I had a hive which had been robbed out by a stronger hive (tried to save the weak one, but no luck), so I decided to take it down for cleaning and storage. This turned out to be quite distressing for the field mouse in the brood box, who had taken the trouble to transport a good deal of cotton from the field (got about 25 acres of the white stuff) and collect a couple of pounds of acorns for winter feed. I hated to evict her, but at least the weather's still warmish here in my part of the state, so she should be able to find another apartment somewhere!
aw poor little mouse. Thats okay, maybe she will move into your house. :)
Quote from: Natalie on November 16, 2009, 12:31:34 PM
aw poor little mouse. Thats okay, maybe she will move into your house. :)
That would be nice.....Fang needs a new playmate. The last one got broken.
:evil:
Quote from: lmehaffey on November 16, 2009, 09:38:25 AM
This turned out to be quite distressing for the field mouse in the brood box, who had taken the trouble to transport a good deal of cotton from the field
This reminds me of the Robert Burns Poem that contains the famous quote, "The best laid schemes of mice and men Go oft astray".
Whilst ploughing on a November day, Burns ruined the nest of a field mouse.
Quote from: Robert Burns
To a Mouse
Oh, tiny timorous forlorn beast,
Oh why the panic in your breast ?
You need not dart away in haste
To some corn-rick
I'd never run and chase thee,
With murdering stick.
I'm truly sorry man's dominion
Has broken nature's social union,
And justifies that ill opinion
Which makes thee startle
At me, thy poor earth-born companion,
And fellow mortal.
I do not doubt you have to thieve;
What then? Poor beastie you must live;
One ear of corn that's scarcely missed
Is small enough:
I'll share with you all this year's grist,
Without rebuff.
Thy wee bit housie too in ruin,
Its fragile walls the winds have strewn,
And you've nothing new to build a new one,
Of grasses green;
And bleak December winds ensuing,
Both cold and keen.
You saw the fields laid bare and waste,
And weary winter coming fast,
And cosy there beneath the blast,
Thou thought to dwell,
Till crash; the cruel ploughman crushed
Thy little cell.
Your wee bit heap of leaves and stubble,
Had cost thee many a weary nibble.
Now you're turned out for all thy trouble
Of house and home
To bear the winter's sleety drizzle,
And hoar frost cold.
But, mousie, thou art not alane,
In proving foresight may be in vain,
The best laid schemes of mice and men,
Go oft astray,
And leave us nought but grief and pain,
To rend our day.
Still thou art blessed, compared with me!
The present only touches thee,
But, oh, I backward cast my eye
On prospects drear,
And forward, though I cannot see,
I guess and fear.
must have been the 1st one he plowed up. that one makes you feel bad. after that, you don't notice.
the mouse in the hive will be fine. sometimes i get them between the bottom board and the slide in. i dump them out an they come back and rebuild. at this time of the year, i try to entice a barn cat out to the hives with me.
I felt bad for a fraction of a second until I saw the giant holes in the comb, the mouse poop and urine all over the bottom board, and all the crud that the little blighter had hauled into my beehive!!
That's when I decided that they were the enemy and would be destroyed by any means necessary. :-D
Rick
We had a mouse in one of our hives because we waited too long to install our mouse guards. Unfortunately we had to use the peanut butter in the mouse trap expulsion method. Mouse guards are all installed now.
Quote from: woodchopper on November 18, 2009, 11:33:53 PM
We had a mouse in one of our hives because we waited too long to install our mouse guards. Unfortunately we had to use the peanut butter in the mouse trap expulsion method. Mouse guards are all installed now.
I've just discover mouse poop in 3 of my hives. What's the best way to draw them out of the hive to get rid of them?
Quote from: homer on December 22, 2009, 11:18:22 PM
Quote from: woodchopper on November 18, 2009, 11:33:53 PM
We had a mouse in one of our hives because we waited too long to install our mouse guards. Unfortunately we had to use the peanut butter in the mouse trap expulsion method. Mouse guards are all installed now.
I've just discover mouse poop in 3 of my hives. What's the best way to draw them out of the hive to get rid of them?
I'd put mouse traps on either side of the entrance with peanut butter smeared all over them. On a warm day Micky will come out attracted by the smell. We had two hives die about a week ago in a cold snap we had here. When I pulled the hives apart both had mouse nest in them because I waited too long to install the mouse guards this year. Best way to get rid of a mouse in your hive is to never give them a chance to get in there in the first place. Make a note to install your mouse guards much earlier next year like I'm going to do.
Yes, you want to get the guards on by the cool nights in the fall. As it cools down in the fall, the bees start to cluster at night. That is when the mice start to venture in, the bees can't defend the hive because of the cluster. The mice typically won't stay in the hive yet because as it warms up in the day the bees expand the cluster and reclaim the hive.
But by the time the bees start clustering full time, then the mice spend more time in there and build a nice cozy nest, then the bees can't get the mouse even if it does warm up. And why ever leave? There's fats(wax) protein (pollen) and carbs(honey) as well as water right nearby! That is like a dream come true! Pop out of your cozy bed for a tasty sweet snack, then head right back into bed! As the mouse runs around in the hive, it messes with the bees, and they'll stay in cluster but move, this moving of the cluster will break it up and they freeze.
By this point its hard to get the mouse out without opening the hive, they will head into their nest for protection, and pounding on the hive or opening it up is as hard on the bees as it is on the mice. If the bees are still going, they may be in the top box and you can just remove the bottom box where the mouse is.
Prevention is so much easier...but I learned the hard way too :roll: