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Rozy Rider
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4545 Posts |
 Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 6:17:49 PM
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Don't get excited folks, this patter of tiny feet was something running about in our 100 year old house, in the loft to be precise. No one would believe me when I said I thought I'd hear a tiny pitter patter in the roof.....anyway the OH found out the mouse traps....and yes, we've got mice in the roof...five cats on the ground, so the little devils have gone aloft......
Three down and still counting and they love the cheese....
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Sue
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Roseanne
Moderator
United Kingdom
6708 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 6:22:15 PM
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Between cats we got an invasion of mice which I think crept in up a climbing rose against the house, and in one of the bedroom windows. When you hear them running and gnawing you know you've got a real colony, so be prepared to buy plenty of cheese!!
I had to get my brother (a carpenter) to come in and lift flooring to put poison down.
Then we got a new kitty and I've never heard one since.
Perhaps your cats are being fed well??
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Roseanne |
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Rozy Rider
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4545 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 6:31:29 PM
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| My cats might be half the problem, I think they might bring the odd one or two in side through the cat flap...and them loose them for a run around....It's a big house, would'nt look forward to haveing a house full or taking up all the old oak floor boards.....maybe the cats will have to go on hols up aloaf, for a week or two...... |
Sue
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jennie
Bronze Member
United Kingdom
130 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 7:02:41 PM
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| We have a barn conversion and have had electrical sockets put in the loft for gadgets that plug in and repel mice, bugs etc etc. Last year the mice ate some Xmas decs but this year - nothing, so they must work!! |
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NUTTER
Platinum Member
England
2452 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 7:04:44 PM
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Years ago i had a thatched cottage and we had i thought an invasion of mice or rats anyway when i got the people in to sort it i had a roof full of bats!!!!and loads of silverfish in the airing cupboardsany how i sold it just as it was and left it for the new owners to sort |
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Helen Newton
Gold Member
England
692 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 7:41:26 PM
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How lovely to have bats in your loft Bats are a protected species I believe, so I wouldn't have thought you would be allowed to get rid of them. As for silverfish I'm pretty sure they aren't protected |
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Judith S
Platinum Member
Wales
15686 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 7:46:14 PM
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I think we have bats in our roof space! Have been hearing pitter-patter noises - but not like mice etc - so must be bats! We will leave them to it & hope they enjoy living with us & anyway - they do a wonderful job keeping the insects down!
In our last farmhouse we had mice.....would hear them in the night & if you got up to the loo - they would be scurrying about - avoiding our feet!! |
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erica giles
Gold Member
United Kingdom
767 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2008 : 9:04:53 PM
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I live in a bungalow opposite park land, and last year I had a mouse for months. Didnt want to kill him but he was eating my parrot food. Any I tried a humane killer and he pinched the peanut butter and scarpered,so I had to resort to the good old trap. I was like a woman possessed and when I finally did catch him (he was a fine well looked after specimen) I felt the thrill of a big game hunter, no I was actually very upset but I didnt want a wild mouse to add to my menagerie |
erica giles |
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Kirsty5278
Platinum Member
England
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2008 : 11:33:41 AM
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| we live in a bungalow too and every night i hear pitter patter across the ceiling.... i just leave them..... until they start chewing through wires!!!!! |
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pat ww
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
3459 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2008 : 7:25:10 PM
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| We've had pitter patter in the past, it was town squirrels who climbed up the pebble dash and got into the eaves where a board was down. resouceful little blighters! |
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nicolanapper
Platinum Member
England
4247 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2008 : 7:28:41 PM
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We have set 12 traps tonight, two days ago we caught 3 mice. We too are invested, and they ate a load of my Christmas Lindt chocolates!!!
Nicky |
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nicolanapper
Platinum Member
England
4247 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2008 : 7:29:25 PM
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We use chocolate to catch our mice!!!
Nicky |
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Kirsty5278
Platinum Member
England
2682 Posts |
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nicolanapper
Platinum Member
England
4247 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2008 : 7:32:15 PM
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Yes, Kirsty, very posh mice!!! only the best
Nicky |
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Rozy Rider
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4545 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2008 : 12:56:27 AM
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| Thanks to everyone for your mouse stories.. |
Sue
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Grey Girl
Platinum Member
England
1554 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2008 : 11:11:37 AM
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We have bank voles in the garden (right by the patio doors) and I have to confess to feeding them odd bits of fruit and veg and hamster food. They're really lovely! Then one day while we were watching them a fine little mouse came out and joined the feast.
Oops.
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 Said the little eohippus, "I´m going to be a HORSE"  |
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B and T Rascal
Bronze Member
United Kingdom
151 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2008 : 1:45:28 PM
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Glad I'm not alone. I was up in the loft sorting out a wet area and found mouse evidence. Set a humaine trap and caught the sweetest little harvest mouse you could wish for. But how did it get there? 3 stores up. After several days I got another, but in a killing trap. I hated that but it had learnt to put roofing insulation into the humaine trap so it could get in and out at leasure. Both were female so I think a hawk had dropped a preg female on the roof, perhaps it had been attacked by a magpie. Anyway, it looks like the cheese/seed eaters have gone now.
Did anyone know that flies go into your loft for winter? That is what the mice had been living on. Evidence of wings everywhere. |
Diane |
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Rozy Rider
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4545 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2008 : 3:51:19 PM
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| Well I used to think it was the odd single mouse, but as time goes by and the traps get sprung, I'm having to accept these little blighters are out in numbers, we're up to number 7 now, they are the long tail variety with bit ears & eyes with some brown on there backs, nothing like the voles...We've also got bats, after living here fro almost 12 years I still have'nt managed to find out were the bats reside.Having 5 cats keeps the mice up a loft and I've never seen any sign of them on the ground floor.... sometimes our local resident Owl gets his tea thrown to him on the hedgetop, nothing goes to waste. |
Sue
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Pixie
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
6586 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2008 : 8:23:42 PM
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| we've had rats in our loft - oh is terrified of them. they have gone again now. when its really wet they come up the outside pipes. we've had the ratman down and he puts poison in the loft and then they go again. it has only happened twice in four years but i'd ratther it didn't happen at all. yuk |
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Merlot
Platinum Member
England
3260 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jan 2008 : 1:59:31 PM
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| We get the odd mouse/vole/fieldmouse/shrew etc which the cats bring in, decide they're bored with it and let it go. Usually find it stiff in the middle of the floor at some point. Xmas 2006 was very interesting when the naughty tortie brought a rat in which ended up getting stuck underneath the bottom of the Xmas tree which we'd stood on a crate and which I'd then covered in foil and then a nice organza cloth to hide the crate. It was doing a fine version of riverdance underneath there trying to get out, closely watched by the Siamese (tortie was completely bored with it and buggered off upstairs for a kip). It finally got out and I spent a good two hours chasing it round the house with a lump of conduit in my hands trying to catch it. It made a run for the stairs and I managed to swipe it off the stairs and wallop it with the conduit and I had to stand there with my foot on the conduit until it breathed it's last. Not nice, but as I hadn't invited it for Xmas, it had to go. Needless to say, this was all watched by 3 very attentive cats who did sod all to help me. I'm happy to rescue all the mice etc but rats are a no-no and have to leave, by fair means or foul. |
 photo by Eric G Jones |
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arabic
Platinum Member
England
4562 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jan 2008 : 2:54:36 PM
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| Awe Rozyrider, I was the excited person that was just about to congratulate you!!!! |
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