Mrs Fiddlesticks
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mouse deterent!The story goes like this. The chickens layers pellets are kept in a metal dustbin, the corn ( as its a smaller amount) was kept in its paper sack which up until 3 months ago was fine! But then it started to get eaten by a mouse who moved all his 'friends-and-relations' in. We put the corn in a plastic lidded bucket but he has tried to get in to that and Tim has more than once had to hawl a drowning mouse out of it. The lid is now held down with a large piece of oak since same shed also houses the wood pile. Although Mr Mouse isn't getting the corn and our cat Buttons is an excellent mouser I'm still having to flick off mouse droppings ( you know I wanted to use a better word!) off this corn box. Is there anything scented/smelly I can put in there to convince Mr Mouse that the shed is no longer a Mouse Diner!
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judith
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Re: mouse deterent! | Fiddlesticks Julie wrote: | | Is there anything scented/smelly I can put in there to convince Mr Mouse that the shed is no longer a Mouse Diner! |
A mouse-trap!
I went through the cutey mouse phase with the ones invading my animal feed, but the more of your chooks' corn they are eating, the more babies they will have and it will soon get out of control.
Honestly, they will get through a plastic bucket given long enough now that they know dinner is there. It took a serious campaign with the traps and buying metal bins for the feed to get the problem under control.
If you really don't want to use traps (and I wouldn't recommend poison), then I have heard said that they don't like the smell of peppermint. Cottonwool balls soaked in peppermint oil might cover up the scent of the urine trails (yes, really) that they leave so that they know where they are going.
But I still recommend the traps!
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alison
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Traps definately!!
We are getting them in the house at the moment as the barley and corn is being harvested around here.
Just when I think we are mouse free another one is caught. 
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live the dream
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if you dont want to kill the mouse you could just buy a live mouse trap and then 'relocate' the mouse. just make sure you check it as often as possible - when i moved into my house we were looking through the shed and found a live mouse trap with a little mouse skeleton in it  .
if you do go for the killing mouse trap option they are 10 or 20(cant remember) for £1 at pound land.
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Gertie
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I invested a fiver in one of those humane traps - have not caught the little devil yet! Last year I thought we had a mouse/mice and I put next doors cat in my haybarn for half an hour and it/they scarpered.
All of our horse and chicken feeds are kept in sturdy dustbins and I regularly sweep up any spillages - must just be a cosy place to hang out! 
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dougal
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| Gertie wrote: | | I invested a fiver in one of those humane traps - have not caught the little devil yet! ... |
I have had great success with using small piece of aromatic plain (dark) chocolate... Now, what's to do with the rest of the bar? 
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Gertie
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Yep, thats the one - it suggested either using chocolate or raisins as a bait - what's wrong with a bit of mouldy cheddar, nowadays!
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wellington womble
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| Gertie wrote: | | I invested a fiver in one of those humane traps - have not caught the little devil yet! Last year I thought we had a mouse/mice and I put next doors cat in my haybarn for half an hour and it/they scarpered. |
I suppose it worked, after a fashion, then!
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nora
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| dougal wrote: | | Gertie wrote: | | I invested a fiver in one of those humane traps - have not caught the little devil yet! ... |
I have had great success with using small piece of aromatic plain (dark) chocolate... Now, what's to do with the rest of the bar? |
We have used peanuts mixed with honey and this worked very well, but the chocolate idea is good to know in case we need to use them again in the future and have no peanuts.
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bernie-woman
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We have used all sorts of chocolate but have found that they like the cheapest of the cheap. Either that or peanut butter mixed with pumpkin seeds. I don't like killing them but the humane mouse traps just do not seem to work
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judith
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| bernie wrote: | | the humane mouse traps just do not seem to work |
Or pass the problem onto someone else.
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wellington womble
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wouldn't the chocolate kill them? it's poisonous to everyone (lethal dose, 22kg to humans, and correspondingly smaller for smaller mammals - thats why you shouldn't give it to dogs and pets) I'd prefer not to kill them, myself, but what a way to go!
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Guest
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cat .
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Guest
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thats me hiding dpack
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