Although I alwats supposed they exist, I have never before read someone asking for compassion for wild rodents.
Finally. Thank you so much.
I live rent free in a very nice house in the bush. The owner lives as near to a Buddhist life as is possible interstate. I told her under no circumstances will I kill the rats who sometimes move in over winter. She is just as pleased to have found someone who doesn't kill all the inconvenient wildlife.
I have a non lethal trap that I load up with peanut butter.
I take them away from the house and set them free. With a free feed of peanut butter.
How wonderful you and the owner of the house are on the same page. I always feel like I’ve met a kindred spirit when someone feels the same way. Thank you for taking the time and care to relocate these little ones.
Thank you for posting this, I couldn’t agree more. Every life is precious, and I love rats and mice. When I was a kid we lived near a canal and rats were not uncommon. We had two mice in the old house who even escaped the very grumpy cat that had wandered in one day and stayed.
Who are we to say who should live and who should not? Who is deserving of compassion and who is not? We’re not God.
I’m looking forward to the hen stories, and the upcoming posts about wild rats and mice 💙🐓🐀🐁
Haha I love the idea of the two mice living it up in yoru house and outsmarting a grumpy cat. Very Tom and Jerry! If we only had a few rats here I would not even worry about them. I actually love watching them. They are so full of personality and fun. But due to the numbers and the destruction the cheeky little ones are causing I am taking action. But kindly and without harm. I'm hoping once I have the whole process written down and can share it with others, people will find it less overwhelming, easier and even fun to deal with these situations kindly.
Oh Joyce, I couldn’t have said it better myself. I have tears in my eyes reading your reply. I always thought I was strange until I started reading Catherine’s stories about the hens and realised that there was a likeminded soul in the world and now I can add your name as well. Thank you for your lovely words 🙏😊
Thank you so much for your message, Shelley. And thank you for being a caring soul 💙🙏
This is what the world needs: people with love and compassion for those in need, be they human, animal, wildlife or flora. A caring soul is a loving soul 💙
Thank you Catherine. I totally agree with you. Especially when there are kind ways and clean ways to help, and thoughtful ways. Over the years, i have learned more about rats and mice and they deserve to live and be dissuaded from causing issues in an intelligent and non harmful way. And mice- I came across a channel that kept little mice in a beautiful place. They don’t live long but they deserve to live. She accompanied one of her videos with a song “Heart of the Universe” and it still brings me to tears at the wonder and beauty of those tiny mice.
I am not Buddhist, and not perfect, but we really are missing something if we don’t see and care for our surroundings and the inhabitants of them. Sorry for the ramble, your comments strike a chord🙏
I love your ramble! Thank you for sharing. Do you know the name of that channel? I would love to look it up. Mice are so beautiful too. I had a much easier time a few years ago relocating and dissuading them than these naughty rats. One of my focus areas is creating them safe habitats to be released into. Kind of like a halfway house. I am looking forward to sharing more about that.
