When we were younger (and before kids) SWMBO and I had a cat that we let go in and out of the back door at night by keeping it propped open (Wisconsin in the fall)
Woke one night to this God-awful crunching noise. Turned out to be the cat, eating a mouse on the foot of our bed. I punted him (and the mouse cadaver) off the bed before I could even think about it…
We closed the door after that.
@chienfou One of my cats would bring cockroaches on to my bed to play with it. At 3 in the morning. She had already learned they tasted gross and would cause her to puke, so she just played with them.
@Kidsandliz
Yep, those damn huge ass palmetto bugs in the south are super crunchy… and very nasty looking. Not at all what you want running away from your cat and on your bed at 3:00 in the morning!
@chienfou@Kidsandliz
How gross! IDK how I’d be able to be okay with that. The first thing I think about is I wouldn’t be able to touch my cat’s face! Ever again! Well, actually that would be the 2nd thought right after I called the exterminator! Lol
My grossness level is extremely high for the traditional cockroach, not to be confused with the down south palmetto bug that aren’t associated with filth. I can handle snakes but roaches not so much!
@chienfou@Lynnerizer These were American cockroaches (they are bigger and darker than the German cockroaches) and it was a rental. They’d come in under the outside doors (along with geckos - one of those they ate everything but the rear legs - and occasionally other creatures).
@Kidsandliz@Lynnerizer
Unfortunately one of the side benefits of living down south where the weather is nice is that you don’t have hard enough freezes to kill a lot of that stuff over the winter. And it’s truly amazing how small a space some critters can get through!
@chienfou@Lynnerizer I know. It can get seriously gross at time. While some get murdered by the cats, I would prefer that these creatures stay in their natural environment OUTSIDE and not inside where I live. Last year I had ants coming in under the window from the outside and I live on the 4th floor no less. Unfortunately killing them I accidentally killed a gekko (who was cat TV) who’d come to eat them along with a bat there for the same reason. That made me sad.
@Kyeh
Absolutely! The little bastards can really decimate a lawn or garden. They eat grubs, earthworms etc. and get to them by digging beer can sized holes ALL OVER THE F’in place! They won’t eat your garden plants, but they will unearth them trying to get to the earthworms you so diligently cultivated in your well composted plot!
Armadillos have a great sense of smell and a large part of their brain is dedicated to it, so the answer to how to get rid of armadillos is fairly simple. Make your yard stink! Yes, strong scented, eye-stinging scents like those of vinegar, ammonia, or good old pine cleaner can stop armadillos in their tracks, driving them from their borrows and your yard.
At least with moles, there’s Talpirid.
/image talpirid box
@chienfou
Maybe this stuff? Check the ingredients - all natural stuff that stinks up your lawn for the armadillos.
Caster Oil - 11% Thyme Oil - 1.1% Rosemary Oil - 1% White Pepper - 5% Garlic Oil - 0.1% Citronella Oil - 0.75%
@chienfou
I use Liquid Fence for deer and the principle is the same - garlic & rotten eggs. Plus it’s made locally to me in St Louis (Richmond Heights).
@chienfou@Kyeh
On that TV show Naked and Afraid I watched some people roast a armadillo over the fire and eat it. I was really surprised to see how soft it’s shell was. I’d always thought it to be rock hard like a turtle’s shell. They’re kind of gross looking little creatures. Yucka!
@chienfou@Kyeh We have so many gophers, when it rains or he waters what we call a lawn (watering is a rarity due to the cost), the yard is like a sponge. You can step on areas and the ground squishes. When he’s moving the tractors around, he has to avoid certain areas because the ground will sink.
And be careful to avoid the holes. Pretty easy to twist an ankle.
I had no idea armadillos were so destructive. The good (?) thing is you can see what they’ve done.
@chienfou Oh, I don’t think he had any intention of eating it. I’m pretty sure whoever caught it to begin with ate the majority (Nooby, Ike, Natasha and Pancho are all hunters, the Avengers haven’t been taught proper hunting protocol just yet) and left the head.
Goose ran with it. I’d seen him in the yard the day before tossing it around, the head was a perfect fit for him to carry through the yard. I thought it would be gone before day’s end.
@chienfou Just keep driving your car around them when you see them as when they are scared they jump straight up - right into the car bumper (speaking from experience when I lived in north FL some years back).
@chienfou@tinamarie1974 I get it at Lowe’s. It’s in the garden supplies with the other weed and pest control products. I always get the 32oz concentrate and mix it in a sprayer (just for that). Unfortunately, it comes in a 32oz container, and mixing a 2gal sprayer uses only 13oz. So there’s always this weird amount left over. One would think they could do the math to make the amounts line up to the container size since they can control the concentration, but apparently not.
OMG that shit’s expensive. One bucket covers about a 1/3 of an acre (once) and costs over $120 at most sites. Takes 2 applications to work and lasts about 45 days. I don’t think so!
@chienfou I don’t think you’re supposed to spread it like fertilizer. Just the areas they’re tearing up because you’ve done a shitty job at grub control the previous season.
