorated by the night of Thanksgiving, who constantly boils apple juice and cinnamon sticks and cloves just to make the house smell nice, who passes out all the Christmas goodies to her neighbors by the first weekend of December, and who has all the Christmas gifts purchased and wrapped by the end of October. I’m just not that kind of woman.
I’m more the type of person who gets annoyed at all the unnecessary parties I have to plan or attend, and at the loss of every single weekend in December. I have an Oh-Crap moment about the second week of December and pull out the dusty holiday decoration boxes that are completely disorganized after last year’s desperate holiday clean up attempt in the middle of January. I have a second Oh-Crap moment about the third week of December when I have to finally finish all my holiday shopping, and end up getting gift cards for more than half the people on my list.
So, when I pulled out the box containing the pre-lit Christmas tree, I sighed for about the hundredth time that day. I would have to rearrange the furniture in the front room so I could somehow fit this tree in there. I would have to assemble the tree and make sure all the lights still worked. I’d have to fluff out the branches in a sad attempt to make it look like a real tree, while trying to avoid scratching my arms too badly. I’d have to sort through my tree decorations, toss the ones that broke during last year’s packing, and make it look festive enough. I did this so my kids could enjoy Christmas. I did not personally enjoy it. So, I did the basic decorating while the kids were at school so they wouldn’t see my “Bah Humbug” attitude.
I reached in the box to pull out the first part of the tree, and gasped when my hand touched something soft that moved. Then I had one of those delay-screams. You know, when you scream after you realize what exactly happened, and then you have to wait until you have enough breath to get the scream out. I’d touched a mouse. Matter of fact, I’d touched several mice. There was a nest in my Christmas tree box!
The mice were just as terrified and surprised as I was, because they jumped out of the box and scattered. I now had mice in my house. I continued screeching as I ran into the bathroom and locked the door. Plunging my hand into water as hot as I could stand, I realized my cell phone was in the other room. I’d have to brave the mice just to call for help. Hopefully, I could get someone to my house before the kids came home so we could get rid of the mice before they had to know about it.
Merry Christmas.
I’m not decorating next year.
Mouse Removal
“Are you crazy?? Asking me to get rid of the mouse. Please. Do you even know me?”
Jenna looked at her roommate, Ally, as they sat on the couch in her room, both making sure their legs were nowhere near the floor. Jenna had shoved a blanket under the tightly closed door in the hopes the mouse they’d spotted wouldn’t be able to get in the bedroom.
This was one of the rare nights when they were both home at the same time. Usually, one of them had a date, or had a shift at work, or had class. So they’d decided to make homemade pizza and watch an old chick flick together. They joked and talked about Ally’s boyfriend and Jenna’s most recent dating catastrophe while they pulled ingredients out in their tiny kitchen and laughingly argued about the best ways to make pizza dough. Jenna had opened a cabinet to search for pizza sauce when something moved behind the boxes and cans. “What the . . . ?” Jenna said, pulling things out. She was, by far, the braver of the two girls, and thought it was possibly a large spider that needed to be killed. Instead, as she pulled out a couple of boxes of pasta to see into the back of the cabinet better, a little brown mouse leapt out of the cabinet, onto the kitchen floor and disappeared under the refrigerator. A breathless moment passed, then both girls screamed, dropped whatever they had been holding, and ran into Jenna’s room, slamming the door behind them.
Jenna was the braver of the two girls, but not by much.
Now, they were stuck in Jenna’s room. They’d both left their cell phones back in the kitchen. Jenna’s laptop was also in the kitchen, where she normally did her homework. They were either going to be stuck in Jenna’s room for hours until Ally’s boyfriend dropped by after his shift at work, or one of them would have to overcome their fears and get rid of the mouse. Neither option sounded really good.
Jenna had hoped that Ally would step up and offer to get rid of the mouse, since Jenna was always the one who killed spiders and other insects that got into the apartment. It was a long shot, she knew, but it was worth a try. Ally would have none of it. She was a girlie-girl in all senses of the word, and didn’t get near creepy-crawlies on principle, as well as a deep-seated fear. Jenna would have to do it, or wait until Ally’s boyfriend came by hours later.
Jenna used a hanger to peel the blanket away from under the door while she stayed on the safety of the couch. To their relief, no mouse immediately ran in to attack them. Then, she reached over the arm of the couch, yanked the door open and peered into the hallway. With a deep breath and a squeal, Jenna jumped into the hallway, ran to the kitchen, snapped up her cell phone, ran back, and slammed the door behind her. The first call to Ally’s boyfriend got them nowhere. He couldn’t get off work early, but he’d come as soon as he could. The second call was to Allstate Animal Control. Ally’s boyfriend assured them they’d send someone out to get rid of the mouse, and make sure there weren’t any more mice running around. Neither girl got any sleep that night.