Wild Rodents play an important role in any healthy ecosystem,both as a food source for Reptiles and Raptors etc and also in aerating soils and in seed dispersal. As they forage they also allow moisture absorption into the soils,carry seeds on their fur and in their poop. Introduced Rodents,ditto. When we see “mouse plagues” we see a symptom of the problem,not the actual problem. Fharmers here in Australia are incredibly good at scapegoating,in fact they have been doing that for 238yrs. They LOVE to blame other species,demonise other species and slaughter other species be they Introduced and or Wildlife claiming that they are the problem. The problem is indeed themselves. The Fharmers have cleared thousands of hectares of land to plant monocultures,in wiping out habitat they have also created Biodiversity Deserts,they’ve wiped out all localised Indigenous Wildlife,all natural predators,then in these deforestated areas,these essentially introduced weeds (crops) are then grown repeatedly in the same soils in the same spot,each time more insecticides,pesticides etc are used,as the area becomes more degraded,until all natural defences are now gone. And the crop remains. It only takes a handful of mice to grow very quickly into what are referred to as plagues,and yes coming from humans calling ANY species a plague in itself is amazing hypocrisy. Then the Fharmers saturate the already degraded area with increasing amounts of poison,which also kills any Indigenous Rodents and causes secondary poisoning to any other Birds of Prey etc who might be still in the area,who then die. It’s absolute madness but,the Government keep throwing millions of dollars of taxpayers money at Fharmers because Fharmers vote. And that is what it’s all about. This is another reason why I push SO relentlessly self sustainable plant food production and veganism,given the majority of crops are grown to feed cattle and sheep. Nice to have had you in our neck of the woods here in the Blue Mountains Catherine.🌿
Thank you for this Rowena. It helped me understand a bit more about why these ‘plagues’ occur. And I couldn’t agree with you more about how Fharmers (love that) always love to blame everyone but themselves. It is like when they lose all their ‘stock’ in a flood and yet their farm was on a flood plain. And gosh I hate that language of ‘stock’. What a nasty way to think of living individual beings.
I loved my time in the Blue Mountains in 2007-2008. Only two short years but I felt so at home there. I remember when I first arrived and went to the Katoomba co-op they had a basket of vegan voice magazines by the door. I always used to buy one. There was a local Animal Liberation group there and immediately after attending a meeting one day I did my first ever liberation - a galah who had been caged his whole life, only visited once a day to be fed. He came home with me. There was also a vegetarian cafe called Niche Nosh. In those days that wasn’t common in a small town, so I felt like I had come home.
Hi Catherine, I was so happy to read your latest missive. I too rescue any and every single animal who wanders into my house. We don’t have many rats and mice here on the Gold Coast that I have seen, but they were around when I lived in NSW. When I go to Bunnings or anywhere that sells poison or traps, I want to steal them all and get them off the shelves so people can’t buy them. I also just don’t get why we can’t be more compassionate towards animals which society labels “vermin”. Rats and mice are such amazing creatures, they have compassion for each other in spades and could teach humans so much. Most animals are just trying to survive in this world, we should all try and survive together. Funnily enough my cousin in England wrote to me this week about a couple of mice in her house. I wrote back to her asking her please, when she caught them, to put them gently outside. I so wish there were more people like you and I who have compassion for all animals. I’m looking forward to reading the 2nd and 3rd parts of your story. Thank you so much for being the wonderful human that you are. 🙏❤️
Thank you Shelley. And seeing your reply made me smile just knowing you are just like me. I know exactly what you mean about Bunnings. One thing I like to do in shops that have smaller supplies of glue traps and poisons is to just pop the nasty products on the floor, under the shelves. That way people can’t see them. Yes, they will find them eventually, but we don’t want to make it easy for people to be cruel. Not really possible in Bunnings where you’d have to somehow hide about half an aisle of products and a whole display at the front of the store! But good for supermarkets or dollar shops. It may be a while until part 2 and 3 because I am working through my kind solutions right now and jotting down my notes as I go. I will share once I have it all worked out. But I am confident after all my research that this will work. I am also confident I can set the wild rats up in the reserve so they have a good survival rate.
I love rodents, always have. My house and yard are home to any wildlife that is smart enough to dtsy clear when my dog is outside. I did have rats in my attic, so I bought a sound repeller. I sincerely hope there were no babies left behind. 😒 I would love to hear more about the herbal contraceptive.
I think those repellers are a great idea for people who can use them and don’t have as many little animals in the house as I do. But yes I do worry about the babies. But still what a kind decision compared to the methods most people jump to. I am excited to share about the contraceptive but it may be a little while until I have worked on it well enough to say it works.
Such an important article! Thank you! I would love to have a pet rat, but I have 6 cats, so…. However, I bet things could be worked out! Two years ago I was starting my spring planting blitz. I do a lot with containers on my porch, which I dump out in the late fall (our winters are brutal) and I stack the pots on the porch. I removed one pot and saw a mouse nest in the bottom of the next pot. A darling pair of inky eyes looked up at me. I carefully replaced the pot and I would drop sunflower seeds in the top pot for mama to gather throughout the summer. Sometimes I would move the pot and take a peek. I was sad when the pots were uninhabited the next spring. I adored the little family!
