Mice in aviary

[RoLane]

Does anyone know how to get rid of (or control) mice in an outdoor aviary?

[chela]

Hi RoLane,

The best trap i've found is the top hole trap as per the image below:-



I got rid of all my mice in a few days, but keep in mind they will eventually come from somewhere else ie neighbours etc. so you might need to use it again a month later.

All you do is put some seed inside and put it where the mice go and bingo ...heaps of mice.
The only dilema you have is how do you kill them .........because they are caught live !

Good luck !!!

Chela

[jbwillims2000]

Yes Keep them at bay at any cost ! Pest control companies work well , with cages , and yes even the dreaded poison ! Anything to protect your friends ! Disease is spread even when they are not there , they have been there ! So I personaly use every weapon at my disposal !

[lahaygood]

the best mice prevention and elimination we have ever had was our cats! we rarely see any evidence of mice and when we do, i leave the aviary door open so the cats wander in and out. mice are never around more than a day or two.

[Nadine]

I have cats. They go into the attached building with me which hascages off the ground that the birds can come into. They catch the mice in there. I have always taken one kitten into the flight with me, keeping a close eye on it. Then when they grow up they can go in, when I am in there, and catch mice, while the birds are flying around their heads. I have no had a problem (knock on wood) with the cats chasing the birds. Except my Amazon, which got out one day when I wasn't home. My brother, who does not like the cats, and the feeling is mutual, was chasing the Amazon trying to catch him, and the cats were running around too. I don't know if they were trying to catch the bird, or get away from Jim.

[TheFrantom]

There is a trap called a Tin Cat which you can get off the internet. It is a live trap (like a Havahart trap). Bait it with peanut butter on a piece of paper. Put a dab of peanut butter on the outside edge. Mice will smell the peanut butter. (in an aviary, they have all the seed they want -- so use peanut butter or a piece of cheese). You have to check the trap at least once a day or the mice will die in the trap. Release the mice far, far away from your home.

Those tacky traps are cruel.

Or you can get a 2-1/2 ft high solid plastic waste bucket/basket. Put some peanut butter on a piece of paper on the bottom of the basket. Also put a dab on the top edge of the basket and about 6" down the basket from the edge. The mice will stretch to reach the peanut butter, fall into the basket and cannot jump out. Take the mice for a ride and turn them loose. But keep checking the basket often or they will die. (PS: a dead mouse will stink so do not use poison in your house, around your birds or other pets....)

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Chat Disclaimer: My comments on this site are of my own opinion. My intent is a friendly chat, to promote the welfare and proper care of parrots, offer helpful bird advice, to alert this site to issues that may result in financial loss, or issues (pro or con) that may arise concerning obtaining, purchasing, or adopting pet birds/parrots. My intent is not to criticize or hurt anyone else's feelings. If anyone thinks my comments pertain to them specifically, I apologize to that person in advance. If you object to my comments, private message me so as not to offend sensitive members on this site. Thank you.

[huntress]

I have 2 Jack Russell terriers trained to understand that bird eating or harassing could mean your life but you may get all the rodents you want. It works.

[Ashling]

We had a terrible mouse problem and used EVERYTHING. Only thing that worked was poison, unfortunately- we didn't want to use that. But they're gone!

huntress- you trained jackies to leave birds alone!? Very well done! I thought they were bred to chase anything and everything! Anything's possible with training though. I taught Flea to only chase mice and pigeons- he'll go for nothing else. The huskies will go for chickens, and everything else... um...

[TheFrantom]

Yep, either a jack russell or a rat terrier make good mousers. My persian cats don't know what to do with a mouse. They won't even play with fake mouses. My rat terrier is a terror when it comes to little loose creatures (birds too). The sweetest dog in the world, but he feels it is his duty to "kill" anything small that moves! That is why he is kept away from my small birds (just in case one gets loose).

Back to the mice....you also have to find out where they are coming into your aviary. Seal up all small holes. If you have a furnace with the exhaust pipes going direct to the outside of your house, make sure you have a tiny wire screen tightly over the open pvc pipes. A furnace guy told us years ago to leave those pipes open. DON'T listen to that advice! Cover those pipes with wire screening !

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Disclaimer: My comments on this site are of my own opinion. My intent is a friendly chat, to promote the welfare and proper care of parrots, offer helpful bird advice, to alert this site to issues that may result in financial loss, or issues (pro or con) that may arise concerning obtaining, purchasing, or adopting pet birds/parrots. My intent is not to criticize or hurt anyone else's feelings. If anyone thinks my comments pertain to themselves specifically, I apologize here in advance. If you object to my comments/posts/jokes, pls. private message me so as not to offend sensitive members on this site. Thank you. :)

[Parotz]

All the above suggestions would, and could work, but ultimately the nice will always return because there's food there. What you really need to do is seal the aviary so that they can not get in. If their getting in from the top, change or add a smaller mesh wire (1/2 " square) that they can't get through. If their gaining access from the bottom, get some flat tin or other flat metal like 'flashing'. It will need to go into the ground at least 5 or 6 inches,(deeper if you can) below the bottom of the aviary, to prevent them from digging underneath. The flashing should surround the base of the aviary to the height of at least 8 or 10 inches. Rodents can not climb up the smooth surface. Unless you "close the door", you will always have unwanted "guests" that you will have to deal with.