On this day – October 21, 2008

As the temperatures drop, the rodent population decides it is time to move to warmer quarters. One of my chores is removing carcasses from the myriad traps I have set up in the attic. I discovered that they are tasty treats for the crows. I put them outside on a tray and they disappear in no time at all.

As the weather grew colder in 2008, I noticed I wasn’t getting much heat in my Honda Civic. The fan made a strange noise and I noticed bits of paper flutter out of the vents. I spent an afternoon upside down removing the blower fan and this is what I discovered.

Isn’t that special? I made the rookie mistake of keeping paper tissues in the car. It it the ideal bedding material for a mouse nest. Mice love technology, that is why they often work in scientific research. They have made nests under the cowling of my lawnmower, dining on the ignition wires. In one case I found a nest of babies under the air filter of my Dodge truck. They had clogged up the carburetor. One year pulled out a string of tangled Christmas tree lights to discover a dead mouse with a tiny Santa hat.

Do Not Use Poison

I have no desire to poison owls, hawks and other predators of mice. In the past (before I knew better) I did use poison in the attic only to discover a nest in a boot which contained all the poison. I’m not sure if I was being mocked or if the mice are now immune. I rely completely on my collection of traps baited with peanut butter. I started my yearly count of kills on Oct 12, 2022. I’m off to a slow start with only 4 fatalities, but it should pick up after a few hard freezes.