I love that image of the inky eyes looking up at you.
I’m also jealous of your 6 cat friends. I love cats, but due to all the little animals here I cannot adopt one. My beautiful Dylan cat who I adopted in 2007, years before I started the hen rescue, just happened to be great with all little animals. He passed away in 2024. But I am not sure I’d be lucky enough to find that gentle nature again.
Except for one cat who is semiferal, the cats are all indoor only. They got on with my parrots back in the day. But of course it depends on the individual, as you say.
Indoor cats are the way to go for their safety and wildlife’s safety.
I have CJ the rainbow lorikeet and 3 bunnies free in the house and any unwell or higher needs chickens also come inside at night. If I ever have rescued chicks or ducklings they are only outside under supervision and otherwise waddling about the house. It really is a hectic house/barn sometimes. Dylan was even good with the baby animals like ducklings rescued from a factory farm, not that I ever took risks of course. I’m sure there are other cats that would get along with everyone, it would just be hard to know in advance.
Now I just really make the most of it every time I get the chance to hang out with someone else’s cats or dogs.
The only kind way to deal with rodents in your buildings is to exclude them. That usually means hiring an expert, which is expensive. I paid thousands of dollars (US) a few years ago, to stop a longstanding packrat problem in my home. Even with all that work, I still get mice in the house.
Keep in mind that many people cannot afford to make their homes rodent proof. And if they are renters, they have no control over how rodent infestations are addressed.
Rodenticide is the lazy solution. Glue traps, ditto. Household (and business premises) hygiene is mandatory, if you don’t want rodents. Fix water leaks. Rodents want shelter near food and water.
I would be one those people who at this stage cannot afford to make my home rodent proof. So I definitely understand. It’s on my to do list for when I am in a better financial situation which I’m sure will happen eventually.
And I have to say that’s so great you put all the effort in. And totally agree re the prevention side. It’s somewhat easier said than done on a sanctuary with animal feed and water bowls all about the place.
But the good news for my situation is I have found some other ways. I’m working on them now. So fingers crossed I’ll have positive news to share soon!
I agree with everything you said. They are also just trying to survive in an environment made so hard by humans. I get that they can be a problem in some settings - but there are things that can be done, as you are/will be addressing. There is an irrational fear towards these creatures which makes most people automatically hate them. I had a rat visiting my backyard and I was so sad when I found them dead, as a resulting of poisoning from someone. Sure that rat had been in my roof and they are loud! But for now I've blocked up the gap in the roof to prevent access from others. And I now have a couple of mice who live in the chicken yard - they are only eating food that has been flicked from the mouth of a chicken - as they can't access anything else. They aren't diseased - they are clean. They aren't harming anyone, and they are super cute. I am genuinely shocked at just how many people I see at Bunnings with rat poison in their trollies. It's shocking.
It seems we are totally aligned on this which makes me so happy. One of the reasons I am working on a contraceptive as opposed to trying to repel the rats is that I know my neighbours will immediately poison them. I think of them as my little ratty friends, or maybe I should say frenemies, because real friends don’t try and destroy your house. Hehe. They really are so noisy and destructuve. But that doesn’t mean they should suffer and die. I know iin a few months I will be totally on top of things. I’m jotting down all my notes so I will be able to share what worked. I am even setting up little rat habitats in my release spot to increase their survival chances when trapped and released. It’s kind of a fun project.
Our house is "investigated" (from time-to-time) by small intruders who normally make their homes in the underbrush that surrounds the "people house". Mostly, they are deterred from their investigations by the household cat (an adopted "feral" kitty) who represents an understandable threat to rodent intruders. If not deterred by the cat, they generally are captured in a "humane" ("live") trap; and released back into their habitat (but at some distance from the "people house").
