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Talkback: Mice in the garden
Milo de Paor
Posts: 4
in Talkback
Lovely blog post, thank you!
How do you tell the difference between a field mouse and a house mouse? Will field mice breed in a house? And do house mice go outside much?
How do you tell the difference between a field mouse and a house mouse? Will field mice breed in a house? And do house mice go outside much?
0
Posts
I have a small mouse that lives in my garden too. Now onto several generations of mice, can't be the same one. It lived under my old brick bbq, and would even run around the garden whilst we were out there eating, along behind us, and quite happily while I was gardening. I would feed it also, so it had its only little supply of food so didn't have to compete with the birds. Managed to get a photo of it on my iphone, the mouse standing on the top brick of bbq looking into the patio doors at the cat which was looking at the mouse. Sure the mouse knew it wasn't under threat and that it was taunting the cat!
Oldchippy.
My garden is full of little holes which appear and then disappear at random. Many of them will be home to mice and possibly even their larger cousins but I've not been bothered by them, and the crocuses and snowdrops seem to manage just fine.
From time to time we get intimations that other little mammals are living alongside us too: a shrew on the doorstep; bats in the evening, a hedgehog scurrying away into the undergrowth and a pile of fresh earth diggings where a mole has been building. We even saw a lovely golden ferret that had escaped captivity and come to investigate our compost heap. Each of them needs to eat something, but each of them adds a layer of richness to our enjoyment of the garden too.
I live on an arable farm (though we are not the farmers), and there are plenty of the little critters about, both field and house mice, the outdoor type I can live with and dont bother me, but as soon as the cross the threshhold of my home I'm afraid its curtains for them! I think where ever there are humans there are mice, rats too if you are unlucky, we leave a trail of easy accessible food for them, no matter how tidy we are. Is it true they don't like mint and lavender, if it is maybe growing these in areas out doors where we dont want them may deter them, what do you think! My bug bear is RABBITS, new garden to develop and never had to contend with them before, any tips on resistant plants or deterants will be appreciated. Got moles too, it seems I'm doomed,
I saw a lovely little mouse pinching seeds, mealworms and other goodies from a little dish i had left out for our resident robin, it was snowing and as the snow got deeper it became more determined to forage what it could. I sat and watched it for over an hour kicking the snow out of its way, he is more than welcome in my garden think he lives under the deck near my pond.
i wish i had some wildlife in my garden. all i seem to get is slugs and snails!!! would love too see a few hedgehogs or mice or a robin or two!
Thanks for all your lovely comments
@Milo de Paur The field/wood mouse is better looking! They are brown with big black eyes, big ears and a long tail. The house mouse is greyish in colour, and is the type often kept as a pet.
@oldchippy I'm sorry tohear about your dog, I hope he recovers soon.
@tnkells There are lots of ways to encourage wildlife into your garden. Make sure the wildlife can enter your garden by making holes under your fences, then start by leaving a corner untouched, put up a bird feeder or two, and grow lots of nectar-rich flowers. The wildlife will soon come!
Kate
Oldchippy.