Althouse: Trying to answer the question "How small a hole can a mouse get through?"

February 19, 2019

Trying to answer the question "How small a hole can a mouse get through?"

64 comments:

mockturtle said...: Doesn't it depend somewhat on the mouse?; 2/19/19, 1:25 PM
Nonapod said...: I hate how mice poop when they eat. I really don't care that they gnawed through a bag of cough drops in a drawer, whatever. It's the little turds they leave that annoy me.; 2/19/19, 1:26 PM
Merny11 said...: Oh I hate those nasty little things; 2/19/19, 1:29 PM
M Jordan said...: This has sexual implications.; 2/19/19, 1:34 PM
Lance said...: I thought this was common knowledge. It's the skull. The rest of the body compresses.; 2/19/19, 1:34 PM
James K said...: I've seen a bat flatten himself out and fit under a door with maybe 1/4" clearance. Weird as hell.; 2/19/19, 1:34 PM
n said...: Octopuses make amazing escapes out of the smallest holes. Is that Ragtime in the sound track?; 2/19/19, 1:35 PM
Lucid-Ideas said...: Next up in the Althouse rat series...

wHoly Mice; 2/19/19, 1:39 PM
iowan2 said...: A large pencil. Earlier post is right. Skull size; 2/19/19, 1:41 PM
Big Mike said...: Nothing like coming out to the shed in the spring and discovering that mice found a 1/2 inch hole in the back of the seat of my lawn tractor and made a nest by hollowing out the padding. Hope I crushed a bunch of them when I climbed on board to start the motor. Won’t happen this spring; I am buying a new tractor (not just because of the seat).; 2/19/19, 1:42 PM
campy said...: A momma mouse once built a nest in my gas grill. Which Mrs. campy discovered by firing up said grill.; 2/19/19, 2:03 PM
Will Cate said...: He keeps talking about a moose... WTDH; 2/19/19, 2:03 PM
bwebster said...: Love the sound effects.

Also, a good reminder of just how much these wee beasties poop.; 2/19/19, 2:11 PM
MadisonMan said...: What if they eat too much and get fat and can't get out?; 2/19/19, 2:13 PM
exhelodrvr1 said...: If it's an illegal mouse, it's impossible to make a hole so small that it can't get through, so don't bother trying.; 2/19/19, 2:14 PM
Dave Begley said...: 1. What about a rat?

2. I had a case where bats got into a tiny hole in the roof of a lake house. The entire attic was full of dead bats and guano.; 2/19/19, 2:14 PM
FullMoon said...: MadisonMan said...

What if they eat too much and get fat and can't get out?

In the vid, the mouse actually defecates after eating the peanut butter in order to fit back through the hole.

Disgusting, but interesting, just like Chuck and Inga.; 2/19/19, 2:16 PM
Curious George said...: Little fuckers would go through an open 1/2" receptacle box knock-out in my woodshop up north and make nests. Fill the box completely with nuts, shells, and whatever it could find for nesting material. I find dead one constantly in empty plastic garbage cans. Somehow they are able to get in but not out, and they die, I assume from dehydration.; 2/19/19, 2:19 PM
Curious George said...: "bwebster said...
Love the sound effects."

The squeezing through the hole sounds like rubbing a balloon. The pop could be lots of things.; 2/19/19, 2:20 PM
mockturtle said...: I'm sure he/she/it would start gnawing the holes bigger after a while. Was this a science project? I like it. I could watch critters all day long.; 2/19/19, 2:27 PM
Anonymous said...: They can easily get through a 1/4 inch space between plates at the base of a wall, even having to lift vinyl siding to access the space. Little monsters about overran my place in Maine over a couple of years it wasn't occupied. Discovered the mess in the walls thankfully before it was too late.; 2/19/19, 2:30 PM
Lucid-Ideas said...: For anyone that want vicarious revenge on rodentia, I highly recommend Shawn Woods or Joseph Carter's youtube channels

Mouse Trap Monday

The Mink Man

Both are super interesting for those with a mechanical mind or outdoorsy mindset, though for the squeamish not so much Mink Man.

I've learned one takeaway from both channels. Rodents are smart yes, but not that smart.; 2/19/19, 2:41 PM
James K said...: How much wood can a woodchuck chuck?; 2/19/19, 2:44 PM
Ralph L said...: He sounds Canadian. The mouse would do better in US customary measured holes.

One of my cats squeezed into an open space behind an immovable buffet through a tiny gap. I'd never have believed it if I hadn't seen him come out.