I have no objection to rodents, or to other small creatures🐭inhabiting our surroundings -- we all are just tryin' to make a livin', after all🙃. I simply object to the creatures attempting to make their livin' in the "people house", which I feel is reserved for "the people" (and the cat, of course).
... oh -- and the "outdoor creatures" who live in the surroundings generally are _very_ well fed from the seeds that fall from the numerous bird feeders placed strategically around the "people house". The abundance of outdoor food also may persuade the little guys that things are better ... "outside"🤪
Agreed. I love the little ones but would prefer they stayed outside simply due to the damage they do. Gosh they love to chew! Hopefully all will be solved in a few months and then I will share the results.
Wonderful article. They are just as deserving as any other being! They are very intelligent and sociable. They deserve so much better than painful deaths. I would not be able to handle them like you do but I always thought of kind ways of shutting them out of our homes or where we would not want them. Lastly, I have seen how one of our beloved cats died of rat poison. It was an unspeakable pain. She started foaming from her mouth, still trying to jump onto the window sill. Presumably to say good bye. The garden was also littered with dead lizards that had turned blue. As a kid, I decided to never ever put poison anywhere. I stuck to this decision all my life and became vegan in respect for life 💚
I would love to know how you deal with them in a kinder way. I tried not to kill them by trapping and relocating but they are so smart and could only catch a few. Then I ended up with many in the roof, garage, garden and unfortunately had to do something.
I wonder if you've ever delved into telepathic interspecies communication. Your average proud materialist would say that it's a bunch of crap, but the stories are simply too specific to be bogus.
Although I alwats supposed they exist, I have never before read someone asking for compassion for wild rodents.
Finally. Thank you so much.
I live rent free in a very nice house in the bush. The owner lives as near to a Buddhist life as is possible interstate. I told her under no circumstances will I kill the rats who sometimes move in over winter. She is just as pleased to have found someone who doesn't kill all the inconvenient wildlife.
I have a non lethal trap that I load up with peanut butter.
I take them away from the house and set them free. With a free feed of peanut butter.
The spiders who live in the house are safe too.
How wonderful you and the owner of the house are on the same page. I always feel like I’ve met a kindred spirit when someone feels the same way. Thank you for taking the time and care to relocate these little ones.
And yes to being kind to spiders and insects too!
I live a hermits life.
People exhaust me.
I'm busy just watching the local birds queueing up for their turn in the bird bath.
It gets refilled 3 times a day.
Or watching the sugar ants go out on a sortie.
People are offended if I seem more interested in all the things going on around me than I am in them.
Ho hum.
I loved reading this. It is like a poem.
Thank you for posting this, I couldn’t agree more. Every life is precious, and I love rats and mice. When I was a kid we lived near a canal and rats were not uncommon. We had two mice in the old house who even escaped the very grumpy cat that had wandered in one day and stayed.
Who are we to say who should live and who should not? Who is deserving of compassion and who is not? We’re not God.
I’m looking forward to the hen stories, and the upcoming posts about wild rats and mice 💙🐓🐀🐁
Haha I love the idea of the two mice living it up in yoru house and outsmarting a grumpy cat. Very Tom and Jerry! If we only had a few rats here I would not even worry about them. I actually love watching them. They are so full of personality and fun. But due to the numbers and the destruction the cheeky little ones are causing I am taking action. But kindly and without harm. I'm hoping once I have the whole process written down and can share it with others, people will find it less overwhelming, easier and even fun to deal with these situations kindly.
