Mice eating your Sib

[Jameslong]

I have read on here about people having their Sibs nibbled by mice in their sheds. With this and perhaps other factors in mind do you think if you have the room it is best if you keep your sib blown up over the winter rather folded in its bag ?

[Oldman2]

They are not getting mine! I keep it in its bag behind the sofa all winter.

[TmMorris]

Originally Posted by Jameslong

I have read on here about people having their Sibs nibbled by mice in their sheds. With this and perhaps other factors in mind do you think if you have the room it is best if you keep your sib blown up over the winter rather folded in its bag ?

It's a good question. We have an endless supply of nice as we are surrounded by fields and it's about this time of year that they all start moving in for winter.

I would hazard that leaving the boat inflated would tend to make it less tempting for nesting and making sure all salt is washed off would make it less tempting to nibble.

I've put the SIB in the camping trailer, along with the tent and other desirables as it is the hardest place for mice to get into but ultimately I have to wage war from Sept onwards via sporadic assaults with traps and poison so as to catch the new arrivals and prevent them from multiplying.

[The Gurnard]

Yup..like TM..Im now in the country and surrounded by mice and shrews looking for somewhere to hibernate. They chew the PVC to line their nests. I spent a life time repairing plastic sheathed cables in ducts in the ground as they go for them at this time of the year too. To prevent it the cable sheathes were often impregnated with some kind of rat repellent during manufacture.

So here is my solution..the Frib is in the cheap and cheerful bin housing.(Light Brown box).I cant see any space for them to get in there without chewing it first.

The Quicksilver is blown up on the trailer (Red Cover)..

And to top it all.. for rat repellent ..I occasionally use the kerosene dip stick (Im oil fire heating (Green Box)) to draw a line that I have yet to see a mouse cross. ..time will tell though (Shhh.. dont tell Gretta I do it)


No way do I want boats in the house though..but thats my personal choice

[TmMorris]

Reassuringly, a Steve Wright factoid yesterday was that adult mice can fit through a hole the size of a biro.

[willk]

Gurnard's advice about salt seems sound. The smell of rotting fish bits is to be avoided too. At the heel of the hunt, mice and rats knaw as a matter of habit and will nibble on anything novel. Dry and wrap SIBs and leave them off the ground. I keep mine on a table in my loft - not impossible to reach but less likely for a wandering mouse to get into/behind it. After that, well-positioned mouse/rat bait seems advisable. I have four willkats as well, which probably helps.

[babbot1]

I find dry sheets work really well. Moth balls work too but they don't smell very good if it's an enclosed living space like a camper or something.
I throw some dryer sheets on top of my lawn equipment in the shed where I have a ton of issues with mice. I had to replace some wiring under the cowling where it only sat a week between mowing. Since I have been using dryer sheets 365 days I have been okay.
I know, I probably screwed myself for saying that.

[Oldman2]

Took a few seconds to register, got it now, perfumed tumble dryer sheets, yes I can see how that would work for uneducated mice but what about the upper class ones
I deal with cats pooing in the flower beds using fabric conditioner mixed with lots of water on the soil, cats dont like lavender too much.

[jeffstevens763@g]

Make some sites they would prefer add in poison grain for them to chew job done.

[The Gurnard]

Originally Posted by TmMorris

Reassuringly, a Steve Wright factoid yesterday was that adult mice can fit through a hole the size of a biro.

Yup..Im sure your Steve Fella is right TM.

If they manage past the kerosene line ..I suspect they will be able to pull themselves through the eye of a needle .. but even if a covid mouse with no sense of smell gets through.. im hoping it will stop for some rentokil antifreeze before going to sleep in the F Rib. I keep a trap in there too.

So far.. I get them in the traps around the house and front..but none near the oil tank ... yet.

The smell of kerosene would make even a Willkat walk away. Im sure Babbot’s moth balls and sheets help deter them too as they don’t seem to like pungent smells. Like thieves..they seem to like the easy route. Not to worry anyone ..but I get them behind the sofa too..hence the trap there.



Im afraid when there is a moose aboot the hoose ..its gonna getcha and eatcha so keep yer SIB well locked up and have braces on yer belts.

[Limecc]

I once thought I'd do the right thing and get humane traps, however forgot about one and eventually found a shriveled corpse, had gone furry with mold and obviously died a slow and painful death. Stuck to regular traps after that.

[jeffstevens763@g]

Did like limecc found a mouse skull in my trap I can say it’s bigger than a biro for sure, I’ve been told they like foam rubber so bath sponge and a pot of poison. Also been told your never more than 3-4 m away from a rat or mouse. I have my boat on the trailer then my shed and wood store then a plum tree end of the year there’s always plum stones with holes in them in big piles under the wood found the odd nest too.

[willk]

Originally Posted by jeffstevens763@g

Did like limecc found a mouse skull in my trap I can say it’s bigger than a biro for sure,

The biro test is a standard pest controller metric. Mice start small and grow bigger - so jumbo mice may fail to enter the 6mm hole as defined by the biro. That said, they have somewhat flexible skull plates and can squeeze through spaces narrower than their skull dimensions suggest.

[jeffstevens763@g]

Originally Posted by willk

The biro test is a standard pest controller metric. Mice start small and grow bigger - so jumbo mice may fail to enter the 6mm hole as defined by the biro. That said, they have somewhat flexible skull plates and can squeeze through spaces narrower than their skull dimensions suggest.

Well I can tell you nothing was flexible on this skull not an expert but young and fully grown is different as in humans

[GuyC]

Originally Posted by jeffstevens763@g

...but young and fully grown is different as in humans

I sit next to / above a chap at work who'd argue with this. In fact, come to think about it, he argues about everything.

[The Gurnard]

I have a very fond memory of my dear old mom and how proud she was when my pet white mouse won first prize at the primary school pet day ... it was for best kept mouse. She was so proud as it was her who cleaned the cage out every time. I had long lost interest in the mouse..as young kids do.

It was kept in a cage ..similar to a budgie cage.. and it could not escape. The bars were every quarter of an inch apart. I do know if they were much wider..it could flatten its body and it was surprising just how small a gap it could get through. I do suspect.. ..that when they are alive.. their bones are fairly supple..like my daughters skull was when she was born. She entered into the world through a small (relatively speaking ?) gap..and her thick skull ended up pointed at the top when trying to squeeze her way out.

Of course ..once the mouse is dead..its skull will dry out and become rigid and I know a dead mouse cant get through even wider gaps unless its assisted. . Im also delighted to say my daughters head because more human shaped a few days after her ordeal was over.

[jeffstevens763@g]

https://youtu.be/iGXYZwZEZa0

[The Gurnard]

A wee tip Jeff ... If you want to post youtube videos .. just copy and paste the address bar on youtube directly into the reply box .. like this ..and then it appears without having to link to it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_x7JH5ir3A

[jeffstevens763@g]

You told me before Donny forgot again, but it does seem that the little buggers can squeeze through 6-7mm holes every day a school day

[The Gurnard]

Hi Jeff..no you are not wrong .. I doubt they can squeeze though a 6mm diameter hole..the biro (or pencil) acronym is a true saying..they can squeeze through a 6mm wide gap..but like my first daughters heads..the excess had to go somewhere so she squished it into a point. Not surprising ..my second daughter didnt need to squish her head at all .. and I now suspect a full grown rat easily enters that hole now