The single woman's guide to mouse catching

I've been waging a battle, over a couple of weeks, with the sneakiest, fastest and most well-fed mouse in the history of rodent study.  Cheeky, pushy, intellectual, fast, sleek.  

I'm no slouch in the removal of Mickey's less engaging cousins from residential premises.  I've lived in many places which have had the odd in-comer, and have developed some damn sneaky methods of trapping, if I say so myself.  But this one has evaded and escaped and become a veritable rodent Ronald Biggs.  If you missed the 60's and 70's, I'd explain who RB was, but in the time of the interweb, if you didn't know, you've probably clicked on the link by now. If you don't, and you didn't, then you'll probably never know.

I started with the usual mousetrap. I spurn the new-fangled ones and go with the old wooden-based ones. I can understand the 'live trap' ones, but what do you do then?  Let me explain.

It came in once.  If you let it go, outside, it will come in again.  You could drive it a long way away and release it, if that makes you feel better.  Then it will get into someone else's house.  This is not an endangered animal. If you don't want to release it into the wild, what are your options? Things get a bit hands-on.

(I know someone who caught a mouse in a trap by the leg once, and ended up taking it to the vet.  Who sniggered, and said that she could pay $40 for the green needle, or just quietly walk away.  She walked away, her reputation as a farm girl in tatters.  She's never really lived it down.)

When the original traps didn't work, I replaced them with nice new ones.  I tied the bait to the trap, the mouse chewed through the thread.  I bought new mouse attractant gel, for the new traps.  It was attracted,  but not fatally.  

A friend suggested a method she'd found successful in one of the great mouse plagues of the last century in Victoria.

Take a glass bottle. (This may involve emptying a wine bottle.  Remember - waste not, want not.) 

I put a bit of sand in the empty bottle, because this mouse may have assumed sumo-mouse proportions.  I needed extra stability.  Place some bait in the neck of the bottle. ( I used the crust from some toast.)  Place the bottle on the edge of the bench or table, as appropriate, with the neck sticking out.

Take a bucket of water.  Place it on the floor under the bottle.   Wait about 5 minutes, and plop.  Sumo-mouse can't get a grip on the slippery bottle.

It's free, it involves wine, and it's effective. 

The insouciance of the German mouse

It's OK.  I've recovered from last week's umbrage at the failure of the local authority's impression of a recycling program.  Well, not completely recovered but maintaining the rage while busy elsewhere.

I have to say that yesterday was the most picture perfect day for winter in this vicinity - dawn to dusk, warm, blue-skied, and not a whiff of wind.  Not a whisper. The water was mirror-like, people went about their business cheerily - if not a bit suspiciously, with one eye on the horizon for possible thunderstorms. 

The morning went via a garage sale selling genuine antiques at reasonable - although not particularly cheap - prices and my saling friend grabbed a lovely oak dresser for $90 and a table for $170.  I picked up a lovely old tin but when I looked inside it was full of money.  We're a trusting bunch here and the people had wandered off and left the cash tin (marked at $15, btw) on the table.

I spent the rest of the morning setting up a little exhibition at the local Library, where artists take turns in occupying the display cases with their work.  I have two weeks in occupation as an exhibitionist and am always amazed that it takes so long to set up these displays, even if you think you've prepared in advance.  Of course, I have a bit of stuff kicking around at home so it wasn't as though I had to make heaps of special stuff just for this show.

It's quite hard to photograph display cases so although I took some pics I've included some shots of other work on display for those unable to stagger by.  Lots of people said they liked it as I was setting up so hopefully it will make some people smile. 

But going through and choosing and packing up has uncovered some more new ideas and now I have a heap of new work to do.  That, and deal with the mouse (rodentia insouciantia terminalis) who is so comfortable under the work table that it sits and watches me go past before departing via a mouse hole, in an casual and some would say provocative manner.  Rodent, this will not end well for you.

From my good friends at Wikepedia I observe that the German for mousetrap is Schlagmausefalle. 
It sounds somehow more poetic. Don't ever say this blog is not educational.