I have a huge problem with Gerbils (nagmuise) around my ponds. They ruin everything I plant around the ponds and fall into my ponds on a daily basis, causing possible bacteria in the water.

Their tunnels even caused one of my liner ponds to collapse.

I am talking about hundreds of them with tunnels all over.

Poison would be the quickest way to get rid of them, but I can not because they will fall into the ponds and the poison will kill the fish, and it will kill the Falcons, Eagles and Owls that will eat the dead ones.

I have tried to flood them out with backwash water from my sandfilters yesterday, but they build their tunnels in a way that they can escape to emergecy tunnels which is higher than the normal tunnels.

I was thinking of connecting a pipe to my Diesel bakkie and try to smoke them out with Carbon Monoxide. Would a diesel or petrol vehicle be the best?

Any other ideas?

Hi paul
Are you taking about a mouse or mole ??
If they are mole's use diesel

Hi Paul,

How about ultra sonic devices around your ponds, dont think they would affect fish. You get the ones that are safe for dogs and other domestic animals.

I know that they use ultra sonic devices quite successfully in some applications and I'm sure that this could help resolve your issue safely.

cheers

Thanks guys

Cape Gerbils are a bit bigger than house mice and lives in sandy areas and can be found only in South Africa, and only operates at night.

Will try the Carbon monoxide as it is a cheap option, and if it does not work, I will have to look at more expensive options like possible ultra sonic devices. There are at least 200 tunnels and the last option will probably deter them, but won't kill them and might be impractical in a farm setup.

Another possibility I can think of is to buy a large number of mole snakes. This will also deter/kill the moles.

I had a mole problem and tried all the poisons, diesel, fumigation etc.

Then a farmer gave me the following advice:
Find every hole you can leading to their tunnels.
Stuff the holes full of dog poop.
Close the holes tightly with paper and sand.

......2 days later, there wasn't a mole in sight. It's now been more than 6 months and there's still no sign of any moles.

Give it a go..... Who know's, maybe it works.

Mole snakes sounds like a clever plan.

Whatever you do dont use petrol it becomes a bomb (maybe what you need) if the gasses from a petrol engine is not fully combusted it can explode when compressed and ignited.
You have to feed them small amounts of stuff like rattex or simmilar. it contains gypsum which is not toxic it kills by solidifying the intestines of the mouse when it becomes moist and voila.

There was a movie, cant remember the name, of a golfcourse greenkeeper who had this problem he eventualy blew up about the whole course with dynamite.
He just became as gatvol as you sound.

Hi Neville, I am a bit scared of rattex. What will happen if the owls/eagles eat the dead mice?. Surely the rattex will affect their intestines the same way?

Apparently there is a new product called Eco Mice and Eco Rat by Effekto, who has no secondary effects whatsoever and only influence rodents. Will try to get hold of some.

Have tried the exhaust pipe this morning with no visible effect. I was hoping that the gerbils would run out at another hole so that I can kill them. When it did not happen, I closed the exits and did it again. Maybe some died in the tunnels? Will try again tomorrow because I ran out of time.

Why don't you visit your local SPCA and rescue a cat or two for certain death? They will sort you out quick-quick.

Cats and Koi don't go together!! Had cats stressing my Koi badly a while ago....

My cats and koi live in perfect harmony. The cats and dog too for that matter.

YOUR cats yes, but other people's cats?? It's neighbors cats that kept stressing my koi.

Every night I'd hear something in the water by the pond and couldn't understand why small koi died from nothing. All parameters were fine and everything. One night when I switched on the light to see what the noise was I saw the cat running away.
I set up a trap for this cat....don't worry, not to kill it. I simply made it that if the cat came close to the water that he'd fall in. That night I heard one big splash and jumped up to see...... Only one wet trail in the yard and I never saw that cat again.

Hi Admin
If you had owls you definately would not have this problem. Maybe an owl box to attract them will be a good idea.
Any way rattex wont effect them as it will already have spent its energy and it is of such small volume that it wont effect them. Onother thing to remember is that owls regurgarate al the waste from their meals. I dont think you will have a problem but would concidder the owl boxes for the long term.

