Of Mice and Fox Urine

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It was like something out of a scary movie. I was putting tools away in the garage when I heard a raspy scratching sound that made it unmistakably clear that I was not alone. “Trevor?” I called. No answer. I listened. My heart lurched as I realized the sound was coming from inside our beloved Westy, “Rock On.” No, I thought. Holding my breath, I tiptoed over to the bus and slowly opened the hood. And screamed in horror at the carnage of innards everywhere!   We had mice, dammit. The little devils had shredded a big chunk of insulation and used it to create a cozy little nest right on our engine. AGAIN.

Skylight Guy 3, Mice 4

Those pesky varmints have come back every winter for the past three years. We set traps and put mothballs in the engine and that seems to drive them away... for a while. Clearly we need a more permanent solution. Considering the damage they can do so your wires and insulation—not to mention the increased risk of fire!--a mice infestation is way too big a problem to ignore. So we did some snooping on Google and surveyed our friends and came up with the following list of potential solutions.

7 Ways to “De-Pesty” Your Westy 

  1. Mothballs – These work for us as a short-term solution but we'd like to find something with longer-lasting impact. Plus, they're pretty toxic.
  2. Peppermint -- Mice don't like the smell of peppermint, so if you put cottonballs soaked in peppermint oil or Altoid mints (the only kind that contains real peppermint oil) in your vehicle, they'll look for somewhere else to call home.
  3. Human hair – Apparently mice also hate the smell of human hair. Maybe because they associate it with ruthless killers who want to wipe them off the face of the planet? One place to get a large amount of clean hair is your local barber shop.
 
  1. Fox urine – Also falling under the category of “spoor from animals that want to kill you,” fox urine has been touted as excellent mouse repellent. Our only concern is whether it acts as people repellent as well. Because, eww.
  2. Bounce dryer sheets – They're a far cry from fox urine, but apparently Bounce dryer sheets also work to repel mice. Maybe they prefer Febreze?
  3. Mouse poison – We hear D-Con works well. But we're not super keen on the idea of laying out poison as it might get out into the environment and kill other animals as well. Not cool.
  4. Ultrasonic mouse deterrents – A lot of people recommend Mouse Blocker, a device that releases ultra-high frequency noice to deter mice from nesting inside your car. It runs off your battery and draws as much power as an LCD clock. Sounds cool, but there's some debate whether these ultrasonics actually work.

Your thoughts?

Have you ever had to deal with mice in your vehicle? If so, did you use any of the strategies above to get rid of them? What worked and what didn't? Tell us in the comments!    

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