Get Rid of Mouse
I thought I knew how to get rid of a mouse. As a high school junior, I have no problems being in charge when both my parents have to go out of town on business trips. I’ve been watching my younger brother and sister for years whenever both Mom and Dad are gone. It’s been great, too. I get paid for doing what I normally do at home, and all I have to do is make sure they both get their homework done, they’re ready for school in the morning, and make dinner at night. The rest of the time, I can have my friends over, watch TV, do my homework, text my friends, and just do what I usually do. Easy, right?
Sure, it’s easy. Until something weird happens. Like the time my little brother had one of his friends over, and his friend got really hurt while they were jumping on our trampoline. But, I’m a great babysitter. I helped calm my brother’s friend down, called his mom to pick him up, and made up new rules about the trampoline. It’s never happened again.
Or, like the time my little sister stuck a bead up her nose while she was playing in the toy room. I have no idea where she got the bead. But, she stuck it up there pretty far. I managed to help her get it out, though. I just plugged up the other nostril and had her blow. After like two tries, that little sucker shot right out of her nose, all gooey and sticky. See? Problem solved.
So, last night I saw a mouse in the house. It ran right across the floor in front of us while we were watching TV before bed, and ran under the couch where I was sitting. My brother screamed, and my little sister tried to chase it. It was so gross, but I’m pretty sure I know how to get rid of a mouse. I got my brother and sister out of the room and ready for bed. After they were in their bedrooms, I marched back down to the living room and looked under the couch. Yep, it was still there. I have no idea what it was doing, or why it was just sitting there, but there it was. I could get rid of a mouse, one stupid little mouse.
I grabbed up our cat, Deacon, tossed him in the room with the TV and the mouse, and closed the door. Done. Deacon would get rid of the mouse by the morning.
This morning, I opened up the door to the TV room right before school. Deacon ran out and headed outside. Then, the mouse came tearing across the room and disappeared under the TV console. Great. Just great. Guess I don’t know how to get rid of a mouse.
So, I texted Mom, and she told me to just call Allstate Animal Control. They’d know how to get rid of a mouse. Guess I don’t know everything, but I’m still a great babysitter.
Mouse in the House
I rely on my two cats to tell me anytime there’s the faintest chance of a mouse in the house. After the experience I had two winters ago, I still hate to put my hand into any container that has food in it, without inspecting it first. Two years ago, I was storing a fifty-pound bag of potatoes in the garage. We’d found a great deal on potatoes, but I had nowhere to store it in the house, so we kept it in the cold garage. I figured that was the best place for something like that anyway. Didn’t they used to store potatoes in cold cellars in the old days?
I was going to make mashed potatoes for dinner that night, so I padded out into the garage, reached my hand into the large bag and groped around, and was shocked beyond belief when my hand closed on a stiff, furry object instead of the smooth surface of a potato. Turns out it was a mouse that had crawled into the bag and died.
Now, we own two cats, and guess where they sleep at night? In our garage. I don’t want another mouse in the house, garage, or anywhere else in my home, for that matter. We haven’t had an incident ever since we got the cats.
But now, I have the worst suspicion that those mouse-free days may be over. For the last week, every time I let the cats into the garage for the night, they immediately crouch down and peer under our tool cabinet. Occasionally, they’ll swipe a paw around down there. I’m convinced that we may have a mouse in the house, or maybe even a mouse nest. As the days have passed this week, I was certain that our two cats would eventually take care of the problem. After all, whenever I let them outside, they always return with a “present” for me. Of course, I am probably less enthusiastic about the dead mice gifts than my cats are, but that’s beside the point. I know they’re good mousers. So, why do we have a mouse in the house?
Surely these cats will take care of the problem without any further action on my part. I can’t stand the idea of “padding” out into the garage in my bare feet, just to walk over mouse droppings, or have a startled creature scamper across my toes. Worst, my hand still spasms involuntarily whenever I think about what I pulled out of that potato bag.
But, as the days have gone on, the cats still stalk the tool cabinet, but they have nothing to present to me. Why would a mouse stay in a house with two cats, unless they have an alternate and safe way to get in and out?
So, instead of relying on pets to take care of the mouse problem for me, I’m calling Allstate Animal Control. I’d be a lot happier knowing they’ve gotten rid of all the mice for me, and my cats can go back to just sleeping in the garage.
Mouse Trap
“That looks like a mouse trap to me,” said Marcus, wary. Since joining up with the mouse nest in this house, he was the new guy, and always picked on. He had to stay on his toes constantly.
“Whatever, dude, you’re totally paranoid,” said Norman. He was the worst of the bunch, and was always trying to set Marcus up. So far, he’d convinced Marcus to dart across the kitchen floor in broad daylight, sun shining and people awake and everything, just to bring back a forgotten piece of toast for Norman to eat. Norman shared with his buddies, and the only bite Marcus got was the tiny crumb left in his mouse after Norman grabbed the toast from him.
