To leave chocolate outside overnight

[ForeverBubblegum]

DS is 3 so this is the first year I've done a proper egg hunt. I've just been out hiding 20 (small) chocolate eggs in the garden. Then on the way in I had the thought that I might attract rats or something by leaving food out.

Do I need to get them back in and re-hide first thing tomorrow?

Unless you're going to have the hunt as soon as your DS wakes up, I wouldn't put them out early in the morning either.

They're wrapped up, after all.

There's another thread with photos of an egg (or rather, part of one) which the OP had left in her garage. Vermin or foxes will get through wrapping easily.

I don't know whether foxes are like dogs... do remember to be careful where you hide the eggs if you've got a dog.

Foxes, like dogs, can be harmed by chocolate

I’ve done a hunt with clues and there are a few outside-they’ve got a clue plus a foil wrapped egg inside a plastic egg, inside a small food bag! Possibly the least environmentally friendly solution ever but the plastic eggs have been going many years and the food bags can be washed and reused.

spiders will definitely be dragging their willy’s along them

We did but they were in plastic eggs. We have a 10 ft wall one side and 6ft fences all round. Don't think a fox will get in?

My friend has a great video of a little mouse collecting all the chocolate eggs she had hidden one year. Bring them in!

It's supposed to be cool here tomorrow and I've never seen a fox anywhere round here but if I left eggs out they would definitely be covered in slugs and snails 🤢

Don't think a fox will get in?

Maybe not, but rats could. Some of rats normal food sources aren't available so they may be foraging in places which don't normally have a problem.

If anyone has left them out, aside from slugs, snails, ants, rats, mice, squirrels and foxes, plus wee, I hope you don't have cats that are out at night because if they eat chocolate they could be very ill indeed, not just your cats, but neighbours pets too.

Foxes 🦊 will get them if I left them out here. I've set an early alarm 🐰🐰🐰

Once again singing the praises of older children. They will happily sit inside while I hide the eggs and then come and find them only downside is the fiendishly obscure clues I now need to write. Thank goodness for the internet and pigpen translation websites.

@ghostyslovesheets Darked on! Bloody love it!

We did our hunt yesterday as I’m working today. I left left everything out just before the hunt, mostly small things in plastic eggs but also eggs that family had sent in the post/sent us money to buy. 10 minutes in the sun and the lovely bunny my sister had sent had turned into ‘Zombie Bunny’!

I always hide ours first thing in the morning before they wake up. I was tempted to do it last night but I figured they may get eaten by rodents or foxes.

@pearpickingporky84 that looks like the rabbit out of Donnie Darko! “Wake up!!”

Dd and I decorated cardboard eggs which I hung around the garden in a trail with her small chocolate Easter egg at the end.

I hid mine outside last night, only the foil wrapped ones as more hygienic, they were absolutely fine. The kids found them this morning and no problem.

Oh pear! That happened to us many years ago, with eggs that had the DC’s names iced on them. There I was, brightly trillling “see if you can find your name” and the bloomin’ things were illegible! Hope your egg hunt goes/has gone well OP. In our house we invented a myth that only adults can hear the “boing” that signifies the arrival of the Easter Bunny, but only children can see the goodies that are left! Happy Easter to all

I had to read through to check that someone had said that they would get Darked On and made reference to spiders willies, Mumsnet never lets me down

We do a treasure hunt with clues in the house first thing to get their big egg (used to do a wool trail when the dc were younger) and then a hunt in the garden for little eggs later on, often in the afternoon (certainly after I've had coffee and hidden the eggs).

Our dc know we don't have egg hunts in the garden because I'm paranoid about the greedy dog finding the odd one they've missed and scoffing it. They did an indoor treasure hunt to find their goodies this morning, their chocolate was hidden in the tumble dryer as a secure location the dog can't get into 🤣

I hid mine outside last night, only the foil wrapped ones as more hygienic, they were absolutely fine. The kids found them this morning and no problem.

Snap. Nowhere like Mumsnet for a panic about absolutely nothing

Snap! No dead mice, rats or foxes. No ant nests all over the place. Just some easter fun.

Welll... after reading all these last night I made DH go round and collect the eggs back in.
Got up, made tea etc while DD and DH stayed in bed. Took the opportunity to re hide the eggs.
Less then half hour later DD was out hunting. I hid 6 eggs... thought I'd gone mad as one one I knew I'd hidden wasn't there! Looked all around for it.....