Did Pooh get stuck in a Milne story or just the Disney movie?; 2/19/19, 2:46 PM
stevew said...: The little bastards can get in just about anywhere. I store my 1978 Fiat Spider in my garage over the winter. Full of gas, battery removed, top up, and with a cloth cover over the entire car. One spring I went out to fire it up for the season, installed the freshly charged battery and cranked it. Wouldn't start. I could smell fuel. Popped the hood, removed the air filter cover to discover a mouse nest inside the circular air filter and completely covering the carburetor. How they got in there is a mystery - with the air filter in place and the cover installed there is no opening for them to get in, unless they came up through the carburetor somehow. Bastards.; 2/19/19, 3:02 PM
Wince said...: Richard Gere was unavailable for comment.; 2/19/19, 3:05 PM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: Long ago, we set about cleaning out a big shelving system in the basement, and discovered a box practically full of cat kibble. Evidently mice had been raiding the cat food (which was also set out in the basement) and storing up the proceeds.; 2/19/19, 3:06 PM
DAN said...: For those with under-the-hood problems, my mechanic ties a few fabric softener sheets around a hose or line. Works to chase off squirrels too.; 2/19/19, 3:06 PM
Ice Nine said...: Interesting stories. This is why God made cats, guys.; 2/19/19, 3:08 PM
tcrosse said...: Grease up that hole with some Pjur's Back Door Anal Lube that J.Farmer recommends.; 2/19/19, 3:19 PM
richlb said...: Why is he pronouncing "MOUSE" so strangely?!; 2/19/19, 3:19 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: The lesson here is about adjectives and how what some call overuse inhibits needful uses.

If it's "normal mouse" or "typical N. American mouse" or etc. we can make some sense of the question asked, but like "the" or "a" used interchangeably the lack of proper distinction drives away many who otherwise might learn.

"I wish people would create and sign off each comment with a tagline, like dear old Feste." - Guildy; 2/19/19, 3:23 PM
reader said...: When I was little we had a Siamese cat, Pyewacket, which was extremely cross-eyed. He wasn't much for hunting. Then one day my mom found a field mouse in a plastic drum, plopped Pyewacket into the container, and put the lid back on it. My sister and I were nearly hysterical but Pye was an awesome mouser after that.; 2/19/19, 3:24 PM
Leland said...: The mouse cheats by gnawing on the hole.; 2/19/19, 3:35 PM
M Jordan said...: “Blogger James K said...
How much wood can a woodchuck chuck?”

For the love of God, don’t bring Chuck into this.; 2/19/19, 3:37 PM
Leland said...: "I think the mouse just got lazy"

I think the mouse just gained weight from all that peanut butter. See mockturtle's first comment.; 2/19/19, 3:38 PM
FullMoon said...: Blogger DAN said...

For those with under-the-hood problems, my mechanic ties a few fabric softener sheets around a hose or line. Works to chase off squirrels too.

Makes the engine feel soft and smell fresh also, I bet.; 2/19/19, 3:42 PM
FullMoon said...: Popped the hood, removed the air filter cover to discover a mouse nest inside the circular air filter and completely covering the carburetor. How they got in there is a mystery - with the air filter in place and the cover installed there is no opening for them to get in, unless they came up through the carburetor somehow. Bastards.

2/19/19, 3:02 PM

Through exhaust pipe, open exhaust valve. OHC engines notorious for that.; 2/19/19, 3:44 PM
Fernandinande said...: 7 Reasons Mice Should NEVER Eat Peanut Butter!

1. Peanut Butter Could Contain Trans Fats

2. Natural Peanut Butter Isn’t Better

3. Toxic Fungus Allergies

4. Peanut Crops Are Heavily Contaminated with Pesticides

5. Too Much Omega-6

6. Oxalates Cause Health Risks

7. They Track It All Over the Carpet; 2/19/19, 3:51 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: Peppermint oil, they hate it. Not one mouse this winter season, I live in a wooded area with open fields inbetween, mice and vole heaven.; 2/19/19, 3:56 PM
stevew said...: "Through exhaust pipe, open exhaust valve. OHC engines notorious for that."

That occurred to me but it just seemed so ridiculous. You're probably correct, they were gone when I discovered the nest.; 2/19/19, 3:56 PM
Quaestor said...: They won't know until they try a Cuisinart.; 2/19/19, 3:57 PM
stevew said...: Where do you put the peppermint oil? I've gone around the entire perimeter of the house and filled every hole I could find (around pipes, wires, etc.). We still have had a couple of mice in the walls, though a lot fewer than in the past couple of years.; 2/19/19, 3:58 PM
bagoh20 said...: They poop where they eat so nobody else will want the leftovers. I do the same thing.; 2/19/19, 4:13 PM
James K said...: For the love of God, don’t bring Chuck into this.

