Mouse getting in guinea pig cage, need suggestions please

[Deleted member 142775]

I own 3 guinea pigs and they have a 2x8 grid cage. In the past few months my family and I have been getting mice coming into our house. They first appeared to be downstairs which my room is upstairs. We set non kill mouse traps all around but they're still here. They ended up making there way into my room and somehow got into my piggies cage. I found a poop in the corner where I like to call there kitchen. This morning at 4 in the morning one of them, fat baby, had this random never like before loud wheek. It woke me up and made sure they were all alr, and perhaps thats when the mouse went into there cage and spooked her. There cages are on plastic shelf maybe a foot from the ground with wood platforms supporting the cage. There is Coloplast on the sides facing the wall that are zip tied to the cage to stop hay and poop from falling behind there cages. In the corner the Coloplast there has 2 tint bite marks obviously from a mouse... sorry I'm not to good at summarizing. I'm concerned the mise may transfer diseases to my piggies. Recently my younger guinea pig passed away from a UPI and I couldn't bear loosing another. Does anyone know of any illnesses and there signs that mice can transfer to other animals? Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm not very old and my mom isn't keen in doing much to get rid of the mice as she doesn't really care. So I am very limited to what I can do, but thank you very much to anyone who has suggestions or can help.

 

[Siikibam]

One thing is to make sure there is no veg in the cage once you’re done feeding. Could you set traps in your room around the cage?

 

[Claire W]

 

[Thrymskvida]

Hey there! I too have recently been having problems with other small rodents getting into my C&c cage. The non-lethal traps are a great idea. I recommend putting at least two in your room in places that look like a good place for a mouse to hang out - e.g. under a bed, behind a drawer or cupboard, etc. They don't like being out in the open. Peanut butter and sweet fruits, as well as chicken, make great bait.

How high up does the Coroplast go? You could try stacking some cardboard around the edges of the cage to prevent the mice from slipping in, but it may not be 100% effective because they can really jump. Removing any food once the piggies are done with it is helpful, too!

As for diseases, this is unfortunately a risk. All animals, including humans, are vectors for disease, and some of those diseases can be spread to other species. Often there are no outward signs. Most mouse diseases will not transfer to Guinea pigs, but some will: Mycoplasmosis, Leptospirosis, LCMV (that one is rare), a few others. You can often hear that a small animal has mycoplasmosis because it constantly makes little grunting/squeaking sounds when it breathes (it's like TB, kind of). There's really no way of knowing without a lab test though. Wash your pigs' bedding in very hot water, and keep an eye out for any illness. Along with keeping the mice out, that's the best you can do.

Good luck!

 

[Tangle]

If the mice have found the cage you'll struggle to keep them out of it as they're excellent climbers and fit through really very small gaps (like 1cm wide). If you can find their entry point and block it (wire wool and expanding foam can work well for gaps in the brick work) that would be ideal. However if you trap any in the house you'll need to deal with them in some way unless you want to cohabit - which I wouldn't!

I'm conflicted about no-kill traps - to make sure the mouse doesn't come back you need to relocate it at least 5 miles away, but you're now putting it in an alien environment and its survival rates aren't great... When we had a mouse problem we used traps that killed them, but got the ones that electrocute so at least we could be as sure as possible that they wouldn't suffer (incidentally, we also had far more coming in than we realised - they'd managed to find a way in alongside the kitchen drain pipe through the concrete floor and I think we caught more than 10 in the end).

 

[Deleted member 142775]

One thing is to make sure there is no veg in the cage once you’re done feeding. Could you set traps in your room around the cage?

Okay, I will make sure to do that! Yes I am able to I have 2 set up in my room right now one behind there cage and one against a wall that I am soon going to move under my bed. Thank you!

 

[VickiA]

@Lexxx please check your messages (envelope icon)

 

[Deleted member 142775]

If the mice have found the cage you'll struggle to keep them out of it as they're excellent climbers and fit through really very small gaps (like 1cm wide). If you can find their entry point and block it (wire wool and expanding foam can work well for gaps in the brick work) that would be ideal. However if you trap any in the house you'll need to deal with them in some way unless you want to cohabit - which I wouldn't!

I'm conflicted about no-kill traps - to make sure the mouse doesn't come back you need to relocate it at least 5 miles away, but you're now putting it in an alien environment and its survival rates aren't great... When we had a mouse problem we used traps that killed them, but got the ones that electrocute so at least we could be as sure as possible that they wouldn't suffer (incidentally, we also had far more coming in than we realised - they'd managed to find a way in alongside the kitchen drain pipe through the concrete floor and I think we caught more than 10 in the end).

Wow. Thank you for letting me know, I'm currently moving furniture and trying to find the hole where they're coming into my room. We always just relocated the mice as far into our backyard as possible...no wonder they're not gone by now. I will definitely look into electrocuted mouse traps. Thank you very much, this will all definitely help.

 

[Deleted member 142775]

Hey there! I too have recently been having problems with other small rodents getting into my C&c cage. The non-lethal traps are a great idea. I recommend putting at least two in your room in places that look like a good place for a mouse to hang out - e.g. under a bed, behind a drawer or cupboard, etc. They don't like being out in the open. Peanut butter and sweet fruits, as well as chicken, make great bait.

How high up does the Coroplast go? You could try stacking some cardboard around the edges of the cage to prevent the mice from slipping in, but it may not be 100% effective because they can really jump. Removing any food once the piggies are done with it is helpful, too!

As for diseases, this is unfortunately a risk. All animals, including humans, are vectors for disease, and some of those diseases can be spread to other species. Often there are no outward signs. Most mouse diseases will not transfer to Guinea pigs, but some will: Mycoplasmosis, Leptospirosis, LCMV (that one is rare), a few others. You can often hear that a small animal has mycoplasmosis because it constantly makes little grunting/squeaking sounds when it breathes (it's like TB, kind of). There's really no way of knowing without a lab test though. Wash your pigs' bedding in very hot water, and keep an eye out for any illness. Along with keeping the mice out, that's the best you can do.

Good luck!

 

[Deleted member 142775]

Thank you, I know this will definitely help out a lot. The Coloplast goes up until where the top of the cage is, which it seems like the mouse got in through the little gap in the corner. I will keep an extra close eye on the piggies until this mouse issue is solved. Thank you for all of your tips and suggestions, and good luck to you to!

 

[VickiA]

@Lexxx please respond to my message.

 

[Thrymskvida]

Wow. Thank you for letting me know, I'm currently moving furniture and trying to find the hole where they're coming into my room. We always just relocated the mice as far into our backyard as possible...no wonder they're not gone by now. I will definitely look into electrocuted mouse traps. Thank you very much, this will all definitely help.

If you do decide not to go with lethal traps (I have dealt with pretty large populations of rats with non-lethal traps, but it does take longer), you can drop off the mice in a local park with a bit of dog food or a slice of bread. This means they'll be far away from your house, and have a bit of a head start in their new life!