I was rudely awakened on Sunday night with little claws scratching my scalp. Usually when something wakes me at night it takes a moment to work out what it was.
Not this time. I shot upright and reached for the light. I knew exactly what it was. A mouse. Sure enough, there it was under the pillow. The little blighter! I slammed my hand down next to it, and told it in colourful language to get lost. It shot off under the bed and out the door. What was it trying to do? Collect my hair for nesting material? Or make a nest in my hair? Or perhaps this new conditioner smells edible. The next morning I set the trap with peanut butter bait and caught it. Feel horrible killing them, but apparently no point trapping and releasing them, as they just come back. Here at Noetzie, as I have written before, there is a bit of a mouse infestation. My theory was that the 2017 fires killed so many snakes that the mice population flourished, but having spoken to a Sanparks scientist, there is no evidence for that. Besides, raptors flock to burned areas where rodents make easy pickings on the burned land. So why so many mice in the houses? The reason, he said, is almost certainly because of an easy food source. But we always keep all food closed up, particularly because of baboons, I replied. Aha, he said, but think of the food that gets dropped: a few rice grains here, some breadcrumbs there. I thought about that and realised that we had indeed been “feeding” the mice in this way. We are so mindful about not clogging the septic tank with grease and food, we always wipe all the plates with paper towel before washing them, and discard all crumbs over the balcony. As he explained, these tiny morsels are feasts for a mouse. And where do we see the most mice? Scurrying about in the vegetation just below the balcony. Suddenly I saw it from a mouse’s point of view: “Oh good, breakfast over, here she comes with the breadboard. Yay, sunflower seeds in the breadcrumbs. Here comes the lunch tablecloth. Oh my word, there are bits of cheese with the cracker crumbs! Sundowners: Aaah! Bits of crisps falling through the balcony cracks. And a whole peanut! Feast!” Mice can produce between 32 to 56 pups a year. That is a lot of mice – and a lot of nests. No wonder it was grabbing my hair for nesting material. Probably been eyeing my mop for days. I can still feel those little claws, scratching fast and furious. So, a new crumb regime at the house: all into the bin. Pity. I prefer a circular system, but mice in my bed have put paid to that. Still, I feel it is wrong to simply continue killing wildlife that gets in our way. How do I let the mice live but keep them out of my bed? Open to suggestions!