Oh Joyce, I couldn’t have said it better myself. I have tears in my eyes reading your reply. I always thought I was strange until I started reading Catherine’s stories about the hens and realised that there was a likeminded soul in the world and now I can add your name as well. Thank you for your lovely words 🙏😊
Thank you so much for your message, Shelley. And thank you for being a caring soul 💙🙏
This is what the world needs: people with love and compassion for those in need, be they human, animal, wildlife or flora. A caring soul is a loving soul 💙
Thank you Catherine. I totally agree with you. Especially when there are kind ways and clean ways to help, and thoughtful ways. Over the years, i have learned more about rats and mice and they deserve to live and be dissuaded from causing issues in an intelligent and non harmful way. And mice- I came across a channel that kept little mice in a beautiful place. They don’t live long but they deserve to live. She accompanied one of her videos with a song “Heart of the Universe” and it still brings me to tears at the wonder and beauty of those tiny mice.
I am not Buddhist, and not perfect, but we really are missing something if we don’t see and care for our surroundings and the inhabitants of them. Sorry for the ramble, your comments strike a chord🙏
I love your ramble! Thank you for sharing. Do you know the name of that channel? I would love to look it up. Mice are so beautiful too. I had a much easier time a few years ago relocating and dissuading them than these naughty rats. One of my focus areas is creating them safe habitats to be released into. Kind of like a halfway house. I am looking forward to sharing more about that.
Great Post! 🐭💜
Wild Rodents play an important role in any healthy ecosystem,both as a food source for Reptiles and Raptors etc and also in aerating soils and in seed dispersal. As they forage they also allow moisture absorption into the soils,carry seeds on their fur and in their poop. Introduced Rodents,ditto. When we see “mouse plagues” we see a symptom of the problem,not the actual problem. Fharmers here in Australia are incredibly good at scapegoating,in fact they have been doing that for 238yrs. They LOVE to blame other species,demonise other species and slaughter other species be they Introduced and or Wildlife claiming that they are the problem. The problem is indeed themselves. The Fharmers have cleared thousands of hectares of land to plant monocultures,in wiping out habitat they have also created Biodiversity Deserts,they’ve wiped out all localised Indigenous Wildlife,all natural predators,then in these deforestated areas,these essentially introduced weeds (crops) are then grown repeatedly in the same soils in the same spot,each time more insecticides,pesticides etc are used,as the area becomes more degraded,until all natural defences are now gone. And the crop remains. It only takes a handful of mice to grow very quickly into what are referred to as plagues,and yes coming from humans calling ANY species a plague in itself is amazing hypocrisy. Then the Fharmers saturate the already degraded area with increasing amounts of poison,which also kills any Indigenous Rodents and causes secondary poisoning to any other Birds of Prey etc who might be still in the area,who then die. It’s absolute madness but,the Government keep throwing millions of dollars of taxpayers money at Fharmers because Fharmers vote. And that is what it’s all about. This is another reason why I push SO relentlessly self sustainable plant food production and veganism,given the majority of crops are grown to feed cattle and sheep. Nice to have had you in our neck of the woods here in the Blue Mountains Catherine.🌿
Thank you for this Rowena. It helped me understand a bit more about why these ‘plagues’ occur. And I couldn’t agree with you more about how Fharmers (love that) always love to blame everyone but themselves. It is like when they lose all their ‘stock’ in a flood and yet their farm was on a flood plain. And gosh I hate that language of ‘stock’. What a nasty way to think of living individual beings.
I loved my time in the Blue Mountains in 2007-2008. Only two short years but I felt so at home there. I remember when I first arrived and went to the Katoomba co-op they had a basket of vegan voice magazines by the door. I always used to buy one. There was a local Animal Liberation group there and immediately after attending a meeting one day I did my first ever liberation - a galah who had been caged his whole life, only visited once a day to be fed. He came home with me. There was also a vegetarian cafe called Niche Nosh. In those days that wasn’t common in a small town, so I felt like I had come home.
