Yeah, I know, I live in the wilds, I should just be glad the foxes and mountain lions aren't besieging me. (To any Bored Angels....LA LA LA LA LA LA LA!)
However, it's always a little tricky figuring out an effective and sustainable way to deal with these issues. One point of living out here is to co-exist peacefully with the wildlife. Rodents in the house are a problem, though. There was a recently documented death from Hanta Virus in Santa Fe. C says that it's caused by exposure to mouse feces, and mainly affects people harvesting pinon: the mice have nests in the bushes. But, we have mice in the woodpile and they do get in the house, and we have to deal with them. The accepted method is a jug of water. This being desert country, the mouse is attracted to the water, falls into the jug, and drowns. C checks the jug (which lives on the kitchen counter in the main house) and tosses the mouse corpse out for the resident snakes. Or, in winter, the coyotes. So, a few days ago I sent this message to E and C (E being the house owner, and C being the Co-op expert on practical life skills.)
Thought I'd let you know, D saw a mouse running the perimeter of the living room. (Why do I never see these things?) I've put out a jug full of water, but so far there are no corpses.
Also, I've been hearing a knocking/rapping sound most mornings, but when I open the door I see nothing. So today I went around the side of the house and caught a glimpse of a woodpecker, pecking at the peak underneath the eaves on the west side of the house (above the door to "my" room.) It was huge, with speckled body and flashes of red. D said she saw a pileated woodpecker in the trees outside, so that's probably the same bird.
What shall I do? Is it causing damage, do you think?
C's Reply:
No damage by flicker/woodpecker. They are always around and create no damage -- they are looking for bugs and will roost each night under EB's eaves as they are deep and protective. They've been here for 7 years and can't do anything truly harmful. It's rather comforting to see them nestle in during cold weather. If they are primarily tan and have red underneath their wings, they're flickers.
Be sure to put the glass/ jug of water on a low bookshelf against a wall, with some way for a critter to climb up and do a swan dive-- a stack of books or something like that. It may take a few days but it should work
My reply:
Got it. Thanks for the reassurance. Are flickers speckled? Will check the bird book. Re: mousy... I haven't arranged the diving platform properly, and it's skittering around the bathroom, but tomorrow I'll put my engineer's hat on.
Of course, this was not the end of it. I arranged a diving platform of sponges and brooms in the bathroom and the next day I saw a mouse curled up in the jug. I was equally triumphant and dismayed: I so prefer the idea of a live trap.
A diving platform
And a pitcher of water: Non toxic mousetrap.
(I feel awful, though.)
A few hours later I nerved myself to deal with the corpse, and went into the bathroom, only to see it looking up at me, with its bright beady eyes and furry face. It looked like Ernest Shephard's illustration of the Water Rat.
I dithered a bit, and finally put the jug outside, tipping it over. When I next looked, the mouse was gone. I confessed to C, who said, "That's one lucky mouse." We both assume it will return, and I'll have to deal with it again. So, now the hunt is on for a deeper jug.
I told this story to S, who said they used a big plastic waste basket with 6 inches of water. Apparently, some time in the past, they found a mouse and put a yellow Sharpie dot on its forehead. The mouse, now named Yellow Head, continued to effect entry into the house and they continued to release it into wild until they finally found the entry point and blocked it up. As S said, "That was one useful mouse."
I don't think I have what it takes to do this.
Hantavirus in the US is carried by deer mice, which are significantly bigger than house mice and have pretty distinctive markings. If what you caught doesn't look like the brown-and-white critter on the Wikipedia page, I don't think you have to worry about Hantavirus. Not that you want mice in your house. In my experience, finding and blocking the entry point is the only effective way to deal with rodent incursions. Don't worry about mouse-proofing the outside of the house; focus on the inside. Check baseboards, cupboards on exterior walls, entry/exit points for plumbing, dryer and heating vents as applicable. You'll know you've found the spot because it will have mouse poop around it. Stuffing steel wool into the gap is an easy and effective fix.
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