Mice have destroyed my preps, I'm heartbroken and lost

Hi all, I hope everyone is well.

I've been a bit of a prepper for nearly twenty years, but I stepped it up at the beginning of 2020 with everything going on and what a lot of us saw coming down the pipeline.

Up until five years ago we lived in a maisonette (a two-story 'flat', for those unfamiliar), so all of my preps were stored inside in cupboards, safe and sound.

Now, my preps are ('were') stored in an outside shed.

It's a solid brick shed with no holes to the extior other than the solid wooden door.

They chewed right through the door frame to get in.

I've lost 100lb white flour, hundreds of pounds of dried peas, lentils, oats, powdered milk, I can't even think of it all right now I'm so p*ssed at myself.

When I was clearing out the shed yesterday and I realised the extent of the damage and loss, I ended up breaking down in tears in front of my teenage lads, I'm truly heartbroken.

I hadn't realised how much money, time, and thought I'd been putting into my preps until I had to throw them out.

I dispatched five mice the other day, with two escapees, and three yesterday, with one escaped. The shed and all of its contents has been thoroughly searched, I'm certain that there's nothing alive in there that walks on four legs anymore.


Here's my question, and it's a biggie for me;


I have 350lb of white rice packaged in mylar with oxygen absorbers, the little ****'s have chewed into them, some more than others, some of them I had to look damn hard just to find where the bag had been punctured.

Can any of this be salvaged?

The rice, I mean, everything else is too far gone and has already been dumped

I knew the risks, I knew how to mitigate them, but through a combination of naivety and arrogance I assumed it wouldn't be an issue for me.

Let's put it this way, I don't complain as much about domestic cats killing native wildlife these days, if Mimi, our neighbours cat was still around, I probably wouldn't have this issue.



I'm so angry with myself, I've not only let myself down, I've let my whole family down.

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

If you decide to restock, remember the container you use for storage needs to be able to protect against mice as well.
(almost as good as an "I told you so" post.) Stackable plastic containers.

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity
Before you refill the holes, mix the paste with crushed glass.

Better you sort this out now then finding out when you really needed it. Planning for the future has all kinds of unknowns wrapped up in it. Get a cat and stronger containers seams to be next on the list I guess?

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Sorry to hear this.

Mice chewed right through a plastic container I "once" had. Got an ultrasonic deterrent beeper device that did help. I have stuff in the basement, so i have a power source to do so. But unfortunately in your case I'm assuming your shed does not have a power source for a plug in device.

Try looking here
www.campingsurvival.com... aign=aff-ats-horiz

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity
Little ba5tards!
Iv'e had a war against them for years-always trying to get into my shed/studio.

I am winning now but only because I have reinforced the lower part of the shed with panels made from opened out aluminium cans.
Oh and any little gaps bigger than a pencil I have jammed up with wads of wire wool-the mice cannot chew that stuff.

Damn mice

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Can any of this be salvaged?

If the poo hit the fan, and you were starving....
You would happily eat everything that mice hadn't eaten, along with their turds, pee and the mice themselves.

It is all a matter of perspective.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Can any of this be salvaged?

If the poo hit the fan, and you were starving....
You would happily eat everything that mice hadn't eaten, along with their turds, pee and the mice themselves.

It is all a matter of perspective.

I was considering how to answer that. People will eat spoiled food from the garbage bin in an alley. But considering the diseases rodents can carry, like the Hantavirus for example. I'm not sure I would.
But I'm not in a desperate situation just yet.

First thing first though. Getting a hermetically sealed storage shed and same for the food.

Again sorry to hear this MerkabaTribeEntity.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Thanks you for the tips everyone, one of the main reasons I'm kicking myself is that I have plastic food storage containers, but I neglected to use them, it was a 'I'll get around to it' type deal, I really messed up

Can any of this be salvaged?

If the poo hit the fan, and you were starving....
You would happily eat everything that mice hadn't eaten, along with their turds, pee and the mice themselves.

It is all a matter of perspective.

Honestly, this is the kind of response I was hoping for, as I feel the same way (seeking confirmation bias? Maybe, lol)

I once read testimony from a Vietnam vet who described being welcomed into a farmers home one time, the home was basically a bamboo hut, and he said that they had a literal ton of rice piled up in the corner and that it was the family's years supply.

Hot, humid, bugs and vermin everywhere, and the rice still kept.

I think we're good, I'm just a little concerned,

Might just have to drop a ton of money on some new mylar, and push them to to the back.

I've got some scrap sheet aluminium in the other shed, so I'll be getting the Dremel out soon and get working on that door,

Cheers again folks, as our overlords keep saying, we can build back better,

Attach a metal kickplate to the outside bottom of the shed's door.

Set mousetraps.