Just yesterday, Norman and his friends had gotten Marcus to run back and forth in front of the tiny mouse hole they’d chewed through the wall. He’d told Marcus to make as much noise as possible to distract the cat while Norman et al feasted on an unprotected bag of cereal in the pantry. Again, Marcus got nothing for his trouble except for an extremely near-death experience when the cat’s questing paw had gotten too close for comfort.
So, he was not taking anything Norman said at face value. They were all facing a huge, delicious gob of peanut butter. The only problem was, the peanut butter was attached to a flat wooden platform with metal and a spring. Marcus was pretty sure it was a mouse trap. He wasn’t a psychic mouse, but he could see into his not-too-distant future if he were to do what Norman wanted him to do. He’d be dead, head and body sandwiched between the metal and the wooden platform, while Norman and cronies licked peanut butter off his lifeless form. These guys were brutal. No mouse mourned another mouse’s death, especially when food was involved. It was a mouse-eat-mouse world, and peanut butter upped the ante considerably.
Enough was enough. He’d been the under-mouse for too long and it was beyond time to stand up for himself. Taunting a cat was one thing, as was darting across a kitchen floor, but a mouse trap meant the end. No escape. The grande finale.
“No.”
“What did you say??” Norman demanded.
“No. If you want it so badly, you taste it.”
“All you’ve been doing is complaining that I never let you eat anything. You’re upset about the toast and the cereal. Now, when I let you go first, before any of us get a chance to dig in, you’re saying no? You’re the most bi-polar mouse I’ve ever heard of!”
Marcus didn’t know what a bi-polar mouse was, but he wasn’t about to let name-calling goad him into a mouse trap. “You’re right, Norman, you’re always right. I have been whining, and it’s time to defer to your leadership. You’re the head of the gang, you’re our leader. You get to go first.”
Marcus was met by silence. Until then, he didn’t even know that a mouse could look that surprised. “Eh, I bet there’s something better in the pantry. Wanna come?” asked Norman.
“I think I’ll be better off searching for food on my own, thanks,” said Marcus, and walked off, sure that he had just avoided death by mouse trap.
Mouse Removal
Some people just aren’t satisfied with television, music, internet or books – they have to turn to mouse removal tricks for their entertainment.
I’m an excellent babysitter, and there are several families in my neighborhood who consider me the best. I know I’m bragging, but I’m really proud of the way their kids get excited when I come over to babysit them. And, the parents know they can count on me to enforce their rules and help their kids have a good time while they’re out.
It’s safe to say I have a pretty great relationship with these families. So, it was no big surprise when Mrs. Devreaux wanted me to look at some video that she took when I arrived a few minutes early to watch her two cute kids for the evening. I obliged and followed her to the laptop in the kitchen. I have to say, I was a little shocked when I saw the video was of her attempts at mouse removal. I had no idea she had mice in her house, and now I was pretty creeped out at the thought of staying there for the next several hours, especially when she told me she’d been unsuccessful.
I watched the video, biting my tongue to keep from screeching. She’d set up pieces of cheese and muffins on empty tissue boxes right next to the couch I usually slept on after the kids had gone to bed. A little mouse popped out from under the couch, sniffing around the feast she’d offered it, and then helped itself. After it had gorged on the easy pickings, it sniffed around the pieces of cheese tied up in twine, attached to the tissue boxes. It was completely unaware of the fact that Mrs. Devreaux had meant it to be a mouse trap, her effort at mouse removal.
I watched, horrified, as the mouse pulled on the twine, eating the cheese, and tissue box after tissue box fell on top of it. Each time, the mouse escaped, easily avoiding the empty cardboard boxes. It polished off the meal and disappeared back under the couch.
Mrs. Devreaux stopped the video and looked up at me. “Isn’t it the cutest thing?” she asked.
My throat was dry as I tried to figure out what to say. “Did you ever catch it?”
“Oh, no! It’s still running around, cute as can be. It’s a smart little thing, too. Oh, it just loves my laundry room! I guess the dryer keeps it warm, and sometimes I think it sleeps in my dirty clothes. I found a little hole it chewed in my favorite jeans. I just don’t have the heart to get rid of the mouse.”
“Uh, huh,” I responded, just as the kids came running into the kitchen, grabbing onto my legs and yelling about what games they wanted to play with me. I determined right then and there that all our games would be outside until bedtime. I could only hope Mrs. Devreaux would come home soon after that. My ankles itched as I wondered if a mouse would jump out at me at all. I definitely would not be babysitting here again until Mrs. Devreaux got a mouse removal service out here to get rid of that thing properly!