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Across the Fence:  Mouse in my car  |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
 Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 05:24:11 AM
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I have trapped two mice in my car (2007 Honda CRV) within a couple days. I don't mean under the hood - in the interior.. Last year I had one in my car. My garage is attached to our house and we've had a couple in the garage before especially in the fall/winter - but I don't know how they're getting into my car. My husband has a 2001 Subaru and they don't bother his car... Has anyone else had this problem?
Not only is it gross - little mouse poops on my seat - but I don't want to be driving down the road and have one climb up on my shoulder. I'm not afraid of mice, but that would be just a little distracting. My car is not spotless - but I don't have or leave food in it (when I told my brother he said the only other person he knew who had mice in their car had tons of fast-food wrappers in it - LOL). So I just took out the second mouse this morning and wiped off all the surfaces and vacuumed it AGAIN. I've taken everything out - including my reusable grocery bags (you can be sure I checked those). I'll wait and see if I have any more free-loaders... Any other suggestions?
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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star-schipp
True Blue Farmgirl
942 Posts
Starletta
Middletown
Indiana
USA
942 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 05:34:41 AM
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Could you keep a cat in your garage? that might help....my husband had this problem too and they chew out wires in the car and cause a lot of damage....he has a very bad habit of leaving his windows down at night and I also wonder if they don't get in when he takes the bags of recyclables to the recycle place. But, since we put a cat in the garage, we haven't had any more trouble.
If you can't feed one hundred people, then just feed one. -Mother Teresa
Star - farmgirl sister #1927
Master Food Preserver |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 06:04:54 AM
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I don't have a cat... Hmmmm... I wonder if I could borrow the neighbor's. Thanks for the suggestion.
Also, I sometimes leave my windows open - I take my dogs with me on errands and they like the windows cracked a bit, even when its cold. So I wondered if they got in through the windows. How the heck do they climb up the side of the car though??? Just in case - I will make sure the windows are closed from now on...
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 09:49:08 AM
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mice can squeeze thru a space that a peice of paper would have a hard time sliding thru, in the engine compartment, at the firewall where wireing goes thru to the interior, there can be a small gap, thats all they need, find those gaps and plug them up, make sure you don't trap one or two inside, and if you think you have, set some traps, (I use "tincats", no kill so no guts), also set some traps under your car...good luck...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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MagnoliaWhisper
True Blue Farmgirl
2817 Posts
Heather
Haysville
Kansas
USA
2817 Posts |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 10:59:23 AM
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I stopped at the mechanics shop today and he pretty much said the same thing about the little buggers squeezing through tiny openings... They were pretty busy today - but he said if I brought it back after Christmas he would look for openings. Thankfully, there have been no chewed wires and it didn't look like they were nesting anywhere under the hood. I've set a couple traps in the garage and so far, nothing - but I know they've been in there. One built a nest in my husband's boot - needless to say, he was not thrilled. I had to chuckle at that - it made me think of The Secret of Nimh...
Tina - I use live traps - I thought about the guts in my car and that was an unappealing image.
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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Acelady02
True Blue Farmgirl
1266 Posts
Penny
Washington
GA
USA
1266 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 6:21:30 PM
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I had one in my car a few months ago too...dang little bugger.....DH laughed at me while I climbed up on the seat...we had the top down at the time...lol...funny now but wasn't then.....hope you get them gone soon....my kitty has been catching some around here lately, hope she keeps it up...
(((((Hugs All)))))Penny
Farmgirl Sister #3343
God gives Miracles to those who Believe, Courage to those with Faith, Hope to those who Dream, Love to those who Accept, & Forgiveness to those who Ask...
http://ourgeorgiafarm.blogspot.com |
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heritagehunter
True Blue Farmgirl
207 Posts
Julie
La Salle
Co
USA
207 Posts |
Posted - Dec 22 2011 : 8:03:46 PM
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| If you can handle the smell, put moth balls in your car. They don't like them. But don't touch the moth balls with your bare hands. |
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rough start farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3331 Posts
marianne
The Beautiful Pacific NW
Washington State
USA
3331 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 04:17:22 AM
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Oh my gosh, Lorraine, this would be my worst nightmare. I am deathly and ridiculously afraid of mice. I would have to trade in the car.
Last summer we had a snake in our 4Runner and I pulled it our with my bare hands after my husband "chased" it into the seat upholstery. That didn't bother me a bit. Funny how these unrealistic fears work. No problem with snakes, mice send me running.
Marianne |
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Fiddlehead Farm
True Blue Farmgirl
4562 Posts
Diane
Waupaca
WI
USA
4562 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 05:24:56 AM
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I work in a service garage and we see this all the time. They (mice) are particularly attracted to the blower motor and/or cabin air filter area that is usually under or behind the glove box area. We clean out many mice nests in these areas and have even found whole nests of babies! Moth balls in the glove box help to keep them away but you must find and remove the current nest. Dryer sheets also will help to repel them and smell much better. Another thing you should look for is their food source. Bird seed and dog food nearby attract them. At our shop, we found a car that had over a pound of dog food stuck into the blower area! Good luck!
http://studiodiphotosite.shutterfly.com/
farmgirl sister #922
Don't go with the flow...you are the flow.