I have heard that putting bars of “ irish spring “ soap around your place will keep The mice away . I am
Not sure if that works , just something someone told me the other day , as they were having issues in their RV and used chunks of the soap….. maybe look into that ….on the bright side , your finding out now VS In the middle of needing it . And now that you know you are prone to mice problems , maybe talk with a local pet store / expert and ask how to repel them safely without contaminating your food with any sort of poison . You don’t want north balls near tour food , or a poisoned rat in your food either .

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity


Ummm...dayam...I'm sorry to hear that...and I know how you feel...

The mice destroyed 3 cases of MRE's and beans and flour...sugar...ramen...etc. add nauseum...that I had stored in plastic tubs...chewed through the tubs and had a field day...

Now I store everything in large galvanized steel garbage cans with lids...and lots of dessicant packs...

And I keep the rodent poison stocked as well...damned little critters...


Again...sorry to hear about your losses...store in steel with lids...







YouSir

Well I'm sorry to hear this!

What would a good idea to mitigate this type of thing for anyone collecting? Spend 1/8th of your prep funding on anti-pest measures?

a reply to: Bigburgh

But considering the diseases rodents can carry, like the Hantavirus for example. I'm not sure I would.

I generally cook rice before I eat it.
Cooking it would destroy any biological pathogens in rice.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: Bigburgh

But considering the diseases rodents can carry, like the Hantavirus for example. I'm not sure I would.

I generally cook rice before I eat it.
Cooking it would destroy any biological pathogens in rice.

😆 most excellent point😆😂😂

originally posted by: MerkabaTribeEntity

I'm so angry with myself, I've not only let myself down, I've let my whole family down.

Very sorry to hear that MerkabaTribeEntity and for what it's worth this vid once helped me out - at least you found out about it now rather than later.

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Can any of this be salvaged?

Answer: No!

Not unless you're a fan of Russian Roulette. Depending on your location, mice are Hanta Virus carriers, and Hanta Virus is about as deadly as Ebola if you catch it!

ETA - Others have noted that cooking the rice may kill the virus. While this may be true (note "MAY"), don't forget you have to handle the rice before you cook it...which will expose you to the pathogens prior to cooking. And, Hantavirus is an airborne pathogen, so you don't have to eat it to catch the virus, only breathe the microscopic dust from it.

Sorry most people are idiots, it's not that big of a deal. In any form of "society" there are mice, none of them contain henta virus.. or the CDC would be locking down blocks while exterminating them. Even countryside if food was contaminated with the virus.. which must be inhaled by their #.. the places would be shut down and thousands would pretty much drop dead anyway. As it's very contagious..

For those who don't know anything about farming.. a field mice is a mouse that lives in crop fields. City mice are bred separate from wild mice and the chance of henta is next to none. Transferrable of any Henta is gone the minute it touches water.. as you need to inhale dry powdered #. Considering you already were checking out the damage and aren't dead. I say your a-okay..

Most crops/harvest comes in contact with mice, spiders, grasshoppers, snakes, etc.. so your pretty much okay. The bacteria and such will die when you cook it. Hell even your coffee grounds unless you grind it yourself contain upwards of 5% bugs, from roaches to spiders.

Hotdogs contain up to 5% rat #.. people still eat it. It's all legal, all safe according to the FDA. I am almost 10000% certain they don't test every turd that gets harvested with crops. Cause at that point it's just easier to toss it aside..

If people threw out all the crops that came in contact with that crap there would be no food in the markets.

You can shift the flour, rinse and dry the rice, (wash few seconds, rinse, lay on a flat sheet lowest setting like 120-140 in an oven to dry). Or Rinse wash and then toast the rice... (Cook the rice in butter).

Any beans or what not, or stuff with liquids, wash dry dehydrate for storage.

The Hanta Virus is extremely rare. By extremely I mean like 1 in a million mice. If your really concerned, bleach the rice. 5% to water soak for 2 minutes and mix. Then rinse... The liquid from the water(spray) will literally rinse the piss and # away.. the bleach wash is actually for your own mental sanity.. but isn't required. None of it is... Because to properly cook rice.. you rinse it all anyway..



Hope that helps, if you don't want to use bleach use pool chlorine, just make sure you dilute it properly.



There is no point throwing it away, like seriously. Every farm in the world is plagued with that crap. 90% of store bought crap is just bleach treated anyway..


Last but not least, if there hasn't been an alert set out, or signs warning of henta virus in your neighborhood. You have zero to worry about. As places with diseased animals like that have signs all over the place as warning.

Mice can chew through metal let alone plastic... a reply to: network dude


rodentguide.com...

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Rinse the rice, 5% bleach to water.. and read my post. You don't really have anything to worry about, mice is insanely common with crops that get loaded to the store. People are just idiots and think food just sits out in nature and no animals get to it ..