Can Dogs Hear Mice in Walls?

While mice may look quite cute in terms of appearance, nobody wants them running amok in their home. However, mice can and do get into walls and if something isn’t done about it, they can cause massive damage to your property as well as creating an unhygienic environment in your home. 

You may not even realize you have mice in your walls at first because you probably never get to see them. In some cases, you may not even hear them. However, animals have very sensitive hearing compared to humans, so if your pet is behaving strangely this could be a sign of there being mice in your walls. 

Both cats and dogs are able to hear the sound of mice in walls even though you may not be able to hear anything. The sensitivity of their hearing means that the little scratching noises that the mice make within the walls are picked up very quickly. 

You may notice your dog doing strange things such as running to various sections of your internal walls and looking alert and a little excited. Your pooch may whine while doing this and lifts its paw to scratch at the wall. You may also notice that your dog is sniffing at the wall and then walking along while continuing to sniff. This is because the mice are on the move and your dog is following the scrabbling noise that they make.

Of course, you also need to remember that dogs have an excellent sense of smell, so your dog will not only be able to hear the mice in the walls but will also be able to smell them. Some dogs get over-excited because they know that there is something behind those walls that they would like to get their paws on. Whining, barking, and even growling while staring at the wall are all additional signs that your dog can hear and smell mice. 

You should monitor your dog’s body language, as this could indicate that it senses, hears, and smells mice in the walls. Some dogs will run back and forth to the wall where the mice are while others will be rooted to the spot just staring at the wall. Some will also circle restlessly around the area where the mice are hiding and if your dog starts scratching at the wall incessantly, there is almost certainly something undesirable behind there.  

If you also have cats, your feline will also be eager to get to the rodent behind the wall (think Tom and Jerry!) so watch the way your cat behaves too. 

As we know, over the centuries, dogs have been used in a wide range of capacities as working dogs, as they have been involved in many industries just as they are today. One of the things that farmers used to do was to breed dogs to help keep mice and rats away from their crops.

Dogs such as Terriers have become well known for the ability to hear, smell, and catch mice. Today, dogs are still able to hear, smell, sense, and catch mice and rats, so this is definitely not something that is exclusive to our furry feline friends.

There are some dogs breeds that are better at detecting and catching mice and rats than others. However, their excellent sense of smell and hearing means that most pooches will be well aware that there is something afoot when they hear scratching and scuttling noises in the walls. Even if you cannot hear anything, you need to remember that throughout history, dogs have been highly efficient when it comes to detecting mice, so make sure you do not ignore your dog’s actions if you notice that it is acting somewhat strangely. If you do, you could end up with an infestation of mice in your home.

So, what makes dogs so adept at identifying the presence of mice in your walls? Perhaps you are one of the many people that thought it was only cats that could sniff out a rodent in your home. 

Well, not only have dogs been bred to hunt mice over the centuries but they also have that all-important sense of smell and excellent hearing that makes it easy for them to determine when there is something behind the walls that shouldn’t be there. Dogs are able to both hear and smell mice behind the walls, which makes them very adept at helping to keep your home rodent-free.

For a variety of reasons, there are some dogs that are better at detecting and catching mice and rats than others. If you would like to have the protection of your pooch when it comes to an infestation of rodents in your walls or in your home, there are ways in which you can train your dog to detect and even catch mice and rats. By giving your dog some training, you could save yourself a lot of hassle and stress – and you could help to protect your home and your health from the effects that these rodents can have.

One of the things that you can do is make your dog familiar with the scent and sound of mice and rats. You can do this by introducing your dog to a rodent that is in a cage. You should, of course, be there to keep an eye on things, and since the rodent will be caged, there is nothing your dog can do other than get used to its scent and the noises that it makes. You can do this on a regular basis, as this repetition will make it easier for your pooch to become accustomed to rodents.

You should keep an eye on your dog to ensure that it doesn’t start to become intimidated by the rodent, as this is the last thing you want. Instead, try to encourage your pooch to be curious and if it does make a move toward the rodent, you should provide treats by way of positive reinforcement. You need to show your dog that making a move rather than being startled or intimidated is the right thing to do, as this means that it can help to keep mice and rats at bay in your home by being able to detect and catch them.