Joe wrote:

Why don't you visit your local SPCA and rescue a cat or two for certain death? They will sort you out quick-quick.

... and next the cats start catching the insects, skinks, geckos, small birds etc. and destroy your whole environment while the rats will still be doing their thing.

It is bad enough to have one pest on your land ... no need to bring in another.

I like the owl thing ... get in touch with the bird guys and find out exactly how to attract owls to your place.

Barn owls are efficient and effective culling machines.

Hi Admin,

Just go look on the internet, search owl boxes they give all the details on how to make different boxes for different owls, also how to place them and you will have an owl in there within days.
I dont doubt that this is your real solution in the long run.

Yes and please no cats, they will realy not solve your problem at all.

Admin here is some links you have people there in the western cape that can and will help.
www.zandvleitrust.org.za/links.html

www.andersonafrica.co.za/pamphlets/Barn_Owls_and_bio-control.pdf

www.andersonafrica.co.za/pamphlets/Owl_nest_boxes.pdf -

Here is everything you need

Dankie Neville. Die uile is beslis die beste opsie maar 'n langtermyn oplossing. Ek het tans ongeveer drie uile en duisende muise. Sal beslis die uilhokke begin om die bevolking te laat aanteel.

Sien Die Burger:

Slaan nagmuise hok met geïntegreerde plan

’n Benadering van geïntegreerde plaagbeheer is die aangewese een om die probleem van nagmuise in die graanstreke te hanteer – eerder as die eertydse konsep “roei die nagmuise uit”.


Só glo dr. Gerhard Verdoorn, uitvoerende direkteur van die Griffon-gifinligtingsentrum en bekende roofvoëlkenner.


Hy was onlangs met sy wye ervaring van agro-chemiese middels en roofdiere die gasspreker op ’n inligtingsdag in Moorreesburg wat Graan SA, Agri Wes-Kaap en die Wes-Kaapse departement van landbou se program vir tegnologie, navorsing en ontwikkeling aangebied het.


Omdat graanprodusente in die Swartland die laaste paar jaar gebuk gaan onder toenemende skade en kostes weens nagmuise, het die drietal koppe bymekaargesit oor die probleem en is besluit om die boere in te lig oor ’n geïntegreede plan om die plaag te bestry.


Nagmuise is nie net verantwoordelik vir aansienlike skade aan graanlande nie, maar veroorsaak ook hoër insetkoste vir die produsent weens agro-chemiese middels wat gebruik moet word.


Nadat verskeie produsente die probleem rondom nagmuise bespreek het en daar ook oor die huidige beheermaatreëls gedebatteer is, het Verdoorn die konsep geïntegreerde plaagbeheer voorgestel.


Volgens hom moet verantwoordelike en korrekte chemiese beheer, die aanlok, bewaring en bestuur van natuurlike vyande of predatore asook die bewaring van natuurlike areas op plase in die totale beheerprogram ingesluit word.


Verdoorn het produsente vermaan om nie sekondêre vergiftiging op hul plase aan te help deurdat uile en ander voordelige roofdiere vergiftigde muise eet nie.


Die rol van veral klein roofdiere op die plaas is beklemtoon en daar is op gewys dat hulle nie onderskat moet word in die beheer van nagmuise nie.


Die lok van veral uile na plase as teenvoeter vir nagmuise is bespreek en Verdoorn het verduidelik hoe uilhokke goedkoop en doeltreffend gebou kan word.


Hy het die wetenskaplike, wetlike asook uiters praktiese aspekte van nagmuisbeheer behandel en deur interaksie met die gehoor verskeie probleemgebiede uitgelig en oplossings daarvoor aangebied.


Inligtingstukke van Verdoorn, die Wes-Kaapse departement van landbou asook AVCASA is ook beskikbaar gestel om verder te help met die beheer van die nagmuise.

He is a very very knowlegeble fellow on all matters in nature. I love to listen to him.