In article ,
says...

"Charlie Pridham" wrote in message
T...
In article ,
says...

wrote in message
...
Dave Hill wrote:
I go back to basics and just use peanuts

Peanut butter is less likely to roll off, and harder for them to nick
without setting off the trap.

I prefer to use a catch alive trap so they can be released. Why is it
necessary to kill them?

Tina





Seems kind hearted but it isn't really, where do you release them? too
close and the are back the same day, to far and its either territory with
no food supply or its taken, either way they starve. especially as by now
they will have established their winter food stashes (mostly from your
cupboards!)
But I can see where you are coming from, they are cute and most of the
year not too much trouble

I am probably lucky as I have a very big garden. Mice released 150 yds away
didn't come back as they had lots of hawthorn berries to eat and stuff like
that.
A cat has adopted me, so no mice in the house unless suicidal. They used to
get into the special cupboard I kept for my wild bird food, no chance now.

The cat throws me a mouse now and again "did you want this for your tea?"

Tina

Our problem is Cob walls and an old slate roof, long tailed field mice
regularly get in, we see them sometimes running up the outside of the
house and gaining entry to the roof from there they can go just about
anywhere including the kitchen. Mean though it sounds we keep traps set
in the kitchen cupboards, but I don't bother with the roof space.
We have a cat and it clearly knows they are there as it will try and go
in the cupboards, but the cupboards are of course quite full so not ideal
hunting ground for cats, so its traps (It is apparently mans work to
empty mouse traps!)

150 yards? I reckon thats less than 2 mins to be back at base!!
Cornish mice are obviously built of sterner stuff, Lady opposite used to
cross the road to release them in our garden, she was ever so embarrassed
when I caught her but as I was saying "I don't mind" we watched the mouse
break cover and shoot back across the road toward her house :~)
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea

In article ,
Charlie Pridham wrote:

Cornish mice are obviously built of sterner stuff, ...

And have they fixed the where and when?
And shall poor mousie die?
Here's twenty thousand Cornish mice
Will know the reason why!


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article ,
says...
In article ,
Charlie Pridham wrote:

Cornish mice are obviously built of sterner stuff, ...

And have they fixed the where and when?
And shall poor mousie die?
Here's twenty thousand Cornish mice
Will know the reason why!


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

:~)))
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea

~Brian~ wrote:
Since the weather turned cooler, Ive had an influx of field mice into the
house. They have been munching on the cereals that my wife stores in the
cupboard under the stairs.

We've just had a letter from environmental health saying they want to
come and 'inspect our premises', presumably because next door have mice
in their house and they're blaming our chickens.

The interesting thing is, we have had chickens every year since we
moved in 6 years ago, and we only got the chickens in the spring, but
we haven't had any for 6 weeks now (after trapping 3).

The chickens are penned in (now - they were free range originally, but
they kept wandering into next door's garden), they and their food are
closed in at night (a mouse could probably get in, but it should be well
enough sealed to keep rats out) and their food is now laced with chilli
powder.

Ho hum. Should be a fun invasion of our privacy to look forward to ...

On Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:02:12 +0000, wrote
(in article ):

Brian~ wrote:
Since the weather turned cooler, Ive had an influx of field mice into the
house. They have been munching on the cereals that my wife stores in the
cupboard under the stairs.

We've just had a letter from environmental health saying they want to
come and 'inspect our premises', presumably because next door have mice
in their house and they're blaming our chickens.

The interesting thing is, we have had chickens every year since we
moved in 6 years ago, and we only got the chickens in the spring, but
we haven't had any for 6 weeks now (after trapping 3).

The chickens are penned in (now - they were free range originally, but
they kept wandering into next door's garden), they and their food are
closed in at night (a mouse could probably get in, but it should be well
enough sealed to keep rats out) and their food is now laced with chilli
powder.

Ho hum. Should be a fun invasion of our privacy to look forward to ...

Do they feed wild birds next door? A friend had an influx of rats which were
the result of their bird feeders.

--
Sally in Shropshire, UK
Posted through uk.rec.gardening

Sally Thompson wrote:
Do they feed wild birds next door? A friend had an influx of rats which were
the result of their bird feeders.


They do, from a hanging bird feeder. I did comment on this to my
partner when we were talking about it last night. Althoguh to be
fair, we also have bird feed out (but ours is at the far end of the
garden)

Although I'm fairly sure they've always* had bird food out.

Christina Websell wrote:
wrote in message
...
Dave Hill wrote:
I go back to basics and just use peanuts
Peanut butter is less likely to roll off, and harder for them to nick
without setting off the trap.

I prefer to use a catch alive trap so they can be released. Why is it
necessary to kill them?

Because, having caught them, it is an offence to release them.

--
Rusty

wrote:
~Brian~ wrote:
Since the weather turned cooler, Ive had an influx of field mice into the
house. They have been munching on the cereals that my wife stores in the
cupboard under the stairs.

We've just had a letter from environmental health saying they want to
come and 'inspect our premises', presumably because next door have mice
in their house and they're blaming our chickens.

The interesting thing is, we have had chickens every year since we
moved in 6 years ago, and we only got the chickens in the spring, but
we haven't had any for 6 weeks now (after trapping 3).

/snap/
Have you seen a confrontation between a mouse and chickens?

We kept chooks when I was an anklebiter, and I remember seeing a mouse
being chased round the run by the entire flock.

One of them got it, and swallowed it in a single gulp.

Awesome! And I'm thankful that chickens aren't substantially larger...

--
Rusty

"Rusty Hinge" wrote in message
...
Christina Websell wrote:
wrote in message
...
Dave Hill wrote:
I go back to basics and just use peanuts
Peanut butter is less likely to roll off, and harder for them to nick
without setting off the trap.

I prefer to use a catch alive trap so they can be released. Why is it
necessary to kill them?

Because, having caught them, it is an offence to release them.
--
Why? They are a native species, I think you are wrong on this, Rusty.
It's an offence to release grey squirrels once caught, agreed.

Tina

Another case of "Prevention is better than Cure": http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...GB311&ie=UTF-8