The rodents are back - and garlic oil spray didn't help.

[draggar]

Yep, one of my tomatoes was partially eaten last night and I know I sprayed with garlic oil all over the plant. I guess that didn't work.

F-ing rodents. Maybe I'll just need to build a cage for them?

[ditchdj]

The only thing that worked for me is hiring an exterminator to put out poison bait stations throughout the house. That that didn't even kill them until the weather started getting cold in November when they finally started eating it after storing it away inside the walls all summer.

[draggar]

I don't want to poison them for several reasons:

1) It's very cruel (it usually melts their internal organs)
2) Anything that eats them (cats, dogs, etc..) will also be poisoned to death
3) There is a risk of one of our dogs or a cat eating the poison.

I'm seriously thinking of building a cage for the plants - I'll have to look into the costs for this because I'm sure it won't be cheap but I could build it around / attached to the shelves that they're on plus a wide front door. I'll just have to make it wide and tall enough for the plants.

[SteeleDragon78]

[QUOTE=draggar;569879I'm seriously thinking of building a cage for the plants - I'll have to look into the costs for this because I'm sure it won't be cheap but I could build it around / attached to the shelves that they're on plus a wide front door. I'll just have to make it wide and tall enough for the plants.[/QUOTE]

depending on the size of the garden area, a roll of simple garden fence and a few staking poles should be enough to keep the varmits out. if its not in ground... there are other alternatives to poisons and such. how is the garden setup? is it a table in the back or is it an inground garden?

[draggar]

Its on a table in the back. I'm thinking of building a cage around it - attach it to the shelf with a wide door in the front - maybe use either screens (pet screens?) or small holed wire to enclose it.

Anything would get fried big time in a greenhouse here.

I've tried "shake away" (crystallized fox / badger / coyote urine) and it didn't help. I've been trying to contact our local ferret rescue to see if I can buy poop from them but i don't think they are taking me seriously - that was the best deterrent - we had NO rodents when we had ferrets.

[SteeleDragon78]

Its on a table in the back. I'm thinking of building a cage around it - attach it to the shelf with a wide door in the front - maybe use either screens (pet screens?) or small holed wire to enclose it.

ok, lowes has some "multipurpose mesh" that i used to call hutch wire, same stuff they use for rabbit hutches and the like its 1/2" hex and will keep most rodents out, you would just need to make a frame and staple the mesh to it. comes in 36" by 10' rolls for about 20 bucks a roll, not the cheapest but should do the trick, the other option is a squirel trap, humane and non lethal, just put something tastier than the veggies in the trap and check it daily

[Food Lady]

I don't think any kind of fencing will work; rodents can squeeze through VERY small holes. I don't like the idea of poison, either, now that I know how cruel it is. Sorry; I don't have any other ideas, except one of those humane traps.

[tropicsgoddess]

I heard there's a spray you can get called coon spray, it gives off the scent of raccoons (raccoon urine to be exact) and it's supposed to repel the rodents away since the raccoons eat them.

[Taboo]

Seconding the coon spray or similar. Back when I had a garden out back, we used to put coyote urine around it. Scared off the groundhog that was burrowing in there and a lot of the squirrels, so something similar might work on smaller rodents.

[draggar]

ok, lowes has some "multipurpose mesh" that i used to call hutch wire, same stuff they use for rabbit hutches and the like its 1/2" hex and will keep most rodents out, you would just need to make a frame and staple the mesh to it. comes in 36" by 10' rolls for about 20 bucks a roll, not the cheapest but should do the trick, the other option is a squirel trap, humane and non lethal, just put something tastier than the veggies in the trap and check it daily

That is exactly what I was thinking - either that or pet resistant screens.

I heard there's a spray you can get called coon spray, it gives off the scent of raccoons (raccoon urine to be exact) and it's supposed to repel the rodents away since the raccoons eat them.

That sounds like the Shake Away I used to get - crystallized fox, badger, and coyote urine (other predators). Maybe I'll try the coon spray.

[draggar]

The issue has escalated...

I started to clean out the chicken coop this morning. As I was clearing the hay out of the top part I noticed something in the bottom. As I continued to clear it out and moved the mesh wire, my fears were confirmed.

We have not one:


But two:


litters of newborn mice under there.

I'm at a loss for words right now. I know a lot of people would just toss them in the garbage but I can't do that (it would be way too cruel) and we don't want another 10 pets (who knows what they would bring into the house if we even had a good cage set for them).

My wife suggested that I "disturb" the nest and wait an hour or two since they seem to be taken care of, then come back.

I took out the bedding and hay that was between the two nests (leaving them as in tact as I could) and closed up the cage again (so nothing else can get in there and disturb them).

Why the hell do I need to be do sensitive towards animals, even ones that destroy my garden (and prevent me from having future gardens?)? Why can't I just not care?

Edit: Just went and checked - only 3 of the older ones are left. I'll give it another 30-45 minutes.

[BlaqueKatt]

I know it doesn't help-but awww at the baby mousies!!!!

[Fire_on_High]

Cute little guys. Good on you for being kind to them!

[draggar]

Cute little guys. Good on you for being kind to them!

Yeah, I know, even though their parents (and the rest of their family eat my tomatoes...

The youngest liter was completely gone so I was able to clean out all of the old sawdust and hay around these nests and left them in tact.

They were all gone this morning.

My wife wanted to raise them as pets, I told her NO since I did not want to have to take care of another animal (note: I said I not "we"), plus there's no telling what they'll bring into the house - diseases, mites, fleas (even though a good soapy bath takes care of most flea issues)., etc..

[It shouldn't]

Hmmm......

Here is a thought.
Since they are mice, how about some cat urine.
Go volunteer to clean some ones litter box and put he 'used' litter around the plants.

Oh, and mice can't get through 1/4" hardware cloth (available at most hardware stores)