MommaHen2Many
Songster
Seeking advice from folks who have dealt with mice problems. I did search the forums and found some info, but have some addl questions.
I have a coop approx 8 x 20. Housing about 13 chickens. It is a dirt floor coop with about 10 inches of "deep litter" I have been setting traps to catch mice since fall, which was when I finished an addition to my original coop. We had record snows, and a wet spring. I have successfully killed about 2-4 mice almost daily....I found a nest last night under my feed storage trash can that had more than 12 baby mice (eyes still closed) I was so glad to be able to scoop them up, and dump them outside the coop with all of their "nesting" material.
So I feel like I need to attack this problem this summer, so it wont be such a bigger problem come winter. Thoughts/comments?
1. Put away food at night--some recommend putting away the water too...it gets hot here and I hate to do that. Can mice use nipple waterers? Maybe I will switch for summer.
2. I like the soil floor, I could brick it--but I think mice could still get through small spaces between the bricks...right?
3. My chickens eat the mice when they can catch them...funny to watch as they play chase the chicken with the mouse...but gross to think about. I know cats can get worms from mice...can chickens? Eggs are still ok?
4. I NEED to clean the coop. I want to get all the mice droppings out! What is the safest way!
I assume wear a mask so I dont breath airborne yuck...Do I remove all the deep litter and start over, assuming that the mice have burrowed through and possibly more little nests along the way? My birds spend little time inside the coop in the summer, large run, and frequent free ranging....so I thought about taking it down to the sold hardpack dirt for a while--hoping to run off the mice with no place to live, and then start again with the deep litter.
5.Can I use this litter in compost (it would sit for about 1 year before use) or is the danger of mice droppings too much?
Long request, but thanks for reading and replying.
I have a coop approx 8 x 20. Housing about 13 chickens. It is a dirt floor coop with about 10 inches of "deep litter" I have been setting traps to catch mice since fall, which was when I finished an addition to my original coop. We had record snows, and a wet spring. I have successfully killed about 2-4 mice almost daily....I found a nest last night under my feed storage trash can that had more than 12 baby mice (eyes still closed) I was so glad to be able to scoop them up, and dump them outside the coop with all of their "nesting" material.
So I feel like I need to attack this problem this summer, so it wont be such a bigger problem come winter. Thoughts/comments?
1. Put away food at night--some recommend putting away the water too...it gets hot here and I hate to do that. Can mice use nipple waterers? Maybe I will switch for summer.
2. I like the soil floor, I could brick it--but I think mice could still get through small spaces between the bricks...right?
3. My chickens eat the mice when they can catch them...funny to watch as they play chase the chicken with the mouse...but gross to think about. I know cats can get worms from mice...can chickens? Eggs are still ok?
4. I NEED to clean the coop. I want to get all the mice droppings out! What is the safest way!
I assume wear a mask so I dont breath airborne yuck...Do I remove all the deep litter and start over, assuming that the mice have burrowed through and possibly more little nests along the way? My birds spend little time inside the coop in the summer, large run, and frequent free ranging....so I thought about taking it down to the sold hardpack dirt for a while--hoping to run off the mice with no place to live, and then start again with the deep litter.
5.Can I use this litter in compost (it would sit for about 1 year before use) or is the danger of mice droppings too much?
Long request, but thanks for reading and replying.
