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@RiverRock Actually, that’s a great reason to allow pets! Even the scent of dogs will deter mice.
Edit to add: Apparently I’m decidely wrong about this! An exterminator told me this once and I believed it. I’ve never had rodents when I’ve had a dog but I must’ve just been lucky on that. Oh well 
They didn’t deter my mice. I suspect the presence of lots of dog food drew them into the house. So now in winter I put all the guest dog food in mouse resistant twist top canisters.
Yeah, I live in a 110 year old house, so I get what you’re saying. We get the occasional bat, squirrel, or field mouse, too.
Not enough to necessitate 7 traps that need regular checking.
My point was it’s silly to act all indignant, as though it’s a baseless, libelous comment. The guests saw a small rodent without a fluffy tail. Big mouse? Small rat? Either way there was vermin.
Peppermint oil on cotton balls apparently deters the critters. I checked it out on YouTube. Someone conducted an experiment and the oil seemed to do the trick.
That is disgusting, I would rather have mice.
RR
Tell that to the mice at my 1946 cabin we live in, with our Rat Terrier.
RR
Does he know you’re embarassing him in public like this 
Using live traps is particularly risky for you where you are. The mice urinate in there and when you open them up, hantavirus can be released from the urine into the air and then you can get it. You guys have more mice that carry it there than a lot of places. It’s really not worth it. Most people die pretty quick but those who survive, it’s a very uncomfortable and slow death over a few years.
I once lived in a duplex that would get mice at the start of winter. I had a cat that would sit on the floor casually watching the mice, she was no help at all. My Siberian Husky was an excellent mouser though, and I could always find where they were getting in the house with her help.
Regardless of how you decide to deal with your guest’s review, I just want to recommend the most efficient way to rid your home of rodents: an electronic rat/mouse zapper.
Here in Hawaii, rats ands mice come with the territory, particularly if you are near macadamia nut, avocado or coffee orchards. From time to time we will get an infestation. In the past I tried everything else, but when I discovered these, it took care of the problem within a week. The last infestation was about 2 years ago, and no sign of them since, but I have the zapper handy for the next time.
With one bad infestation, the zapper got 15 rats in 5 days, then no more rats for almost 4 years. It’s clean, quiet and efficient.
I’m on a massive decluttering and organizing kick, fueled by Netflix shows.
Aspirational: Tidying Up with Marie Kondo
Because, yikes: Hoarders
The Hoarders episode I watched last night was about a lady who lived in CA with a massive rat infestation. They tested for hanta and bubonic plague before entering, still with full PPE (respirator, body suits). The lady wanted to keep some stuff! The pro organizer was like “If I took a 
in that bowl, you can clean it, but do want to eat from it tomorrow?” It finally clicked.
The whole place ended up a loss.
That’s so smart! At least there’s antibiotics for the plague. There’s nothing for Hantavirus. People tend to get it when “cleaning out” a garage or basement. Sweeping the floor where the mice have urinated kicks it up in the air. But some people get it from “humane traps”/live traps. That’s how my mom got it 
Hoarders be committed to their stuff!! Geez
Yikes. It sounds as though the electrics really need sorting out. I was just in an Airbnb where the power went off for a second or two every hour or so when the AC kicked in. Not good. It sounds as though this Airbnb has some problems too.
It’s not the guests’ fault if the host doesn’t price accordingly.
You have rats … or mice. Same difference to a guest. It doesn’t sound appealing.
Oh gosh, maybe this is how my interesting service animal requesting guest who can’t have scents had her spouse get an infection from his storage unit that has him currently hospitalized! Even more glad I don’t book her! She could have brought in the hantavirus! Yikes!
It is if they are being excessively wateful…like running the heat it air conditioning with the doors or windows open or running the fridge or freezer with that door open or leaving water running 24/7. I’d want to say even leaving lights on 24/7 but with the LEDs nowadays that shouldn’t be an issue.
Well, I’m going to argue the point a little there. 
I tend to assume that guests will be a lot more careless with utilities and so on when they’re not at home. And it’s often the case. (Let me say though that some guests are truly lovely about it, being very careful and conscientious).
I factor this in and imagine that once in a while, these things will happen. I factor in all sorts of things to be honest so that I don’t get any unpleasant surprises.
I know that in a way that means that all guests are paying for these things but we all are whenever we go to the grocery store, for example. Prices always include a sum for ‘shrinkage’ - shoplifting, damages etc. and we’re all paying for it even just buying a loaf of bread.
Even better, get yourself a tribe of feral cats. The exterminators (came for the termites …) told us that we didn’t need to put rodent traps down as the FCs would naturally keep the population down.
On the other hand, we do have a feral cat infestation …
You don’t really need a tribe of them. I have a cat who was feral around my neighborhood for a couple of years until she decided that my outdoor chairs were extremely comfortable and that she now lived here. No amount of chasing her off worked, and since she wasn’t a bother aside from the cat hair on the cushions, I resigned myself to her. (I’m not a cat person). Got her spayed so there wouldn’t be a tribe of feral cats around.
That one cat (and she’s a small one) has left me 3 rat carcasses and 2 half eaten mice in the 5 months she’s been around. All were caught outside, (I don’t have any inside rodent problem), as I live in the countryside and they are attracted to my compost box.
All you need is one good mouser, unless you are just infested with rodents.
Oh, and if you want a cat to deal with a rodent problem, don’t be feeding it nice little bowls of Whiskas. I have never bought cat food for that cat that made itself at home here, although she does go over and chow on whatever dog lkibble might remain in the dog bowl. She has a plethora of rodents, bugs and lizards to eat where I live and I’m sure that’s a much healthier diet for her, anyway.
True. We have a couple of ‘free-range’ cats and because we live by the water, there are rats around outside. The cats deal with them very efficiently.
The trouble is that I then have to deal with the bodies - not so very efficiently. 