MICE!!!!!

Sean Kelly · May 18, 2009, 01:50:59 PM

Went out to my apiary yesterday to see if the bees were doing okay and noticed one of my hives had chunks of weird looking comb all over the entrance. The bees were still coming and going normally, bringing in tons of pollen. I figured they were just doing some house cleaning. I took a stick and was going to help them out a little by sweeping out some of the bigger chunks deeper inside. When I stuck the stick inside I felt something squishy and resistant. When I pulled the stick out, the biggest fattest field mouse I've ever seen FLEW out the entrance!!!! I haven't had a chance to take the hive apart and check how much damage this mouse has done and it doesn't seem to be affecting the hive right now. I had surgery on my right hand a week ago and still can't lift anything yet and my brood chambers are 3 deeps, so it takes some heart surgery to dig into these. I'll take some pictures when I dig into it. I guess this is what I get for not putting entrance reducers on last fall!!!

Sean Kelly

charles · May 18, 2009, 01:55:05 PM

Eek!

EasternShore · May 18, 2009, 06:56:32 PM

Have the same thing down here..little critter set up house..bee's survived too...it did not...can you say MEOW???
I knew you could... :-D

Sean Kelly · May 19, 2009, 01:06:39 AM

I don't think my little friend came back. Stuck a stick back in there and wiggled around and didn't find anyone. Checked up inside with a flash light last night and didnt see anything either. The bees have been busy and pulled out a bunch more of that comb. I think they were in process of evicting their unwanted tenant and I just gave the guy the final boot. Still can't open it up yet. Get my stitches out of my hand on thursday.

Sean Kelly

shemer · December 07, 2009, 01:44:11 PM

hi everyone! i can see this is an old entry but subject seems all right. Found myself lots of mice other day in combe storage. spoiled lots of my reserves, but stilll i can`t kill little bustards - they seem so nice. little and everything. i don`t know what to do...

Kathyp · December 07, 2009, 01:58:58 PM

mice have 4-8 babies at a time and 4-6 litters a year.

kill them. :-D

danno · December 07, 2009, 02:37:09 PM

actually in some cases females can have up to 10 litters a year. In sum cases a female will give birth while still nursing her last litter. Also young female mice become sexually mature at 6 weeks after birth and males at 8 weeks.

G3farms · December 07, 2009, 02:41:53 PM

[img=http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/9776/fall2009farm030.th.jpg]

this is waht i use

Kathyp · December 07, 2009, 02:47:04 PM

what i use also. a couple of litters a year, and most become part of the food chain. those that survive keep my barn free of mice!

G3farms · December 07, 2009, 07:53:59 PM

It took me three years to get this one grown up. Between the coyotes and the cars we never could keep one around, went through about 20 in three years.

That is Thomas the tom cat, killer of everything.

G3

buzzbee · December 07, 2009, 08:56:39 PM

Quote from: G3farms on December 07, 2009, 07:53:59 PM
It took me three years to get this one grown up. Between the coyotes and the cars we never could keep one around, went through about 20 in three years.

That is Thomas the tom cat, killer of everything.

G3

He is survivor stock!!! Get him a mate! :)

Bee Whisper82 · December 07, 2009, 09:58:22 PM

I had a empty hive with frames in it in the building and went to open it and had 3 mice jump strait out at my face and had 3 baby's at the bottom. :shock: They had set up home with some parts of paper and had been chewing on my frames. I think the frames will be ok but I put a stop to the little boogers I set mouse traps and deacon out. I don't have any tom cats around.

James

G3farms · December 07, 2009, 10:42:51 PM

Quote from: buzzbee on December 07, 2009, 08:56:39 PM
He is survivor stock!!! Get him a mate! :)

I already have him a little girl friend (Fuzzy), she is just not old enough yet.

G3