Rats in my Truck

[spencer200]

I had a friend call me the other day and say he had preheated his oven to cook a roast. During that process he smelled something funny. He opeded up the oven to investigate and found a mouse being cooked in the bottom of the oven. I guess they can get into most anything given the chance. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Alan L.]

About 5 years ago my late Dad and I were checking under the hood of his '76 Chevy pickup. There was a squirrels nest down low near the front, full of pecans and acorns the squirrels had socked away in there. And this truck was being driven regularly. Dad was so soft-hearted he didn't want to disturb it.

 

[vutch]

Some people have said to get some cats. Well, they can cause trouble like that of their own. One time my dad drove his truck to our church a few miles away, and when he got there, he heard an awful noise coming out from under the hood of the truck. He opened it up to find one of our cats decided to hitch a ride. The cat was freaked to say the least, and dad knew that if it got away, we'd never see it again. Now this would have been just fine with him, but my mom and sister get kind of attached to those things. So as it jumped, he grabbed it and threw in in the back of the truck (he had a cap on it). But not before the cat managed to bite through his thumbnail and pee all over his arm. /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

Our cats took an unauthorized drive a different time, too. We were going camping and had our (pop-up) camper set up in the yard a couple days before we left. When we got to the campground about 45 min away and started to open up the camper, were we surprised when our little black cat came shooting out and into the woods. We figured she was gone for good, but unbelievably, we actually saw her a bit later on and managed to catch her and send her home again. Set a trap. Cats are just more trouble. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[Bird]

Yep, Chris, cats will sometimes look for a warm place to sleep, and a car engine that's been run recently seems to suit them pretty well. In the mid-70's neighbors across the alley from us started their car in the driveway, heard that terrible noise and found their black cat, "Midnight", tangled in the fan belt. He survived, but the vet bill ran over $1,000./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

 

[trfcrx7]

I've read a lot of these posts, and nobody has mentioned a product called Mouse Out. It is an aerosol lubricant that has a mouse repelling odor. You just spray it on a piece of cardboard and leave it in the cab when you park the car. Keep the cab tight (windows rolled up) to concentrate the smell. It works. Put a couple other pieces under your hood when you leave it parked (take them out before you drive it!). Mice just don't like the smell and go away. It's $18 for a 20 oz. can, and you can buy it by contacting The First Snow Bank, Box 821, Belfield, ND 58622, (701) 575-2255. I'm told some NAPA stores sell it, but not my local store. The smell doesn't bother me at all, but some may not like it. Hope it's helpful to someone.

By the way, I also had an interesting experience while I was driving down the highway and a mouse came out from under the passenger seat. It climbed all the way up to the headrest, then went back under the seat. Definitely startled me, but I managed not to wreck. Then I started using Mouse Out. No more mice!

Brad.