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Original poster

Mice!?

27 replies

feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 19:47

Shit. I knew there was a wee mouse in our garden as I've seen it a handful of times.

Tonight I've realised there are two. Running back and forward between the decking and who knows where....

Are mice a problem? I realise this might sound naive but do I need to do something to get rid of them? They don't bother me but I have a little boy (19 months) who is in to EVERYTHING and puts soil and stuff in his mouth - is it risky to leave them in case he eats their droppings?

We actually have a west highland terrier but since weekend before lockdown he's been at my mum's as I was going to struggle working from home, looking after wee one and dealing with active doggo. He's now been there for 5+ weeks so do you think his absence is now why the mice are being bolder?.....

What should I do wise people?

OP posts:
MitziK · 27/04/2020 19:55

Get the dog back,

Pest control is the way DTwatCat makes a vague contribution towards the stupidly expensive wanky cat food.

SunflowerSeedsForever · 27/04/2020 20:00

2?

Mice don’t come in 1s and 2s. If you are seeing them in the day you have an infestation

Original poster
feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 20:03

I've never seen them in the day - only in the evening (dusk), like right now as I type, one of them is looking at me!!

OP posts:
Beekeeper1 · 27/04/2020 20:20

I shouldn't think there is a garden in the country that doesn't have mice - if they are outside, the chances are that they are either wood mice or long tailed field mice. Or possibly voles. House mice are actually quite uncommon and the mice people see in their houses are usually field mice. Pretty things with big , dark eyes. In any event, they are doing no harm and just going about their business - I have a shrew which lives in my kitchen and a field mouse in my greenhouse. I enjoy sitting quietly, with a cup of tea, in the greenhouse, and watching the mouse when it puts in an appearance, very entertaining. Enjoy them OP, just accept that your son is doing what young children do, is very unlikely to come to any harm, since mice do not really carry or transmit diseases in the way that rats do.

As an aside, many years ago my sister found a mouse dropping in the bottom of her bag of crisps, (salt & shake, if I remember correctly). She complained and sent it back to the manufacturers; their response - 'it is a deposit of flavouring'!

x2boys · 27/04/2020 20:23

That's not always the case Sunflower ,when I lived near a,river we used to get the odd mouse we were never infested

machupicchuperu · 27/04/2020 20:23

House mice are actually quite uncommon

I saw one in my london flat the other day. Hope it's not a baby rat.

PlanDeRaccordement · 27/04/2020 20:31

Ignore beekeeper who seems to think cute =harmless.
Mice do carry diseases. Most are way more deadly than COVID. So you’re actually safer on a bus risking COVID than being locked down with a mouse in your house:
Hanta virus, salmonella, Leptospirosis, Rat bite fever and The Plague, aka the Black Death (for which there is still no vaccine)

Original poster
feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 20:41

I've ordered some bait boxes Sad They seem to be running back and forth from the decking so a bit of research suggests it could be a (bigger) problem.

Hate the idea of doing it as I like seeing them but if it's going to be a bigger problem potentially then not sure what else to do.

Why do they have to multiply so quickly?! Little buggers.

OP posts:
midsomermurderess · 27/04/2020 20:43

A cat. I have a few interlopers and my cat catches and eats them, all of them. All that's left is a wee tuft of fur and a smear of blood. But, really, clean all surfaces, the hob, clean and put away all pots, seals everything your cupboards. They're clarty buggers which shit and piss everywhere they go.

PigletJohn · 27/04/2020 21:07

do you have a bird table or a rabbit hutch?

Feed your pet on a mouse-proof table because they will find it if on the floor.

Start collecting biscuit-tins and put your flour, bread, cakes, cornflakes, chocolate in them.

Leave no crumbs or spills on the floor.

SqueakyChicken · 27/04/2020 21:17

Please do not bait in your garden for mice. They will likely be field mice and the bait will specify that it cannot be used on these type of mice.

Field mice are not only incredibly common and not at all a public health risk (unlike house mice which are), they are the main diet for owls and other wildlife. Poisoning field mice willy nilly in your garden is akin to poisoning the rest of them when they eat your dying, poisoned mice.

House mice are completely different, as they will almost always have a nest inside the house, therefore removing them from being a food source for wildlife. They are commensal and choose to be around humans as we provide them food. Field mice do not tend to come inside that often - and if they do you will find that pest controllers will trap them and never poison (as again - it is not allowed!)