This is so well said
Thank you. 😊
Hi Catherine, I was so happy to read your latest missive. I too rescue any and every single animal who wanders into my house. We don’t have many rats and mice here on the Gold Coast that I have seen, but they were around when I lived in NSW. When I go to Bunnings or anywhere that sells poison or traps, I want to steal them all and get them off the shelves so people can’t buy them. I also just don’t get why we can’t be more compassionate towards animals which society labels “vermin”. Rats and mice are such amazing creatures, they have compassion for each other in spades and could teach humans so much. Most animals are just trying to survive in this world, we should all try and survive together. Funnily enough my cousin in England wrote to me this week about a couple of mice in her house. I wrote back to her asking her please, when she caught them, to put them gently outside. I so wish there were more people like you and I who have compassion for all animals. I’m looking forward to reading the 2nd and 3rd parts of your story. Thank you so much for being the wonderful human that you are. 🙏❤️
Thank you Shelley. And seeing your reply made me smile just knowing you are just like me. I know exactly what you mean about Bunnings. One thing I like to do in shops that have smaller supplies of glue traps and poisons is to just pop the nasty products on the floor, under the shelves. That way people can’t see them. Yes, they will find them eventually, but we don’t want to make it easy for people to be cruel. Not really possible in Bunnings where you’d have to somehow hide about half an aisle of products and a whole display at the front of the store! But good for supermarkets or dollar shops. It may be a while until part 2 and 3 because I am working through my kind solutions right now and jotting down my notes as I go. I will share once I have it all worked out. But I am confident after all my research that this will work. I am also confident I can set the wild rats up in the reserve so they have a good survival rate.
I love rodents, always have. My house and yard are home to any wildlife that is smart enough to dtsy clear when my dog is outside. I did have rats in my attic, so I bought a sound repeller. I sincerely hope there were no babies left behind. 😒 I would love to hear more about the herbal contraceptive.
I think those repellers are a great idea for people who can use them and don’t have as many little animals in the house as I do. But yes I do worry about the babies. But still what a kind decision compared to the methods most people jump to. I am excited to share about the contraceptive but it may be a little while until I have worked on it well enough to say it works.
Such an important article! Thank you! I would love to have a pet rat, but I have 6 cats, so…. However, I bet things could be worked out! Two years ago I was starting my spring planting blitz. I do a lot with containers on my porch, which I dump out in the late fall (our winters are brutal) and I stack the pots on the porch. I removed one pot and saw a mouse nest in the bottom of the next pot. A darling pair of inky eyes looked up at me. I carefully replaced the pot and I would drop sunflower seeds in the top pot for mama to gather throughout the summer. Sometimes I would move the pot and take a peek. I was sad when the pots were uninhabited the next spring. I adored the little family!
Oh that is so sweet! How lovely and kind of you.
I love that image of the inky eyes looking up at you.
I’m also jealous of your 6 cat friends. I love cats, but due to all the little animals here I cannot adopt one. My beautiful Dylan cat who I adopted in 2007, years before I started the hen rescue, just happened to be great with all little animals. He passed away in 2024. But I am not sure I’d be lucky enough to find that gentle nature again.
Except for one cat who is semiferal, the cats are all indoor only. They got on with my parrots back in the day. But of course it depends on the individual, as you say.
Indoor cats are the way to go for their safety and wildlife’s safety.
I have CJ the rainbow lorikeet and 3 bunnies free in the house and any unwell or higher needs chickens also come inside at night. If I ever have rescued chicks or ducklings they are only outside under supervision and otherwise waddling about the house. It really is a hectic house/barn sometimes. Dylan was even good with the baby animals like ducklings rescued from a factory farm, not that I ever took risks of course. I’m sure there are other cats that would get along with everyone, it would just be hard to know in advance.
Now I just really make the most of it every time I get the chance to hang out with someone else’s cats or dogs.
The only kind way to deal with rodents in your buildings is to exclude them. That usually means hiring an expert, which is expensive. I paid thousands of dollars (US) a few years ago, to stop a longstanding packrat problem in my home. Even with all that work, I still get mice in the house.
Keep in mind that many people cannot afford to make their homes rodent proof. And if they are renters, they have no control over how rodent infestations are addressed.
