Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler What do mice eat ?

Or, more to the point, what *don't* they eat ?

I spent most of my life in solid brick houses (2 layers of brick) with no insulation. Now I live in a wonderful wood-framed house with lots of insulation, out in the woods, so of course in the winter all of God's creatures come in side and live with me.

I figured that they were coming in through the drainage gaps in the masonry facing, eating through the OSB sheathing (yum, glue !!), then burrowing down through the insulation between the OSB and the drywall and holding little mouse orgies in my basement. Drainage gaps are now plugged with steel wool, so presumably they are going to have to find some other way to get in and I can focus on getting the current occupants back out.

I have some live traps out (hint, the old metal "Tin Cat" traps work way better than the new plastic ones) and am running down their numbers (and my peanut butter)... but I find it disturbing that they seem to be eating the wood and insulation for nutrition and, presumably, getting something out of it if only mouse poop.

I understand that mice can get some nutrition out of the glues in OSB and plywood, but they can't digest lumber and fiberglass, can they ? If they can, my only way to limit their food supply would be to burn the house down.