Hey, that was 'chuck' with a lower-case 'c.'; 2/19/19, 4:17 PM
Curious George said...: "Inga...Allie Oop said...
Peppermint oil, they hate it. Not one mouse this winter season, I live in a wooded area with open fields inbetween, mice and vole heaven."

Moth balls.; 2/19/19, 4:29 PM
Mary H said...: Off topic, but: Lawyers for Nick Sandmann, Covington teen, just announced a $250 million lawsuit against the Washington Post. From the website of the local legal counsel:

"For truth, for justice, for Nicholas!

Today, Lin Wood and Todd McMurtry filed their first lawsuit on behalf of Nicholas Sandmann against The Washington Post. The lawsuit filed is included below. The suit seeks $250 million in both compensatory and punitive damages. Lin and Todd will continue to bring wrongdoers before the court to seek damages in compensation for the harm so many have done to the Sandmann family. This is only the beginning."; 2/19/19, 5:09 PM
Phunctor said...: depends on the sixe of the hammer; 2/19/19, 5:11 PM
Phunctor said...: depends on the size of the hammer; 2/19/19, 5:18 PM
Trumpit said...: Do you still want to kill rodents after see this video? Have they NO rights like the most basic right to life? The mouse seems to "know" that if his head will fit then he wriggle his body to get through. I see the hand of the creator in that. You can call a million years of evolution the "creator" if you're so inclined. I won't mind.

https://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/life/movies/2018/11/16/mickey-mouse-turns-90-evolution-worlds-most-iconic-mouse/2023709002/; 2/19/19, 5:30 PM
effinayright said...: IIRC Pyewacket was the name of a Siamese cat in a 1958 Kim Novak movie, "Bell, Book and Candle".

She was a babe.; 2/19/19, 5:39 PM
Ken B said...: A hole the size of CNN's conscience is too small.; 2/19/19, 6:17 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Squeeze thru this - lying democratic whores at WaPo.; 2/19/19, 6:20 PM
Trumpit said...: Apparently, humans and mice have a common rodent ancestor:
"The common ancestor to mice and humans was an inconspicuous rodent-like mammal that scurried along the surface of the earth some 65 million years (myr) before present (BP). It had to be inconspicuous because the earth was ruled by enormous dinosaurs, many of whom would have eaten any small mammal that could be caught."

Now you know.; 2/19/19, 6:26 PM
Trumpit said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/19/19, 6:33 PM
Trumpit said...: Nick Sandmann is not a man; he's a mouse. Back on topic. I dare him to sue me.; 2/19/19, 6:36 PM
stevew said...: "Do you still want to kill rodents after see this video? Have they NO rights like the most basic right to life?"

Speaking for myself, I endeavor, by keeping them out of my house, to save the lives of mice. Invariably some number of them that enter my house end up lost and expire. In my basement, in the walls, in the attic, I know this because of the smell. Keeping them out saves them.; 2/19/19, 6:49 PM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: why holes?
why not seal up those holes?
But put a door-- a great, big, beautiful DOOR,
where they can come in legally !; 2/19/19, 6:52 PM
Anchovy1214 said...: I do wish the little critters, if they are going to eat in my house, would eat the whole of whatever they choose and not just take a single bite out of many.; 2/19/19, 7:02 PM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: Did Pooh get stuck in a Milne story or just the Disney movie?

no answer for that, but when we were kids, after destroying the playroom,
with toys and stuffed animals strewn everywhere, Dad would come in, look
down at the bear, and sternly ask "OK, who flung Pooh?"
Then smile, mutter something about our abysmal lack of sense of humor,
and walk out.
Dear old Dad-- he was such a shit-mixer.; 2/19/19, 7:14 PM
Quaestor said...: Trumpit wrote: "The common ancestor to mice and humans was an inconspicuous rodent-like mammal that scurried along the surface of the earth some 65 million years (myr) before present (BP)..."

That's wrong, out by about 30 million years, give or take.

Trumpit is astounding. To be so consistently ill-informed takes more work then I'm inclined to invest in any project., lazybones that I am.; 2/19/19, 8:39 PM
Kathy said...: Pooh got stuck in a Milne story, not just the movie.; 2/19/19, 9:09 PM
Openidname said...: From what I saw, they take longer going in than going out.

Makes sense. If it was me, I'd feel very claustrophobic, and I'd want to feel very sure I could get back out.; 2/19/19, 10:55 PM
Kyzer SoSay said...: I've watched this guy for his project videos for a couple of years now. He does some amazing work with that pantorouter, and his wooden gear program is fantastic.; 2/19/19, 11:40 PM