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Mice
My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I
keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. -- (SPAM FILTER in use: Include the word VB anywhere in the SUBJECT LINE or emails will never reach me.) |
Mice
"Drakanthus" wrote in message ... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. I don't mind mice except that when they've been in the pantry I've felt a little perturbed - don't know why though. Their droppings are easy to see and clean up. It's impossible to get rid of them completely, permanently. It's also impossible to get rid of rats but we've just spent three days trying to make the garden shed invincible to their attention. The trouble is that rats are far more intelligent than mice and while you can catch a couple in a conventional trap and perhaps another couple in an unconventional one, they learn to avoid them. You're never more than a few yards from rats. Yes, some carry disease but it's highly unlikely that the diseases will be transmitted to humans. The problem - our problem - is neighbours who you can't convince of that. We're surrounded by what we call pests - we tolerate squirrels but not rats, collar doves but not rock doves (pigeons), blackbirds but not starlings, if you're read as far as this you'll get my point. I don't really mind, as long as they leave my food alone. I don't warm to slugs and aphids and cabbage white caterpillars - to say nothing of gooseberry sawfly (OK I know they don't eat the fruit) and codling moth are all worse than rodents in my opinion. Mary -- (SPAM FILTER in use: Include the word VB anywhere in the SUBJECT LINE or emails will never reach me.) |
Mice
Mice can carry hantavirus. I used to live in Canada and it was a problem there.You had to
make sure you were extremely careful when cleaning up mice droppings, etc. However, I think (not sure) that hantavirus is only present in N. American mice. Regards. "Drakanthus" wrote in message ... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. -- (SPAM FILTER in use: Include the word VB anywhere in the SUBJECT LINE or emails will never reach me.) |
Mice
On Sun, 3 Nov 2002 18:46:29 -0000, Tony wrote:
However, I think (not sure) that hantavirus is only present in N. American mice. The CDC and www.hantavirus.net sites seem to think it is confined to the Americas. Getting back to the OP, I wouldn't bother unless you are finding signs of damage from them. You've already killed 50 and they are still being caught. I wonder how long those 50 would have sustained an Owl or other predators this winter? If they get into your home thats another matter, as they will find and contaminate your food and are not averse to chewing the odd power cable... -- Cheers Dave. Remove "spam" for valid email. |
Mice
Drakanthus wrote in message ... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. -- I would only worry about those that get into the house. Our sheds usually have a population of mice, but the cats keep the numbers down, and just this last few weeks they've started to bring weasels back, we've found three on the lawn in the last two weeks. Mike www.british-naturism.org.uk |
Mice
"Michael Berridge" wrote in message ... Drakanthus wrote in message ... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. Rats and I expect mice certainly carry a nasty disease in the UK, just ask a vermin control expert, I don't know what the disease is, just that it's the urine that's the problem. -- Art Garden Web http://www.gardenweb.com My Garden Web exchange page http://www.gardenweb.com/members/exch/art1952 |
Mice
IIRC - Weil's Disease. I remember a newspaper article about a young boy
dying from it after a rat jumped from his rabbits cage and sprayed him with urine. Rats and I expect mice certainly carry a nasty disease in the UK, just ask a vermin control expert, I don't know what the disease is, just that it's the urine that's the problem. -- Art Garden Web http://www.gardenweb.com My Garden Web exchange page http://www.gardenweb.com/members/exch/art1952 |
Mice
"Carol Russell" wrote in message ... "Michael Berridge" wrote in message ... Drakanthus wrote in message ... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. Rats and I expect mice certainly carry a nasty disease in the UK, just ask a vermin control expert, I don't know what the disease is, just that it's the urine that's the problem. The nasty disease is Weill's Disease, a form of leptosipirosis, see http://www.caving.org.uk/wdic/ for information. It is certainly transmitted via rat urine, not so sure about mice. As to the question of whether or not to kill mice living in the garden, I don't, because they aren't a sufficient bother to me to justify the effort. Have to admit I don't feel the same about rats, though. |
