The MICE

**Warning - a mouse was killed in this story.

I HATE MICE. Okay, I don't know how many of you have to deal with mice in your humble abode. I don't know how many of you are animal rights activists and would frown on our mice catching methods, so if you're one of those 'live trap' kinda people, perhaps you shouldn't read anymore!!

When we first bought our camp four years ago, the place was run down and had not been occupied for over 10 years. Needless to say, there was a LOT of evidence of critters in there. We gutted the inside and burned all the paneling, [it was really just painted Ten-Test], swept and washed it down. We insulated and put up vapour barrier. Doug patched every hole and crease and crevice he could find with spray foam and steel wool. Whew - no more mice.... for a while. Every once in a while they would gnaw their way in and we'd have to search for the hole again.

So, over the four years we've had the place we only really had mice in the camp a few times. For the past year we had been mice free -- until a few weeks ago.

We were relaxing after supper one evening and right in front of us this mouse had the audacity to run right in front of us to make it's way under our fridge [where we always keep a can of mouse poison]. WELL, was I mad! Grrrr. I hate mice. Well, let me rephrase that. I hate mice INSIDE. They always look so cute in photos or as cartoons, but in MY camp they become ugly, dirty rodent devils! I'm not one to freak out and scream or jump on a chair. I'm not afraid of them, but they just don't belong in MY camp!! The thought of them crawling around on my furniture, my clothes, MY BED makes me so angry. So Doug and the dog were on a mission. They both sat vigil by the fridge until the mouse finally came out and ... WHACK!!! It was a goner!! I'm not into mouse massacres, so I covered my ears and sang "la la la la" while Doug did the deed. Gracie was happy to help and wagged her tail at the whole ordeal.



So, you think the story is over? Nope. Fast forward to last week. We have trapped a few more mice since then.

It is so discouraging to come back after a week or so and find mouse poop in the cutlery drawer. The little rodents even chewed apart my silicone basting brush. There was poop in my kitchen cupboards and in my dresser drawers. Not to mention the stench in the camp from the rotting carcass of the mouse we managed to trap. Now, this isn't uncommon when you've got a mouse problem but it amazes me how quickly they can take over. Take over your house, your camp, your sanity!!!

On Saturday, I spent the day at the camp alone. Doug had to work overtime. I was on mouse patrol. It took me a few hours, but I cleaned and disinfected my cutlery and dishes. I moved furniture and lifted the vapour barrier and insulation in a few places and found some nesting materials and TONS of mouse poop. Put on my face mask and cleaned it all up. I patched a hole with steel wool and went to bed feeling secure, thinking I had solved the problem.

Well darned if there isn't a mouse sitting in the middle of my floor the next day! Geez!! AND in the middle of the night that night I heard the snap of another trap! Where were the #%&*! things coming in?? So once again we started moving furniture. I was pretty sure they were coming in in the bedroom, so we started in the corner of the bedroom I had not yet checked. Sure enough, there it was. A hole about the size of a quarter. It was right where the bedroom wall meets the main camp. I went outside and stuck a stick in the hole to show Doug where it was starting from. He stuffed it with a bunch of steel wool and put up some lumber on the outside.

It all makes sense now. Doug is doing some renovating and come to think of it, that's when we noticed the first signs of mice --- just after he had taken a few boards off of the outside siding. We set 5 traps before we left today. Put more poison in the cans. Here's hoping that those traps will be empty.

I HATE MICE.