Avoiding mice, not enough snakes up here!

[DMF]

The problem with poison depends on where they die. If it's outside, fine. Mice will stink for quite a while if they happen to die in the wall of your home or some other place that is tough or impossible to remove the offending carcass from... don't ask me how I know...

Fox urine would probably work (never thought of that) but did you ever smell fox urine? There was a guy when I was growing up who raised fox for their fur. You would have thought they were raising skunks when you drove by...

There is truth about mice following their "tracks" by their urine smell. I saw a program about "movie" animals once and they get mice to "act" by laying a trail of their urine for them to follow.

The mothballs work.

 

[caylor]

How about the good ol' barn cat? Seriously, I picked up a small male kitten from one of my neighbors (who always has kittens it seems) and fed it in the shop just long enough for him to want to stick around until he matured. Now that dang cat is a mouse eating machine. I know he feasts on at least one of those furry rodents every week. (After making sure I have seen what he has caught by sitting right near the door and crunching on the little mouse bones).

 

[beenthere]

I too had the 'poisoned' dead mouse in the wall, but it was only after I had allowed the population to 'nest' in the wall. Keep the poison out, and they won't get into the wall to begin with. They will go back to their nest outside and die. Know that from experience too. Been here 38 years and never had a mouse 'in' the house, but did get a nest in the attached garage wall when re-siding the house. The smell isn't 'forever' but it seems like it. Maybe for 3-4 days. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Myself, I wouldn't avoid using poison from fear that a dead mouse shows up and smells. Just my opinion though. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[AntrimMan]

Poison is a last resort. It will enter the food chain no matter how you try to keep it confined. I caught one of my dogs swallowing a dead mouse that the cat had left me as a present. Saw the tail slip out of sight ,over the gums, look out belly, here it comes. Glad I wasn't using poison. Hope the neighbors aren't either.

Believe me you don't ever want to poison squirrels if they are living in the attic. Even your neighbors will complain about the smell!

What you want is a spayed female outdoor cat. Feed it only around the tractor so it hangs there when hungry. Not all cat's like to eat mice though so you may go through a few but they do all like to tease 'em to death.

Try urinating on your own tractor. It works around the garden to keep some animals away but I don't know about mice. Naw...nevermind the urine idea. Get a mouser instead.

All the best,
Martin

 

[beenthere]

My take on mouse poison is that it thins the blood so they bleed to death internally. That being the case, I rather (strongly) doubt there is any 'poison' in the mouse that can have any effect on anything that eats it. Maybe if they get a couple thousand dead mice, but even then..........

I don't want to say that I think you are wrong, but I am not convinced that poison isn't the best way to keep rid of mice. Almost would take the mice smell over the cat smell. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

It doesn't take much poison to stay ahead of the mouse population, and I am border to a woods on one side and a field on the other.

We can agree to disagree, and live with our consequences. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[slowrev]

I had squirrels living in the attic when I bought the family farm.
I closed up the access holes and they just made new ones. So I started shhoting all squirrels in the yard till the noise in the attic stopped. MIce in the house were no problem, I just bought a couple 4 packs of electronic rodent repellers at Sams and spread them around. Mice left and no mice for 4 years /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Of course everyone tells me that those repellers do not work, but I just grin and go on /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Ben

 

[AntrimMan]

Yes, poison is such an ugly word. Kind of reminds one of Alfred Hitchcock.
The usual active ingredient is Warfarin. Low doses are administered to people to thin the blood (cumidin). It interferes with the bloods ability to clot, so yes, the ingesting rodent literally bleeds to death internally. As long as it is Warfarin one mouse would make little damage to a 20# dog. Maybe a few smelly farts is all.
In the past the best rodenticide I have ever personally used was Havoc from the local Agway. I didn't even open the bag, just drop it along the wall in the barn and they ate their way in.
A good fire sends mice running for cover too but it is hard on barns and tractors.
We had a real good mouser but she got old and I think she got hold of a bad one and now she is sleeping with the worms.

I only use Thomas now. That's his photo on my profile. Thomas takes no prisoners. Thomas is a handsome kitty.

About the cat smell... I can't smell it over the dead squirrells.

Use the plastic tube mentioned previously and some Havoc and be patient. We agree.

All the best,
Martin
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[normde2001]

If you are letting your tractor sit out in the weather, you have to expect mice damage AND water damage, (tractors are not watertight). I don't understand the problem with mothballs in the engine compartment: however, my tractor is stored for months at a time in a rat-infested barn, with mothballs stuck everywhere including the engine compartment. I have no problem with the rats, and the mothballs last for months to years. I would at least put a tarp over it, with mothballs under the tarp.

 

[Jagmandave]

I had a shop out by the lake, and I had a real mouse problem, so I brought my housecat down and locked him in at night. Didn't seem to work. One day we went down to the shop and there was a mouse in a large cardboard box, he was jumping up the sides but couldn't quite make it, so I sat the cat inside the box too. The mouse went nuts trying to get out of that box then and the cat noticed and stated batting at it. Once he'd knocked it around a bit, instinct finally took over and he had a little snack. The next morning I came down to the shop and the cat was lying on his side, belly distended and a supremely content look on his face. there were mouse bits all over the shop! Never had a mouse problem after that!

 

[crashz]

I'll give the mothbals a shot.

I ran the machine for a couple hours on Saturday, dumping gravel and stone behind a block wall as it was being built. When I checked the oil before starting it I had to chase out 3 mice. I banged on the hood and engine compartment skirts with my hand to scare them out and preceeded to run the the machine. No damage as of yet, but my luck is wearing thin. I may try a combination of 3 things.

- 1st is the moth balls, as it seems like the majority of people here beleive itn them. I've sucessfully kept mice out of my GMC thats been sitting for sometime this way as well, but that is rarely used. I was afraid of fumes being flammable or stray pellets deteriorating rubber components nearby.
- 2nd is the bleach. A bleach and water solution will clean the urine tracks and probably help keep them away. As well as clean the mouse smell that its got now.
- 3rd is hot pepper. An old Maine farmer gave me this advise. He says that the mice can't stand the pepper as it gets on their paws, eyes and nose and burns them. They stay away after that.

Forgive my tractor ignorance here, but what damage could be done to the tractor by being left out in the rain? Keeping in mind that it got a canopy that over hangs the hood and rear pretty well.