O/T exciting evening at the barn

Since I don't allow the barn cats to stay in the tack room, I have a mouse problem in there once in a while. I'd been seeing the telltale signs and had started setting a trap.

When I got home this evening I changed into some "barn clothes" - old britches, a t-shirt and since the weather is cool and damp, a long-sleeved shirt over the t-shirt. Then it was out to the barn to feed the horses and check the trap.

I opened up the tack room to check the trap and the trap was gone.

I started moving things around to look for the trap and heard a rustling in a small paper sack on the floor. Barn cats heard it too and came running in the tack room.

I picked up the sack and it was full of mice which were not happy about being picked up. The mice started jumping trying to get out of the sack. The barn cats heard the mice and had gathered around my feet wanting to get a hot meal.

One mouse jumped real hard, made it to my hand and proceeded to make his way up my sleeve. I dropped the sack to deal with the invader and when the sack hit the floor, mice went every which way with barn cats in hot pursuit.

One cat nabbed one and ran, another cat was pursuing a mouse trying to hide behind a bucket and the one running around my shirt got launched across the the tack room and out the door.

Whew! More excitement than a three ring circus!

The dust settled, the excitement was over and now to find that trap. Finally located it under a box fan that was sitting partially on a large outdoor extension cord. Gap was maybe 3 inches tall. The mouse had been half eaten.

Since the cats are not allowed in the tack room and there was only about 3 inches of room, what could (or would) have eaten the dead mouse caught in the trap?

Hmm, interesting. I disposed of the remains, reset the trap, and put it back in its spot. I left the tack room door open so the tack room could "air" a bit and started filling the hay rack with hay.

More commotion from the tack room. Looked in and the trap had got another mouse. My big black barn cat, Speedy, had the trap and mouse. When he realized the mouse was already dead, he lost interest.

Disposed of the mouse, finished feeding the horses, and decided it was time to head for the house.

Enough excitement for one evening!

Your problem was a lot better then the one I had a few days ago in my tack house. I do let the cats in mine. I was going out to lock up the chickens and goats when I saw a coon go up inside the wall of the tack house. I yelled at the boy to get the gun. He took and and a couple minutes later was back. I then beat on the wall and that coon come out and the boy opened up on him. Now I know where the cat food was going so fast

The mice and rats will eat each other once they are dead.have seen it many times

Nancy... Not to make light of your adventure, but as I'm reading your story, there was a song that popped into my head...
Ray Stevens The Mississippi Squirrel Revival
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Yup. A coon will eat several pounds of cat food in one meal. I'll have pics to post tomorrow of the canned possums from this week end at the farm - another interesting story.

I've heard that one. Just as funny now as the first time.

Didn't know that. I'm always learning something new on this forum.

Found a half-dead garder snake in a bale of hay. I pulled it out and put it in a bucket to show my daughter. I forgot about it for a few days. Went to see if it was still alive. No snake, but a mouse in the bucket. Can only figure the snake smelled tasty so the mouse climbed in to eat it and couldn’t get back out. How bout that for nature being backwards.

Nancy I read your title and figured you and James ended up in the barn and


Oh never mind.

Gary

Seems to be an annual event here, the migration of field mice into the house. Boy they are good climbers, you have to seal up anyplace they can get in. Usually a round or 2 of traps will do the job. The cat from across the street is the best hunter I have ever seen, black, short hair, neighbor got a dog she did not like, she got so ticked off, and stayed outside all summer, eats everything she catches, found a home for that dog quite awhile ago, and she's just starting to come around. Everyday, couple times a day, she can be seen with something she's caught, many times from around or near my yard.

LOOKS to me you have LOTS to learn, when I was a kid, I trapped a mouse with a shrew, the mouse eat the shrew after a good fight. only because the mouse could see better.

anyway, nice to read ALL the details of your learning experience, if you have any more, you could write a book.

Shrews eat them all the time. I lose lots of traps during the winter.

Too Funny.

We have 3 cats. Last week, I went into the shed and found the remains of a 1/2 eaten chipmonk. After cleaning it up I went in the house got a cold drink and set down to watch the news. 1st thing up was a commercial for a new mouse trap that traps the mouse and hides it from your eyes and fingers so you do not have to see or touch the icky little thing.

Well I just started to wonder how wimpy we have become as a nation. Thank goodness for the hearty people here.

Link to the ad.

Thanks for the good post, Nancey..this is what
I read the forum for!!

Sure made a good story Nancy: When my son was in his teen I got him started in raising King show pigeons. He had a large loft and mice were always a problem. Had an old friend tell him to put cats in the loft. Cats in a pigeon loft? The friend gave him to small kittens and told him to turn them loose in the loft. The theory was the old pigeon would slap the little kittens with there wings an the kittens would be trained to leave the pigeons along. It worked. He never lost a pigeon and the cats grew up to be quite old. Mice were never a problem. People would visit the loft and could not believe having cats in it. I have a black that I have had for seventeen years he never goes out side. The other day here he came to me meowing loudly and presented me with a mouse he had caught. Do not know how that mouse found his way into the house but old Spiff took care of him.
gitrib

You got that right,,, wimpy for sure....

Ya really think it would take Jimmy ?????

Pay no mind to [b:654c4848f0]Joe Dan[/b:654c4848f0]: he's not getting enough sleep.

A long freight <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eYd2rT1UDo">train</a> on the Soo Line passing in front of his home keeps him awake.

His [b:654c4848f0]tree farm[/b:654c4848f0] comes in to view and can be seen about 20 seconds into the video.

Now what would a guy with a degree in electricity know about writing books on mouse control?

unless with your correction officer?? experience
you may have a small pair on handcuffs that at one time was a tie pin, { I got one of those}

As far as writing I hope you to do better than you did in your past newspaper articals.

"The mice and rats will eat each other once they are dead.have seen it many times" Les VA

You've got some amazing mice and rats or some amazing eyesight! Once my mice and rats are dead I never see them eat anything!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

NOW THAT'S REALLY FUNNY,,,, WHY DON'T YOU STOP ON BY,,, I'LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING YOU WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER, AND NEVER FORGET...
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

Jeff-oh,
Wimpy? Yeah, probably because people aren't exposed to it anymore.

Was working in a horse stall at the barn where we board our horse. It's in the middle of suburbia. Little girl (maybe 7 or 8) taking riding lessons comes down the aisle and I hear her say "Look, mom, Spaz is playing with a mouse". Looked outside the stall and Spaz (old, old barn cat) is batting around something he just caught. Next thing I know, crunch, crunch, crunch. Girl screams, Mom is horrified with her hands up to her face. I'm trying to keep from busting out laughing. Mom pulls the little girl to her and they turn and hurry away. Nature lesson learned. Barn cats earn their keep.