@mike808
Actually according to the directions you are supposed to spread it with a broadcast spreader. You can’t turn a shovel full of dirt over in my yard without finding half a dozen earthworms in it. Grubs not so much. I have holes from one corner to the other basically across every bit of my yard scattered around. I can’t predict where they’ll show up, so I would have to do a broadcast over 80% of my acre probably…
@Kyeh
Wow that’s crazy! I’d love to see the look on the guys face when he opens up a box of head’s! Can you imagine…! If it was done intentionally, I wonder why, what the heck would someone do with them? Well it’s no secret, people are strange!
@Kyeh@Lynnerizer Wait!!! Can I get these people to steal the heads off of a couple of people I know? Or do the heads have to be bodyless to begin with? I know the owners of this apartment building are brainless, but it would be nice if they were headless as well. OMG a bunch of jerks.
@Kidsandliz@Lynnerizer
Well, nobody knows who did it or why, so … maybe it will traumatize them into never stealing stuff again! But if they knew what they were taking, that’s a whole nuther level of disturbing.
Anybody know what these holes are from? After the snow melted we found these in our front yard. I’ve never seen mole holes look like that but I could be wrong. It was under where we piled all the snow from our driveway.
/giphy retch
Yikes! Animals are gross
also… here … I’m not sure why it’s not pinned.
@mbersiam Thank you.
Ugh - I didn’t really want to see that.
@Kyeh Yeah, me either.
@lisaviolet At least he didn’t leave it on your pillow!
@Kyeh Could be worse
@macromeh True
Tasty.
Good Boi
Daddy wants another one!
When we were younger (and before kids) SWMBO and I had a cat that we let go in and out of the back door at night by keeping it propped open (Wisconsin in the fall)
Woke one night to this God-awful crunching noise. Turned out to be the cat, eating a mouse on the foot of our bed. I punted him (and the mouse cadaver) off the bed before I could even think about it…
We closed the door after that.
@chienfou One of my cats would bring cockroaches on to my bed to play with it. At 3 in the morning. She had already learned they tasted gross and would cause her to puke, so she just played with them.
@Kidsandliz
Yep, those damn huge ass palmetto bugs in the south are super crunchy… and very nasty looking. Not at all what you want running away from your cat and on your bed at 3:00 in the morning!
@chienfou @Kidsandliz
How gross! IDK how I’d be able to be okay with that. The first thing I think about is I wouldn’t be able to touch my cat’s face! Ever again! Well, actually that would be the 2nd thought right after I called the exterminator! Lol
My grossness level is extremely high for the traditional cockroach, not to be confused with the down south palmetto bug that aren’t associated with filth. I can handle snakes but roaches not so much!
@chienfou @Lynnerizer These were American cockroaches (they are bigger and darker than the German cockroaches) and it was a rental. They’d come in under the outside doors (along with geckos - one of those they ate everything but the rear legs - and occasionally other creatures).
@Kidsandliz @Lynnerizer
Unfortunately one of the side benefits of living down south where the weather is nice is that you don’t have hard enough freezes to kill a lot of that stuff over the winter. And it’s truly amazing how small a space some critters can get through!
@chienfou @Lynnerizer I know. It can get seriously gross at time. While some get murdered by the cats, I would prefer that these creatures stay in their natural environment OUTSIDE and not inside where I live. Last year I had ants coming in under the window from the outside and I live on the 4th floor no less. Unfortunately killing them I accidentally killed a gekko (who was cat TV) who’d come to eat them along with a bat there for the same reason. That made me sad.
BTW, if you can train him to eat armadillos I’ll be happy to rent him from you for a while. I’ll even pay shipping BOTH ways!
@chienfou
Armadillos are a major pest in Alabama???
@Kyeh
Absolutely! The little bastards can really decimate a lawn or garden. They eat grubs, earthworms etc. and get to them by digging beer can sized holes ALL OVER THE F’in place! They won’t eat your garden plants, but they will unearth them trying to get to the earthworms you so diligently cultivated in your well composted plot!
@Kyeh
here’s an extreme case"
it’s like a friggin’ rototiller went wild in your yard!
@chienfou
Good gawd! I had no idea!
Is that your yard?
@Kyeh
Nope… the grass is too well maintained!
But I have spots in mine were it will rattle your teeth out to drive across them with the riding mower!
@chienfou Huh. Lots worse than moles, it sounds like.
@Kyeh
Yep. Plus, moles don’t carry leprosy!
@chienfou
@chienfou From a gardening site:
At least with moles, there’s Talpirid.
/image talpirid box
@chienfou @mike808 this is good info, thanks! Have a few moving into my neighborhood this year and I dont want them in my flowerbeds
@mike808
Yeah, the only problem with that is trying to do it to an entire acre of property
@chienfou
Maybe this stuff? Check the ingredients - all natural stuff that stinks up your lawn for the armadillos.