Mice
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Mice
"Steve Harris" wrote in message ... In article , (Carol Russell) wrote: just ask a vermin control expert, And if he's on form, he'll also tell you they carry rabies, "the black. death" and the Budweiser Frog virus :-) LOL! For a balanced and informed account of Weils look it up on the web. And don't go caving. Mary Steve Harris - Cheltenham - Real address steve AT netservs DOT com |
Mice
On Mon, 4 Nov 2002 14:42:34 -0000, BAC wrote:
The nasty disease is Weill's Disease, a form of leptosipirosis, see http://www.caving.org.uk/wdic/ for information. It is certainly transmitted via rat urine, not so sure about mice. The same site states that any mammal can carry a particular strain of the bacterium *but* that different mammals are only susceptible to some strains. It gives an example that humans can contract it from rats and dogs but there is no transfer between rats and dogs. I suspect they are playing well into the safe ground as there is not enough detailed research being done into which strains infect which mammals which can be passed to other mammals and cause illness. -- Cheers Dave. Remove "spam" for valid email. |
Mice
"Mary Fisher" wrote in message t... "Steve Harris" wrote in message ... In article , (Carol Russell) wrote: just ask a vermin control expert, And if he's on form, he'll also tell you they carry rabies, "the black. death" and the Budweiser Frog virus :-) LOL! For a balanced and informed account of Weils look it up on the web. And don't go caving. Mary Sorry, I didn't realise that Dave L had already posted the site. Mary Steve Harris - Cheltenham - Real address steve AT netservs DOT com |
Mice
The same site states that any mammal can carry a particular strain of
the bacterium *but* that different mammals are only susceptible to some strains. It gives an example that humans can contract it from rats and dogs but there is no transfer between rats and dogs. The strain carried by rats actually started on farms. It is carried by farm animals. The rat carries it into towns and cities and, as this presents a risk to a larger number of people, the rat has born the blame. The thing to remember about leptospirosis is that it has fluelike symptoms. It is normally curable (with antibiotics) but, if left untreated, it can kill (through kidney and/or liver failure). It can be easily identified from a simple blood test. If you may have been contaminated (this is usually by contaminated water entering the body though a cut in the skin or by being ingested) and develop flue like symptoms, speak to your doctor. The real danger is to ignore it. Regards Howard Neil |
Mice
"Drakanthus" wrote in message
... My mouse traps are catching mice nearly every day under the garden shed. I keep disposing of the corpses and re-baiting the traps with cheese. But it occurred to me today - why? Are mice really a problem (outside)? I've heard they can carry disease and eat certain garden veg such as beetroot - but do they actually do any other damage or harm outside? What diseases are they supposed to carry and how would they be transmitted to humans? Since buying the traps a few months ago I must have killed at least 50 mice. It's getting a bit tedious disposing of the corpses each day and I'm wondering if I'm actually achieving anything anyway. Advice welcome. -- (SPAM FILTER in use: Include the word VB anywhere in the SUBJECT LINE or emails will never reach me.) As far as I remember one pair of mice can easily produce over a thousand subsequent offspring, in the form of children, grandchildren etc, in one year. Thus with you killing 50, you're not really making much of an impact. As to damage, they ate half of my stored apples last year, they were raised on a metal platform, with smooth legs, how they got on it I do not know, but between the ones they'd gnawed and the one's scratched and covered in droppings well I didn't appreciate it. I try not to store anything edible in the shed anymore, and I think they are quite happy eating my beetroot, and various other crops outside. Still I won't do anything about them since I reckon they were here first and they will feed many other predators about the area. It's only when my neighbours complain that they don't mind rats and mice as long as they respect his garedn fence and stay on their own side, then i have to do something about them. Although on the funny side, I did, on my neighbours behalf call in the local ratman, to sort out the compost heaps and he left his little plastic trays full of poison and the rats ate them, the trays that is. The poison was goe in hours, and the trays about a day later, though no bodies turned up anywhere !!! Duncan |
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