New Front Porch Resident

[susiestar]

How do I make him LEAVE????

Apparently Six Dinner Sensory Integration Disorder (SID) is not around because we now have a field mouse living on our front porch.

I do not like mice running around.

My cats are NOT going outside, though both are very interested. They are INSIDE cats -for health reasons.

husband read somewhere that you put peppermint oil in water and spray it where the mouse can get in - says mice hate it?

I have peppermint oil on hand, so he is going to try it. He is tired of Jess and I squeaking about the mouse. We are BOTH icked out by it.

Any advice or suggestions??

Susie

 

[Lothlorien]

Get another cat....snorting and chuckling now!

 

[Andy]

Hopefully someone will have an idea on how to keep these creatures away. You do know that its main purpose is to tease your cats!


Anyway, thought I would share my latest furry rodent story: One Sunday morning my difficult child found a mouse in a trap under the Sunday School table. He decided to go find dad to ask how old the mouse was. I told him to put it back and hopefully no other kid would find it. In the mean time, I kept my eye open for a trustee to deal with it. I stayed at the table to make sure no other kid would find it. When class started, I left to teach my class. My Sunday School Superintendent assistant could not handle it anymore and decided to take matters into her own hands. Later after Sunday School was over, she asked me if my difficult child told me about a conversation she had with him. Seems he asked her where the mouse was and when she stated she threw it away he replied, "You do know that you can reuse the trap?"

She called me later very worried. "Do you think the ladies in the kitchen will be mad at me?" "Where did you throw it?" "In the dumpster outside." "Then they shouldn't be mad." "But I threw away the trap." "I would think it was the trustees who put out the trap and if anyone gets upset over a trap being thrown away, they better get a life!" She felt too guilty though and went out and bought a package of traps to replace the one she threw away.

 

[Star*]

Susie,

Yes, - mice HATE peppermint - but it HAS to be peppermint oil. And you can put it on cotton balls and leave all over - but seriously? Go to Ace Hardware and get a live trap.

In the trap put pnut butter. "Warning" mice breed faster than weeds. If you see one - you will have 13 in no time -

I like the idea of a new cat - really would work to keep her home, BUT then you have the worry that a neighbor set out poison and the rat eats it - then looks for water the cat gets that rat and it's all over for both.

When you buy the live trap - try not to touch it too much with bare hands (scent) and then set a few out - most times given the chance - they will run AGAINST something if you put it in the corner they will avoid it like the plague (oh that is almost funny - rats caused the plague, well really infected FLEAS on rats caused the plague) but you get my drift.

Oh and FYI - Moles hate juicy fruit. We find the tunnels - and poke a hole and put a stick in the tunnel. But if you have moles you have grubs and there is nothing holistic and natural that I'm aware of that kills life s()cking grub worms.

Go for some live traps - oh and if the live traps are not used in say 3-4 days - THEN you have field mice bigger than the holes and that means they are breeding and THAT means you are going to have to do something less humane because they WILL come in looking for water and nesting material.

Sorry - I caught ours and set them free 2 miles from the house. The babies were so cute - that's pretty much what we caught in the live traps - they were small enough to get in the hole.

 

[WhymeMom?]

Thinking Abbey has some spare traps.....think her husband was shopping at the $$$ store........

 

[Marguerite]

Want a Diamond Python?

http://www.faunanet.gov.au/wos/factfile.cfm?Fact_ID=288

In Australia especially on country farms, it's considered good fortune to have one of these living in your rafters. We have a couple of large ones that visit now and then - we know they're the same ones because both are large, one, we call him Monty, is larger than the (alleged) maximum size of 3 metres. They MAY try to eat the cats but it's unlikely. A few years ago Monty did try to eat the miniature Jack Russell of an artist neighbour, but the dog was too big a mouthful. The dog is still around but for some reason is a very nervous little thing.

Marg

 

[susiestar]

I wouldn't mind a snake, have always liked them. But we now have neighbors and I don't think they would let it live.

We do have a field behind the house, so there are always going to be some kind of critters around, I guess.

I should probably just get used to it. Maybe we will start letting our cats go out - my parents have an acre and their cats almost always stay in the yard. But I really don't think Gracie Lou and Captain Morgan would stay in the yard. And they would always have worms and fleas from being outside. That is another ick.

We will not put out poison, probably will let the kids run the mouse off. If it comes in it is dead though.

Susie

 

[Abbey]

Thinking Abbey has some spare traps.....think her husband was shopping at the $$$ store........

Laughing here. I'm SURE he has some traps.

Actually, about a year or so ago, we had a mouse issue. We always keep our doors open, and they took that as an invitation. Come on!! Free food!!

The key was to have lots of live traps, then to release them MILES away from the house. It took a few months, but eventually they were gone. But, husband... still buys the kill traps. I'd never want to see this when I get up in the morning.

Abbey