Aussie Finch Forum

Thanks everyone. I am heading to see Allan today to get some improved seed hoppers and have 6 traps on the way from ebay.

Its a shame you can't keep chooks with finches as my chooks certainly have a taste for mouse flesh.

Allan also has mice/rat traps he sells

Yeah I found that out after I got there, bugger it.

To fix my mice problems I put double wire on my aviary. Aviary is 4m x 1.3m x 2.1m and big windows all over. I used roll of finch suitable wire from Buninngs which is very small 1cm square, but flexible and mice would squeeze through it. Couple of times found a mouse stuck in the wire. Than I double the wire and all good.
Bit harder to watch birds through and overlapped wire bit ugly but safer.

iva wrote:To fix my mice problems I put double wire on my aviary. Aviary is 4m x 1.3m x 2.1m and big windows all over. I used roll of finch suitable wire from Buninngs which is very small 1cm square, but flexible and mice would squeeze through it. Couple of times found a mouse stuck in the wire. Than I double the wire and all good.
Bit harder to watch birds through and overlapped wire bit ugly but safer.

Why not use vermin mesh, smaller holes and lot more pleasing to look through or at than doubling up 12mm wire

Concrete floors, zinc or colorbond prefab aviary, double check entry points & use alloy angles to block off.
I also use the shed organiser container systems for feeding stations, small containers top row, the large bin on the bottom row as a seed catcher....none on floor, birds still can forage in the catcher if they wish.. Mice are the death knell for any birdkeeping....

Mice a pains in the but.

I can hear my birds go bonkers at night when the little devils are in there.

I have had luck in setting a storage area where I put seed.

I then load up about 7 traps and I have been steadily;y killing 2-3 a night for the last 2 weeks.

Last week was all small mice with the weekend taking care of mum and dad mouse my the look of them.

Firstly, you must erradicate the infestation.

Use old icecream containers, butter containers etc.

Place them upside on the floor. Cut a small hole near the floor for the mice to enter.

Put a large rock or brick on top so it does not tip over.

Inside the container, but your rat bait. Make sure they cannot carry back out into the aviary. I find the wax blocks are best.

Once you get rid of the mice, you must seal up aviary part of the aviary. If you have 12mm wire, then put flat tin sheeting around the base of the aviary at least 600mm high.

Mice will go into nests and eat the chick. Mice will scare hens off the nest at night. They fly out of the nest and break their necks when the hit the wire in the dark.

Mice are the single worst enemy of the finch breeder and every effort should be made to eradicate them.

Good aviary design and construction can minimise vermin infestation immensely.