Rodenticide is the lazy solution. Glue traps, ditto. Household (and business premises) hygiene is mandatory, if you don’t want rodents. Fix water leaks. Rodents want shelter near food and water.
I would be one those people who at this stage cannot afford to make my home rodent proof. So I definitely understand. It’s on my to do list for when I am in a better financial situation which I’m sure will happen eventually.
And I have to say that’s so great you put all the effort in. And totally agree re the prevention side. It’s somewhat easier said than done on a sanctuary with animal feed and water bowls all about the place.
But the good news for my situation is I have found some other ways. I’m working on them now. So fingers crossed I’ll have positive news to share soon!
I agree with everything you said. They are also just trying to survive in an environment made so hard by humans. I get that they can be a problem in some settings - but there are things that can be done, as you are/will be addressing. There is an irrational fear towards these creatures which makes most people automatically hate them. I had a rat visiting my backyard and I was so sad when I found them dead, as a resulting of poisoning from someone. Sure that rat had been in my roof and they are loud! But for now I've blocked up the gap in the roof to prevent access from others. And I now have a couple of mice who live in the chicken yard - they are only eating food that has been flicked from the mouth of a chicken - as they can't access anything else. They aren't diseased - they are clean. They aren't harming anyone, and they are super cute. I am genuinely shocked at just how many people I see at Bunnings with rat poison in their trollies. It's shocking.
It seems we are totally aligned on this which makes me so happy. One of the reasons I am working on a contraceptive as opposed to trying to repel the rats is that I know my neighbours will immediately poison them. I think of them as my little ratty friends, or maybe I should say frenemies, because real friends don’t try and destroy your house. Hehe. They really are so noisy and destructuve. But that doesn’t mean they should suffer and die. I know iin a few months I will be totally on top of things. I’m jotting down all my notes so I will be able to share what worked. I am even setting up little rat habitats in my release spot to increase their survival chances when trapped and released. It’s kind of a fun project.
Our house is "investigated" (from time-to-time) by small intruders who normally make their homes in the underbrush that surrounds the "people house". Mostly, they are deterred from their investigations by the household cat (an adopted "feral" kitty) who represents an understandable threat to rodent intruders. If not deterred by the cat, they generally are captured in a "humane" ("live") trap; and released back into their habitat (but at some distance from the "people house").
I have no objection to rodents, or to other small creatures🐭inhabiting our surroundings -- we all are just tryin' to make a livin', after all🙃. I simply object to the creatures attempting to make their livin' in the "people house", which I feel is reserved for "the people" (and the cat, of course).
... oh -- and the "outdoor creatures" who live in the surroundings generally are _very_ well fed from the seeds that fall from the numerous bird feeders placed strategically around the "people house". The abundance of outdoor food also may persuade the little guys that things are better ... "outside"🤪
Agreed. I love the little ones but would prefer they stayed outside simply due to the damage they do. Gosh they love to chew! Hopefully all will be solved in a few months and then I will share the results.
Beautiful creatures ❤️
How I love your heart for all creatures.
Wonderful article. They are just as deserving as any other being! They are very intelligent and sociable. They deserve so much better than painful deaths. I would not be able to handle them like you do but I always thought of kind ways of shutting them out of our homes or where we would not want them. Lastly, I have seen how one of our beloved cats died of rat poison. It was an unspeakable pain. She started foaming from her mouth, still trying to jump onto the window sill. Presumably to say good bye. The garden was also littered with dead lizards that had turned blue. As a kid, I decided to never ever put poison anywhere. I stuck to this decision all my life and became vegan in respect for life 💚
I would love to know how you deal with them in a kinder way. I tried not to kill them by trapping and relocating but they are so smart and could only catch a few. Then I ended up with many in the roof, garage, garden and unfortunately had to do something.
I wonder if you've ever delved into telepathic interspecies communication. Your average proud materialist would say that it's a bunch of crap, but the stories are simply too specific to be bogus.
I have a great amount of respect for people who show compassion and kindness to lovely critters who are used to being treated so callously.