Terry
Great stuff - I have over the years really enjoying reading your
experiences - very helpful.
Ken J.
>Hi Gang,
>
>Here's a third short note from Rollins Pond CG - NYS DEC - July 2007.
>
>How many mice or chipmunks will find their way into an Airstream in a
>week? Simple answer: It all depends.
>
>The occasional rodent visitor who figures out how to gain entry into
>our Airstream doesn't realize it but he has just bought one way
>ticket to the morgue.
>
>HOW COME?
>
>For years, our two cats have guarded the fortress with uncanny skill,
>cunning and deadly swift reaction times. One morning we awoke to see
>them sitting at attention on the rug looking at us expectantly. This
>was unusual for them as most mornings they hop up on our bed a hour
>or so after daylight and begin purring loudly to the tune of "time
>for our breakfast, time for you to get up".
>
>That particular morning when I swung my feet out of bed, there in
>front of the cats was a headless mouse. "Well done, Guys!" were my
>first words. Both cats were praised and stroked with their favorite
>brush (more loud purrs). Later, after proper burial of the mouse,
>both cats enjoyed a breakfast treat plus their usual fare of dry food
>and water. Guard duty has its benefits but was over until the next
>night.
>
>All well and good, BUT - this particular week in July 2007, our cats
>are staying at the Veterinarian's Condo Resort (with picture windows
>overlooking the waiting room area). Our trailer is totally unguarded.
>What do we do about that?
>
>Last month before we left for Rollins Pond, I used rope caulk to fill
>all holes the size of a pencil eraser (if a mouse's nose can fit
>through a hole, so can his entire body). Chipmunks have larger noses
>than mice. Squirrels have larger noses than chipmunks.
>
>Yesterday afternoon when we returned from a trip into Tupper Lake, I
>opened the trailer door and saw a squirrel looking at me quizzically
>as if saying: "Why are you back so soon? I thought I had the whole
>day to search for food and poop in your parlor."
>
>The squirrel bounded toward the rear vanity of our trailer and
>disappeared behind it. Minutes later, I heard scratching and clawing
>along the underbelly aluminum and then silence. Obviously, this
>squirrel remembered his escape route because we neither heard nor saw
>him again.
>
>If our cats had been with us, it might have been a different story -
>with blood and guts everywhere (Yuk). But, our cats are vacationing
>while we're camping with our son, our DIL and two pre-school grand
>daughters (one is allergic to cats).
>
>This squirrel taught me my supposedly meticulous plugging of tiny
>holes was sorely miscalculated. After all, if a squirrel could get
>inside the underbelly, there has to be a big hole. I'm now in my
>aggressive "search" mode.
>
>One possibility is where the dump valves are located. There is a
>small piece of rubber over the opening. That may have been the secret
>entry way. When I find the hole (or holes), I'll settle that hash
>once and for all. I haven't figured out what I'll do under the
>various circumstances I might find, but I'm sure there are ideas in
>our archives.
>
>More later,
>
>Terry