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.
- E. B. White |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 06:23:22 AM
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Marianne - LOL - thanks for my morning laugh. I cannot imagine getting a snake out of my car - I'm not fond of the mice - but a snake would push me over the edge...
Diane - my mechanic mentioned the putting dryer sheets in my glovebox. I'm not sure I could take the smell of mothballs - besides, I don't think its good to smell the SVOCs from them. I think their food source in our garage is the birdseed. We mostly keep it in our detached garage in metal containers - but the bags are transferred from the cars (usually mine) into the attached garage - then the other garage. Invariably, there's a little spillage... Oh the joy of outside visitors... Thankfully, I set the trap in my car last night and no mouse. I'm hopeful that I caught the only two in my car - and still no mice in the traps I set in the garage. Its like an early Christmas present! Life is good.
Thanks again everyone for the suggestions and laughs. I'll keep you posted if my little friends come back.. Have a joyous, Christmas!
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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82kygal
True Blue Farmgirl
548 Posts
Laura
Somerset
Kentucky
USA
548 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 08:01:21 AM
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Ok, I baked a bunch of cookies for Christmas. I had to hide them from DH so he wouldn't eat them I put them in a closet.I went to get them out this morning and guess who was eating them GROSS a mouse!!!!!!
With God, all things are possible. (Mark 10:27)
What ever you are, be a good one. (Abe Lincoln) |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 1:24:13 PM
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Oh Laura - I'm so sorry, but I laughed when I read that. I bet that mouse thought he'd hit the jackpot - woo hoo!!! Its no fun after you worked so hard. Hopefully, you caught him before he did any more damage.
I'm going to set another trap in my car tonight because I caught one in the garage today. First time this season... Heavy sigh - I thought I'd seen the last of mice for awhile.
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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queenmushroom
True Blue Farmgirl
985 Posts
Lorena
Centerville
Me
USA
985 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2011 : 1:49:55 PM
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I was going to say mothballs too.
Patience is worth a bushel of brains...from a chinese fortune cookie |
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NancyM
True Blue Farmgirl
113 Posts
Nancy
Fall City
WA
113 Posts |
Posted - Dec 28 2011 : 11:01:55 PM
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Uh oh-we had a mouse die in our new car earlier this year and they had to tear out the dashboard to get it. The smell was awful. They can get in through the smallest places. I hate to say it but I suggest a trap or two near where you park your car. They can do a lot of very expensive damage in a hurry.
Nancy
Farmgirl Sister #159 |
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sherone_13
True Blue Farmgirl
2460 Posts
Sherone
Evanston
WY
USA
2460 Posts |
Posted - Dec 29 2011 : 07:28:24 AM
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This post brought back a memory from my early adulthood. As a wedding present, my parents gave us the car that I used when I was in high school. It was a green 1963 Chevy Impala that I named "Irene, The Green Machine.". Shortly after the wedding, I was driving to work and it was raining hard. Unfortunately, Irene's windshield wipers were on the fritz. As I was creeping along, trying to see the narrow country road, I looked down at the hump on the floor boards between the front seats. There, sitting on his honches and looking at me, was a little brown mouse.
I was born and raised a country girl. I take pride that I have personally reached into a cow to turn a calf. I have been run over a fence by a bull. I have been attacked by numerous roosters. (They hate me!) However, the day the mouse appeared in my car, I dissolved. I opened the car door and got out quickly. Unfortunately, the car was still moving. The result of completely loosing my mind was some significant road rash, a car in the ditch with a blown tire and a never to be seen again mouse.
I'm not certain why he didn't like living in Irene. It may have something to do with the wild ride he took through a rough Wyoming barrow ditch. *LOL*
Sherone
Farmgirl Sister #1682
My Blog - www.annapearlsattic.blogspot.com
Etsy Store - www.annapearlsattic.etsy.com
Women are angels. When someone breaks our wings, we just jump on our broomsticks and fly! We are flexible that way! |
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Tea Lady
True Blue Farmgirl
645 Posts
Lorraine
Morris
IL
USA
645 Posts |
Posted - Dec 29 2011 : 10:13:27 AM
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Sherone - I'm sorry you got hurt and damaged your beloved "Irene" but I LOL when I read your story. But I understand - its just being surprised by them when you're in the car. That was my main concern... Fortunately, I caught one more in the garage, but no more in the car. Yippee... We call my car the Tea Mobile - but DH has been referring to it lately as the Mouse Mobile. We are hopeful we have the situation under control. I keep setting more traps in the garage - but nothing for about a week.
Nancy - having a mouse die in your car does not sound like a pleasant experience. Yuck. We had a mouse die in the basement and we didn't find it for days - and that smelled pretty bad. But to have it in your car had to be overwhelming. The little buggers sneak in whenever they have a chance.
Hope everyone has a mouse-free new year!
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
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Across the Fence: Mouse in my car |
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Mouse in my car
