Unwanted visitors!

[SeaShore]

Hi everyone,

When we moved into The Haven I found evidence that we had a few furry lodgers in the loft. I wasn't too bothered as it was summer and there was no evidence that they were in the house. Now that it is winter, they still aren't IN the house but they are in the walls. And they're LOUD! I hate putting down poison - OH is deeply compassionate towards any animals and so he refuses to do it - and it's hugely challenging to my values too. I couldn't bare to use traps even though it's a quicker way to go.

Has anyone tried humane traps and do they actually work?

[Gentian]

I hate to worry you, but some creatures when hungry gnaw through electric wire and can cause a possible fire hazzard. I think you should put sentiment aside and consider yourselves.. I would contact the pest controllers, they may be able to cure your problem in a way suitable to your feelings.

[cindy]

As for small furry visitors we found that humane traps did work. We baited them with chocolate buttons. When caught I rushed down to the bottom of the garden, put them over the wall and rushed back, hoping to get to the back door first. As for the larger size you must get a pest controller in as they multiply quickly. We had a problem like that and just had to grit our teeth and take the advise offered

[jazzactivist]

Hi seashore. An aromatherapist friend of ours told us to put cotton wool soaked in neat peppermint oil in the places where the mice go, as they don't like the smell. We tried it and it did work. However, we only had one mouse. We had tried the humane trap before and caught the mouse taking it quite far way to release it, but it came back! We knew that it was the same one as it had one white foot. If you have more than one mouse, or rats, then you may have to resort to trapping them. It is horrible, but quick, and better than poison. Hugh Fearnley-Wittingstall had a couple in who psychically got rid of the mice in his house to the bottom of the garden. It was on the first episode of the first series. Good luck, but you need to act soon as they will definately multiply.

[dragonfly]

I agree with the others that you need to get rid of them quickly. I love mice but they are a danger in a house. A few years ago an aquaintance of mine had a fire in the loft due to rodents chewing wires. Luckily no-one was injured. She had to move out of the house for months and have a new roof built. I have tried 3 different kinds of humane traps and found that only one of them worked. If it is rats then the pest control at the council will get rid of them free of charge but they do use poison.

[SeaShore]

Oh no!! It all sounds horrible. Rowan sleeps in a loft room so if there was a fire he'd be at risk. I'm going to get some poison tomorrow.

Jazz - I've heard that if you psychically ask the mice to leave they'll go. I tried something like that at my old house and that night dreamt that the king of the mice was imploring me not to kill his family. I know that sounds utterly ridiculous, but it's true. And the mice didn't leave. Instead they decided to eat Aysha's Christmas Terry's chocolate orange. It annoyed me so much that I was motivated into poisoning them. I guess if you can do it once, you can do it again . . .

[franbee]

We have a problem with grey squirrels, they are constantly digging in the garden. Mr next-door is so fed up with them he's taken to using a trap. I don't ask any questions....

[jazzactivist]

Well, I wouldn't feel too bad about it, Seashore. You do have to get rid of them quickly. Your dream sounds fascinating, but a bit worrying, and the chocolate orange would have made my mind up too! You can usually buy the poison and the box thingy to put it in at small hardware shops. We ended up having to resort to it once when rats set up home in our outside boilerhouse at our last house. We tried everything to get rid of them, including copious quantities of peppermint oil, but no luck. We were so worried that they would damage something in the boiler, or breed, that we put the poison down and next morning there were two dead rats in the box. We never had any more. Good luck with whichever method you choose.

[franbee]

We have mice in our Church, well I suppose a lot of churches have them, and it is in the middle of a field. They nibble holes in the choir robes, I'm always stitching up, and one lady left a newly starched collar in the cupboard, when she opened the door there was a flurry of 'confetti' which turned out to be from her collar!

[sheddie]

Get them gone Seashore, just do it! X

[Ivy]

Once thy have gone get a cat or a Terrier. My parents never had problems with rats and mice while they still had a cat or a dog. Once both their pets had died their place ( with a river flowing through the garden) was packed with rats and mice

[Catriona]

I was going to say the same as Ivy has said, a cat or dog will keep them away. We had problems with rats before we got our dogs, one rat came up onto the kitchen windowsill and looked in at us!! We got the ratcatchers in and then we got a couple of dogs, no problems since.

[jazzactivist]

That's true, Ivy and Catriona, and quite an environmental solution too. It is fair to say that after our first and last two rats in the outside boilerhouse, they may have stayed away because our neighbour got two cats that used to patrol our garden as well as theirs. Our dog would have run away if he saw a rat!

[SeaShore]

Well, this is the thing. I HAVE two cats - Nelson and Florence. They are very cute and gorgeous, but also the laziest, sleepiest, fattest kittens I have ever seen! That said, maybe it's down to their presence that the unwanted visitors haven't actually moved INTO the house.

[jazzactivist]

You'll just have to stop feeding them for a while, SeaShore, and see what happens!

[SeaShore]

:eek:

[souter girl]

We have mice in our Church, well I suppose a lot of churches have them, and it is in the middle of a field. They nibble holes in the choir robes, I'm always stitching up, and one lady left a newly starched collar in the cupboard, when she opened the door there was a flurry of 'confetti' which turned out to be from her collar!


"Poor as church mice" were they??:D

[franbee]

That wasn't exactly the turn of phrase the lady used, sg!