• Mice can leave 40 to 100 droppings a day
• If there is one mouse, there are usually more
• A house mouse can have a dozen babies every three weeks
• Mice can enter through a hole as a small as a dime or pencil
• They will eat their own droppings if they cannot procure enough food
• Mice can carry up to 200 human pathogens
• They can jump 18 inches high
• A mouse produces its own vitamin C (www.pestworldforkids.org, www.earthkind.com)
No wonder my friend is having mice problems! She has caught over a dozen in the last several weeks in a sealed room within her outside barn. It only takes a tiny opening, possibly even one we don’t know exists, for a mouse to enter inside.
The way my friend knew a mouse had been there was the random clumps of mouse droppings. Mice always leave a trail. If it’s not poop, it’s chewed up trash or piles of small, random items collected to form a nest.
It’s the same trail we might find if we examine our own lives. Clumps of negative thoughts piled in a place they shouldn’t be. Trails of hurt feelings when normally we aren’t offended. Random emotions, thoughts, or actions piled in a place they normally aren’t. These are all signs that we have small holes somewhere and we are letting the mice in.
At first, we may have no idea how they are entering into our minds and hearts. But after a few weeks of finding the poop in random places and at random times, we have to get serious and see where the holes are. Set traps, put steel wool in the holes, and seal any obvious entrances with caulk or wood. Otherwise, we will be taken over by rodents, leaving us in a mentally and emotionally stinky place.
Have you noticed any mouse tracks in your own life? Have you started tracking those sneaky little boogers? They always leave a trail, so make sure to start blocking them out at the first sign of existence.
For more from Christy, visit her blog at christybassadams.com or send comments to christyadams008@gmail.com.