Cleaned out Blue Bird Nesting boxes

For some reason, I didn't clean out the Bluebird nesting boxes the fall. A nice day today so I went out and started to clean them out. The first box had 2 deer mice in it and them jumped out as I pulled out all of the old nest material. I moved onto the rest and the next 5 had from 1 to 2 Deer mice in them! MY old Lab Maggie was busy chasing them around the grass! Out of 14 nesting boxes, 7 of them had mice. This is the first year I didn't clean them out in the fall. In the past, I might have 1 or 2 with a mouse nest in them, but not this many.

Nature can be interesting!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by JMatthews

For some reason, I didn't clean out the Bluebird nesting boxes the fall. A nice day today so I went out and started to clean them out. The first box had 2 deer mice in it and them jumped out as I pulled out all of the old nest material. I moved onto the rest and the next 5 had from 1 to 2 Deer mice in them! MY old Lab Maggie was busy chasing them around the grass! Out of 14 nesting boxes, 7 of them had mice. This is the first year I didn't clean them out in the fall. In the past, I might have 1 or 2 with a mouse nest in them, but not this many.

Nature can be interesting!

---

I read an Article recently that this year is supposed to be bad for mice, and the article also discussed how a group of scientists have found that when there's an influx in mice there's an influx in ticks. I can't remember where I read it or I'd post a link..

Not looking forward to having to check my dog and daughters thoroughly after every trip this year!! But better to be safe than sorry..

Does that ever bring back a memory
. I was about 8 out hunting with Dad. I found a dead mouse , and hid it in my coat as I knew Dad would be mad with me bringing home a dead mouse. Sure enough, the heat brought the mouse back to life. I was freaking out and jumping up and down on the seat. Dad pulled over the car. No he wasn't mad ; he was laughing his head off. Took it home and kept it for quite a while. Didn't even think about ticks back then. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sharon

Does that ever bring back a memory
. I was about 8 out hunting with Dad. I found a dead mouse , and hid it in my coat as I knew Dad would be mad with me bringing home a dead mouse. Sure enough, the heat brought the mouse back to life. I was freaking out and jumping up and down on the seat. Dad pulled over the car. No he wasn't mad ; he was laughing his head off. Took it home and kept it for quite a while. Didn't even think about ticks back then. :)

---

I was cutting down some dead trees in our woodlot years ago and a mouse jumped off of the tree and ran up my arm into my coveralls. I could feel it scratching around my back so I just fell down onto my back to end that.

I build my Blue Bird houses 8 of them, with a swing out front which I swing open in late Sept. and clean them out, I have no problems with mice or any other unwanted birds [barn sparrows] or other creatures.

I helped with blue bird box cleaning early this month with Long Point Basin Land Trust. We cleaned about a dozen boxes on a LPBT property. One had mice, several had been taken over by house wrens.
It was an interesting job, seek g what the birds had used for construction materials. One had even woven a piece of plastic wrap through the nest.