The Best Way to Get Rid of Mice in Your Aviary

If you have an aviary in your garden, no doubt it will attract rodents, which are pesky and hard to get rid of. You will be aware of their presence if you notice small mounds of sand and longish brown pelleted droppings. If you don't take action at once, the problem will just get worse. The best way to do this is to call in pest control specialists, as poisoning them on your own is risky, not only to you and your family, but also to your birds.

Cockatiel in a Home Aviary by Vincent Hrovat

Mice can quickly become a serious problem, as where there is food freely available, namely bird seed, they will breed and multiply rapidly. A single pair of mice can have over a hundred babies a year. If you have a lot of mice, they will destroy your aviary in no time, as they can get in-between the lining materials in the walls and nest there. They could also find a place in the floor to nest, and if this happens it will be very difficult to get rid of them with poisoning methods or traps, or your birds might be harmed.

A good option is to place a killer trap in the enclosure of your cage. This is the entrance box where you come in and the birds can't get into. The mice are usually able to move freely between the bars of the cage, and will be able to access the trap easily. Box traps that catch the mice alive are best, and sometimes you can catch over a dozen mice in a night. They also have no dangerous components, so you can use them around the aviary without harm coming to your birds.

It will take the mice a few days at first to become used to the trap. Place bait in it to entice them with the lid off for a few days until they are feeding regularly there. Then you can put the lid on and the mice will be able to enter, but not escape again after they have fed.

A cat is another option, but you will have to be careful here, as given half the chance they will also eat your birds. If you let the cat into the aviary, make sure you remove all your birds first. Make sure that the cat can't get near enough to the birds to harm them. If the cat gets on the roof of the aviary, it could scare the cockatiels and other birds off their nests.

Author Resource
Written by Michel Maling
To find out just about anything about owning and caring for a cockatiel, visit: http://cockatielsaspets.com

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