Caster Oil - 11% Thyme Oil - 1.1% Rosemary Oil - 1% White Pepper - 5% Garlic Oil - 0.1% Citronella Oil - 0.75%
The 22lb pail covers 13,000+ sq ft.
https://www.domyown.com/armadillo-scram-professional-p-8303.html
@chienfou
I use Liquid Fence for deer and the principle is the same - garlic & rotten eggs. Plus it’s made locally to me in St Louis (Richmond Heights).
@chienfou @Kyeh
On that TV show Naked and Afraid I watched some people roast a armadillo over the fire and eat it. I was really surprised to see how soft it’s shell was. I’d always thought it to be rock hard like a turtle’s shell. They’re kind of gross looking little creatures. Yucka!
@chienfou @Kyeh We have so many gophers, when it rains or he waters what we call a lawn (watering is a rarity due to the cost), the yard is like a sponge. You can step on areas and the ground squishes. When he’s moving the tractors around, he has to avoid certain areas because the ground will sink.
And be careful to avoid the holes. Pretty easy to twist an ankle.
I had no idea armadillos were so destructive. The good (?) thing is you can see what they’ve done.
@chienfou Oh, I don’t think he had any intention of eating it. I’m pretty sure whoever caught it to begin with ate the majority (Nooby, Ike, Natasha and Pancho are all hunters, the Avengers haven’t been taught proper hunting protocol just yet) and left the head.
Goose ran with it. I’d seen him in the yard the day before tossing it around, the head was a perfect fit for him to carry through the yard. I thought it would be gone before day’s end.
I was wrong.
@chienfou @mike808 I am more worried about my flower beds. I mean I dont want the gtass tore up, but flowers are expensive!
Mike, where did you get thr liquid fence? Spectrum Brands??
@chienfou Just keep driving your car around them when you see them as when they are scared they jump straight up - right into the car bumper (speaking from experience when I lived in north FL some years back).
@chienfou @Kidsandliz well I dont want to hurt them, just dont want them to dig up my flowers
@chienfou @tinamarie1974 I get it at Lowe’s. It’s in the garden supplies with the other weed and pest control products. I always get the 32oz concentrate and mix it in a sprayer (just for that). Unfortunately, it comes in a 32oz container, and mixing a 2gal sprayer uses only 13oz. So there’s always this weird amount left over. One would think they could do the math to make the amounts line up to the container size since they can control the concentration, but apparently not.
@mike808
OMG that shit’s expensive. One bucket covers about a 1/3 of an acre (once) and costs over $120 at most sites. Takes 2 applications to work and lasts about 45 days. I don’t think so!
@chienfou @tinamarie1974 I didn’t want to hurt them either when they were in the road. I was very surprised to see their reaction.
@chienfou I don’t think you’re supposed to spread it like fertilizer. Just the areas they’re tearing up because you’ve done a shitty job at grub control the previous season.
@mike808
Actually according to the directions you are supposed to spread it with a broadcast spreader. You can’t turn a shovel full of dirt over in my yard without finding half a dozen earthworms in it. Grubs not so much. I have holes from one corner to the other basically across every bit of my yard scattered around. I can’t predict where they’ll show up, so I would have to do a broadcast over 80% of my acre probably…
@mike808
maybe I could just load up on asparagus when it’s on sale at Aldi next then take a diuretic and try to pee all around my property line??
@chienfou I peed in a spray bottle when the coyotes were so bad years ago. Then I’d spray it around the front yard. On trees, bushes, etc.
@lisaviolet
Guess I could load up the pump sprayer and let it ‘ripen’ a bit!
@chienfou @lisaviolet Did it work?
@Kyeh @lisaviolet
been raining the past few days…not sure I can muster up enough to be worthwhile…
@chienfou @Kyeh I honestly couldn’t tell you. But at least it made me feel like I was doing something.
@chienfou @lisaviolet I’ve heard of it being recommended for deer too, but not sure if it really works for them either.
Gopher broke.
While we’re on the topic of decapitation, a box of human heads got stolen off of a truck in Denver:
https://www.9news.com/article/news/crime/box-human-heads-stolen-denver/73-46cfb329-9385-4c2e-a840-09ca0b7f2a83
@Kyeh
Wow that’s crazy! I’d love to see the look on the guys face when he opens up a box of head’s! Can you imagine…! If it was done intentionally, I wonder why, what the heck would someone do with them? Well it’s no secret, people are strange!
@Kyeh @Lynnerizer Wait!!! Can I get these people to steal the heads off of a couple of people I know? Or do the heads have to be bodyless to begin with? I know the owners of this apartment building are brainless, but it would be nice if they were headless as well. OMG a bunch of jerks.
PS asking for a friend.
@Kidsandliz @Lynnerizer
Well, nobody knows who did it or why, so … maybe it will traumatize them into never stealing stuff again! But if they knew what they were taking, that’s a whole nuther level of disturbing.
Anybody know what these holes are from? After the snow melted we found these in our front yard. I’ve never seen mole holes look like that but I could be wrong. It was under where we piled all the snow from our driveway.
@Star2236
Baby sandworm?
@Star2236 Those are vole runs. They eat the grass stems but not the roots, so the new spring grass will cover the runs.