Mice!

Last night discovered a major mouse infestation in my roll off roof observatory. The little buggers ate holes in the fabric covers at both ends of my 12.5 inch finder scope and built a nest in the tube. Looks like they rubbed their little mouse noses on the mirror while looking at themselves. I brought the finder back to do a thorough cleaning. I need to decrease the population considerably. With the roll off roof it isn't easy to make the building tight enough that they can't get in. Anyone else dealt with this issue? Thanks

Hi Kim
I remember a discussion about this about a year ago on a forum I can't remember and the remedies ran from mouse traps to poison bate to getting a cat. A mouse won't go anywhere near a place if a cat prowls the area. I think your immediate but short term solution is mouse traps but the long term might be a cat. Cat scent in a can would be perfect but I'm not aware of any on the market. Sorry not much help except the tried and true rodent reduction methods I'm afraid.
Buck

Mice are repelled by mothballs. I guess I wouldn't want to use them near a mirror surface or optical coatings, but you could put a few in corners, nooks and crannies or especially in storage cabinets with paper, charts, books, cloth, etc.
Maybe around the outside perimeter of the building? Also the support posts.
Mice can flatten their ribcages, which is how they can squeeze thru the narrowest of openings-maybe stick some small
pieces in any gaps in structure, or along roof rails.
Of course, all this depends on your tolerance for smelling mothballs-but it might drop the local population more quickly-then use traps or cat for the long term.