Newcomer concerned about insects, vermin, & other critters in rural east TX 5thWheel.

[PaulAllen]

So far I've had people tell me that they've had no problems with mice, scorpions, coyotes, and fire ants while others have told me that some or all of those critters made their rural fifth-wheel permanent living site miserable. (One even mentioned feral hogs.)

I've thought about getting an already trained mouser kitten from an area farmer in hopes of keeping out the mice etc. but I wondered if the cat would be vulnerable to coyote attack. (Or does a smart cat know how to keep wary and stay close to safe escape dens at night so coyotes can't get him?)

[Yes, I do plan to seal up whatever I can and renew spearmint oil repellents regularly. While farming in the rural midwest I found that keeping a few cats in the barn eliminated rats as well as mice because the baby rats never survive childhood. But in the Midwest we didn't have much of a coyote problem.]

[jesilvas]

Usually I see mouse problems. Once bees.
If the cat is dumb, it'll get eaten. Get a smart cat.

[PaulAllen]

>If the cat is dumb, it'll get eaten. Get a smart cat.

Good idea. Now if I can just figure out how to structure the job interview. :-)

[jesilvas]

Have a coyote with you during the interview haha

[Medico]

Welcome and glad to meet you!


Good luck with any vermin/insect problems. I do not think these are limited to RVs.

[road dogs]

It won't keep coyotes away, but I've seen people who hang pet flea collars inside their fridge, heater, water heaters bays etc to keep spiders and other insects out. We haven't tried it, critters haven't been a problem where we're at...so far. Cats? There's an endless supply so just keep rotating them until you find the smart one.....

[PaulAllen]

I used to put a cap full of hot pepper powder under a tin can beneath my front yard bushes and it seemed to eliminate urine damage from neighborhood dogs "burning" my vegetative landscaping. Has anyone used it successfully against coyotes?

[LokiGT]

Originally Posted by jesilvas

Usually I see mouse problems. Once bees.
If the cat is dumb, it'll get eaten. Get a smart cat.

Get a smart cat, now that was funny..

[bruceisla]

Originally Posted by PaulAllen

>If the cat is dumb, it'll get eaten. Get a smart cat.

Good idea. Now if I can just figure out how to structure the job interview. :-)

No worries ... the cat will structure the interview anyway he/she sees fit.

[Mossy cat]

We leave 2 Airstream campers at our deer lease. Infested with mice this year. Get a cat... maybe a small family of cats. And don't leave food or bar soap in there. We learned that bar soap has fat/ oil on it and mice love to eat it.

[LokiGT]

Originally Posted by bruceisla

No worries ... the cat will structure the interview anyway he/she sees fit.

In fact he/she will probably take a message and get back to you when he/she sees fit.

My wifes cat has this down to a T. Look at that face...

[PaulAllen]

Originally Posted by Mossy cat

We learned that bar soap has fat/ oil on it and mice love to eat it.

I've heard claims that many electrical cords have coatings made from peanut oil and thereby attract rodents. I've not investigated that but I tend toward code-compliant metal conduit anywhere such exposure is at issue. (And even though rat's teeth can dispatch steel if they so wish, rodents usually don't so wish.)

[By the way, does anyone happen to know if Texas allows property owners to run their own underground steel conduit? I've lived in jurisdictions where everything must be done by a licensed individuals and others where there are special DIY exemptions for property owners. (But the exemptions and less strict coding evaporates if a licensed electrician in any way assists, believe it or not. Yes, I dealt with that in State of Washington.) I assume State of Texas is more lax than most, based on the atrocious wiring I've often found here, especially in west Texas rentals. (No GFIs in bathrooms, for example, and lots of electrical wall plates which look like they are grounded but aren't!)]

[jesilvas]

If you're not in an incorporated town, I think you can do whatever. As far as I know anyway.

I live in a rental house, ~50s, no GFCIs or grounds, but that's cause it's old.

[Mossy cat]

I live in Texas. Outside the city limits, anything goes. My "electrician" ran wires to our boathouse in regular conduit, not metal