Ver·min — noun
- 1.wild animals believed to be harmful to crops, farm animals, or game, or that carry disease, e.g., rodents.
Oh. No.
EWWWWWWW!
Oy. Vey.
Living in the wilderness of the high desert plains of Nevada can be trying at times. Especially when we happen to be in the space between winter and spring with comfy spaces that entice littles to sneak in the door. We’re suffering the invasion of the creepy critters.
Mice.
In my adult life, I’ve been plagued by rodents one other time. In the winter of 2002, VST and I were living the farm life on 40 acres. For reasons unknown, we were overcome by rats. So many rats that they left nasty trails as only large Norwegian Roof Rats could do. Even our resident owls couldn’t keep up. Finally, a professional exterminator took them out in a final battle.
Our current problems started last summer when a ground squirrel started tunneling under the gardens of winterpast. Perhaps the intensive watering made the tunneling easier, but in a short time, mounds were appearing all over the yard. The dogs were unaware, or we’d have found the problem earlier.
We tried smoke bombs neatly pushed back out of the hole. We tried burying the holes with fresh dirt. He tunneled right back up. Flooding the hole with gallons of precious water did no good. He always returned. Finally, we resorted to farm-grade gopher poison. For a time the squirrel problem went away.
And so, fall turned into winter. It was then, I discovered mice had eaten into a new bag of dog food, stored where it had been the last 5 years. Upon more investigation, we found they’d been eating frames of honey and wax removed from the dead bee hive. Now, we had a infestation of the worst kind. Again….
EWWWWWW.
HHH sprung to action. Retrieving our supply of new mouse traps, he went to work. At first, they were quite crafty, tripping the trap and stealing the bait. At one point, they actually licked the peanut butter off the trap while it remained set.
Ever since, HHH has battled on.
One food source has been identified as bird seed. HHH loves feeding the birds especially when there is little food left in the desert at this time of year. Personally, I’ve never thought about feeding wild animals, but then, his heart is softer than mine.
Well, the new squirrel LOVES the birdseed kicked to the ground by hungry birds. And so, we have a yummy food source for the furry intruder. Why Oliver and Wookie have not taken care of the problem is beyond me. Oliver has taken out toads. He’s dismembered fledglings. Why he isn’t all over this squirrel is beyond me.
More mice found the sack of bird seed stored in HHH’s man cave. And so, we now have a new infestation under attack by the traps. With persistence, we’ll be mouse free.
Last week, Oliver did deposit a dead mouse under the dining room table. He’s claimed this place as his lair, bringing fruit and other disgusting things he finds outside. This gives me hope that his hunting days aren’t quite over just yet.
Early yesterday, HHH came in from checking traps in the man cave.
“Honey, there’s a skunk in the area. Just smelled it.”
Oy. Vey.
Spring is here. Stay tuned for more adventures tomorrow.
