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Unwanted visitors in the shop

Darren Wright

Darren Wright

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Location
Springfield, Missouri
Went to turn on the back lights tonight and found a hole dug into the back storage area of my shop by a little critter, most likely a opossum. I had one get in last year and rigged up a one-way door for him to get back out, which seemed to work. Then I went to turn on my shop vac, which hasn't been used for about a week, and kept hearing something hitting the cabinet next to it. I walked over to find this mess.

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Looks like a rat packed away acorns for the winter in the exhaust port of the vacuum.

I'll get some rat bait blocks out this week for them, but will have to figure out if the other varmint is still in there and give him some lead poisoning. :gonnagetit:
 
I keep the rat baits out year round. Little farts will get into everything if I don't. I'd be happier if it was possum, but that's not the case. Dang rats! Good luck. I keep the rat baits as well a Bounce sheets rolled up and banded together. Also red cedar shavings. Keeps them pretty much at bay. Have to keep the bounce sheets and little burlap bags of the cedar shavings under the hood of the car to keep them and mice from building nests in the wiring. Also spray some fox urine bait spray on the tires. I haven't brought myself to spraying that anywhere in the shop yet. Whew!!! But it works.
 
Fun to find unwanted things in your tools.... a few years back I had my lathe open while I was waiting for some parts....
nuts 018.JPGnuts 002.JPGnuts 003.JPGnuts 008.JPGnuts 017.JPG

Then when I went over to use my little Ryobi bench top table saw...
nuts in saw 010.JPGnuts in saw 001.JPGnuts in saw 003.JPGnuts in saw 006.JPG

Like Dave, I keep rat bait out year around, and also installed a black snake under the shop for a couple of years and that seems to have alleviated my critter problem.
 
So far no critters inside our house or the gara...um...shop, but last spring we noticed mice had taken up residence in a pile of rocks outside in our front courtyard. So what does my wife do? She starts feeding the little sons of guns. :rolleyes: I'm pretty sure we're the only people on the block with a mouse farm. The local roadrunners like the idea, that's for sure. I'm fine with it as long as they stay outside. If I start finding signs of them in the house, they're goners.
 
Mice get in my shed and like to build nests in my lawn tractor. Especially in the air filter, carb, and under the seat. This year I've tossed poison bait blocks around the inside of the shed. I've heard that dryer sheets, steel wool, and moth balls are all good deterrents to nesting. I used the tractor for the last time yesterday for picking up leaves so Friday I'll change the oil, and filters and try something to keep them out of my stuff.
 
I've used glue traps with some success in getting rid of mice. I've occasionally caught two or three on the same glue trap, all trying to get at the dab of peanut butter I put in the centre. The glue trap doesn't kill them; you have to do that yourself, but if you don't mind...
 
Roger, with the damage the little buggers do to wiring, I don't mind the killing of them in any manner as long as it is somewhat humane. I'm not into torturing them as they are just doing what they know to do. They can just do it somewhere else. Like down the road where all the yuppies moved in and built a bunch of house all bunched together. Then they say they live in the country of all things. I got a big rat snake I named Zeus that helps with the endeavors. The way he sheds skins all the time I know he's eating good and growing. I figger him to be about 6' now. Good boy. I guess. Might be a girl. Then it would be Zeusette. :rofl:
 
I ordered a bucket of the rat baits to place around the shop. Will have to check on the other critter a it looked like it may have dug its way back out last night, so filled it back in and covered it with bricks.

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when the field mice come into our garage i use d-Con. The eat it and also take some back to the nest to feed the family so you not only get the mom and dad but the whole family. the best part is the mice just dry ,up so there no smell of dead rodents. I used the stuff in California and still use it here in Arizona.
 
can someone tell me why they would stayout of my shop for several years but this summer moved in:( so now am feeding them the green pellets.. i have nothing for food source in the shop to draw them. also is there a bug bomb sort of thing to set off to get the whole batch in one boom?
 
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I think they are mostly wanting the shelter in my case, they bring the food in with them and store it. I didn't have any for a few years, now I've had them off and on for about 3 years. I did get rid of most of them using the blocks prior for a while. I'd find 5 or 6 drowned rats in my pond for about a month as they drink themselves to death. I bought the 4 lb bucket this time. May have to get a shop cat to keep things in order.
 
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