Beekeeper1 · 27/04/2020 21:25

What a ridiculous comparison; that one is more likely to catch a fatal disease by being confined indoors with a mouse present than to contract covid 19 by being in close proximity to human carriers. Most animals carry zoonotic illnesses in some way, shape or form, even the domestic cats and dogs which we welcome into our homes. Incidentally, the Plague is caused by Yersinia pestis which is a bacterium, NOT a virus, so of course there is no vaccine! It is treated very effectively with antibiotics, when diagnosed early enough and, in any case, the vector is fleas, which transmit the bacterium via ingested blood from infected host to victim. Guinea pigs, chipmunks, chinchillas and all other rodents can carry it too, but nobody suggests that we should not have them as pets in the house. Where do you draw the line? Cattle carry TB and brucellosis, sheep carry listeria and fungal diseases such as orf. Should we have no contact with them either? As always, sensible hygiene and precautions are all that is required.

Why does everything which, even remotely, impacts on humans have to treated with fear and loathing; ants -"kill them", wasps - "kill them", spiders - "kill them", I could go on. Are humans the ONLY important species? Most animals were around, in some shape or form long before humans appeared on the scene and, fortunately, will be around long after we, as a species, have disappeared - provided we don't completely destroy them all first.

PickAChew · 27/04/2020 21:32

In the garden, fine, they're even quite cute when they're not in the house.

walkingchuckydoll · 27/04/2020 21:36

The problem with two mice is that they breed every six weeks or so...,

PickAChew · 27/04/2020 21:38

We had bank voles in the garden, last year. I could happily watch them for hours. They liked to clean up the mess under the bird feeders but plainly lived elsewhere as they'd scuttle off behind next door's garage, in the evening.

Also had a field mouse nesting under a sleeper. Funny little thing - watched it come out and punch a baby blackbird, just to show it who was boss, once :o

MadameF · 27/04/2020 21:43

Put down a couple of mousetraps, you just need a little bread to attract them. The death is painless. Don't use poison, there is too much risk of secondary poisoning for cats and dogs.
They shit (which you see) and piss (which you don't) everywhere as has been said, it is really unhygienic to have them around your kitchen.

VeganCow · 27/04/2020 21:47

Agree that you shouldn’t baitbox field mice. The knock on effect in other wildlife will be huge. We have had the odd mouse in the garden but they never enter the house. It’s just quite green round here so me and the neighbours all see the odd field mouse. I like them and they don’t cause a problem.

BuggerOffAndGoodDayToYou · 27/04/2020 21:47

We have mice in our garden. They hoover up around under the bird feeders. We made sure we have fine mesh over our air bricks and don’t have them in the house. It is a sad garden that has no wildlife in it... we have mice, toads, lots of birds, bats..... all great......

Khione · 27/04/2020 22:21

I have been watching a little mouse picking up the scraps dropped by the birds from my bird feeder, which is about 2 m from my patio door.

Googled the difference between house mice (vermin) and field mice (going about their business whenever I don't encroach on their territory). House mice are brown all over whereas field mice have white throats / undersides. Luckily this is a field mouse (or mice) and he's welcome to the bits that the birds drop.

Original poster
feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 22:43

Okay. Here are some pics. They've never been in the house - well, I've never seen them or seen any droppings - but where I see them in the garden is right by our backdoor decking area so.

OP posts:
Original poster
feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 22:44

You need to zoom in!

Mice!?
Mice!?
OP posts:
Original poster
feelingsicknow · 27/04/2020 22:45

Slightly closer

Mice!?
OP posts:
SqueakyChicken · 28/04/2020 09:01

Definitely field mice. I would say leave them alone, there’s plenty of natural pest control around to control their numbers outside.

If you don’t want them around then get rid of your decking which is providing them with a lovely home!

MitziK · 28/04/2020 09:20

They'll be living under the decking - underneath sheds are also prime Field/Wood Mouse real estate.

Going by the Mouseaggeddon DTwatCat creates each year, a nest is usually around 5-6 babies. The trouble comes when there are 5-6 babies reaching adulthood and wanting to have their own 5-6 babies in a couple of weeks. And then the next 5-6 babies a couple of weeks after that... The bumblebees that specialise in nesting in old mouse nests are cool, though.

They don't usually come into the house, so I wouldn't be poisoning them, but I do allow nature/DTwatCat/Foxes to take its course.

Original poster
feelingsicknow · 28/04/2020 10:08

I think they are gorgeous so am loathe to do anything. I have ordered the bait boxes now so will just hang on to them and see what happens....

OP posts:
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