Wood mouse

[Soozyq]

I've had a wood mouse living under my garden shed for a couple of years now. It's a pretty little wood mouse and I've spent many hours watching it darting around looking for food and pinching the bird seed. Problem now is we're replacing the wood shed with a metal one that sits on paving stones. Therefore no room for my wee mouse. Will it be getting ready to hibernate just now, will moving the shed be disasterous for it? Or do you think it will just find somewhere else to live?

AND!

My mum keeps finding a black poo about the length and shape of her little finger lying in the seed dish she puts out for the birds, do you think it's a hedgehog that's been potty trained?

Sooz

[Helen]

Hi Soozyq and welcome to the forum.

Regarding your woodmice, they are great little creatures, I have zillions of them around as I live in woodland.

I wouldn't worry too much about it, they are pretty resourceful mammals, having said that, perhaps you could make sure you don't "tidy up too much", in your garden - leave some piles of wood lying around, and leaves too. Woodmice burrow and makes runs too.

It's possible your mum does have a hedgehog, whatever she does, make sure she doesn't put milk out for it.

I believe cat/dog food is a good source of food for hedgehogs, especially at this time of the year, when they will want to stock up on fat reserves etc ready for the winter. Make sure fresh water is always available too, for the birds/animals in the garden.

Regards

(Check out, via google, some hedgehog sites, there is some good info out there, on how to look after them)

[henrya]

Soozyq,

The Woodmouse won't hibernate, and it will find another home fairly quickly. As long as the old shed isn't demolished too rapidly, it should be all right.

The droppings your mum finds are almost certainly from Hedgehogs. Milk is only really bad for Hedgehogs if they get nothiing else, but cat food (meaty kind, rather than fishy, I'm told) is lots better for them.

henrya

[Soozyq]

Thanks for replying so quickly folks .... glad I won't upset my little woodmouse too much. My garden is very mature and definitely not tidy (!) with lots of large shrubs so it should find another home fairly easily.

I'm glad I found this forum, what a nice lot you are

Sooz

[Jo Pedder]

Hi,

I too have wood mice living under my shed, and are about the only visitors I get to my bird table; but are just as welcome as any bird would be. When laying the paving slabs your shed will sit on, if you leave small gaps between the slabs this may allow your residents to return, even if they don't, crannies like these will be taken up by any number of over wintering invertebrates. Another possibility is create some space for them behind your shed, assuming that it backs onto a garden fence a 2 inch gap filled with twigs and branches should give them plenty of protection to build nests in.

p.s. don't put dog food out for hedgehogs as it contains vegetables and cereals which aren't too good for them. Tinned cat food is defiantly best as it should be just meat. (although a worryingly i've started to see some brands of cat biscuits advertise that they are with vegetables - what's that all about - they're about the only true carnivour around!)

[ollyscam]

hi and welcome,it sounds certainly like a hedgehog,for more info as to feeding and care etc look at the site below,theres always a chance that he lives under your shed as well,so it might be worth while checking just to make sure

tim

[Soozyq]

Thanks Jo, I will certainly supervise the work (hubby's doing it so he'll be used to me watching over him!). I must admit though I don't put food out for the hedgehog that visits our garden, Max my dog eats everything that's left lying around, even the apples I put out for the blackbirds! I've never seen a hedgehog as big as this one, curled up he was the size of a large blown up football, so he must be the reason why I don't have many slugs in the garden!

Sooz

[nightshade]

My garden has acquired a whole range of mice and voles since my cat Bisley disappeared
I have yellow necked ,wood-mice ,and one of the voles which I have not been able to identify yet
I had buried flower pots (with bumble bees in mind) but the mice seem to be using them and the compost heap, what I wonder will move in to keep them in check?fox is favourite,I already have a grass snake,weasels are very economic
Bird wise there is a sparrowhawk about and a kestrel ,perhaps Icould get one of those pheasants?

[Helen]

Originally Posted by nightshade

,perhaps Icould get one of those pheasants?

How many do you want? I'll send some over. Last year, I counted 41 of them in the garden, all together! They were on the drive, on the roof, everywhere!

I have had half a dozen or so all through summer, but now the numbers are starting to pick up again!

[nightshade]

hello helen re. how many, a brace is usual!