Aussie Finch Forum

Just as I thought this crazy mice plague had finished............ NO it had not.
Night time temperatures lately have gone up meaning the mice can come out more, I had a look in the skimmer box in our pool and counted about 10 dead mice in there and numeorous mice inside my zebra finch aviary. I believe the mice have been coming in for the eggs and i also found a dead adult on the ground which is really getting me worried.
One morning I woke up to check my dog and found that she was really sick which brought me to the conclusion that she had been poisoned by mice or rat bait. We taken her to the vet and found out she had an ear infection, which was a big relief for me.
How has the mice Plague gone for everyone else???

Touch wood it is quiet here . We are leaving the baits out and the traps are set , just in case .
The mouse plague has brought about another nuisance in the shape of Hawks , the nearby paddocks are feeding a couple of different species , 1 in particular is getting very comfortable in my trees .
It needs to come right into the yard to have access to the birds due to full rooves but slowly it is getting more and more confidant about doing so.
The feral cats seem more abundant also and once spring hits I dare say so will be the snakes .

On the up side more owls are being seen around the edges of town .

And the problem seems to be staying on the eastern side of the continent this year so far. Nice change. Cept for you guys.
LML

I personally don't think the Mice come to our aviaries to eat eggs. This time of the year they are looking for dry,warm sheltering and an area with food.
They will survive off the bottom rather than hunt for eggs. They are normally found in the brush in old nests or nest boxes because they are ideal nest sites for them to shelter. Keep up the bait stations as the ones still around are the ones that will cause problems during the birds breeding season.
They are the masters of survival.

Ive caught 5 in total. All in snap traps. 2 in the shed and 3 outside the aviaries, I'm sure they would have been in at least one aviary at some stage, but its great knowing I got them and the traps are still set in case I get another influx.