... and Friday

There's a mouse in the garage - well, at least one. He or she has been at the suet cakes for the bird feeders. In the past I was more relaxed about this sort of wildlife incursion, until the year we suffered a population explosion, resulting in the eventual capture and eviction (by cat, box trap, and other means) of about a dozen individuals of various ages. Now I try to be more proactive. Last night I set a snap trap in the now-empty suet cake box, baited with a chocolate chip. I also scattered some peanuts and seeds in the box. This morning no victim, but the the peanuts and seeds were gone. I'll give the chocolate a couple more days, then move on to something else if it doesn't work. I used to use a non-killing box trap and released the mouse elsewhere, but results were uneven, and I suspect I just relocated its fate. Maybe I'll set the box traps, too, in various places where it won't matter if the cats spring them. If I'm going to catch it alive, I need to do so soon: I never have the heart to fling a live mouse out into a snowdrift.

Back to Ireland for today's picture: Creevykeel court tomb, north of Sligo.



-GRG