I just can't win. I'm not quite sure if my mind is playing tricks on me or if I really do have a new little pet living in my house with me. At night, if I'm really really quiet, I think I can hear the faint sound of little Ben squeaking and munching away on God knows what in my living room. I never really know if the sounds are coming from inside or outside of my house since I am always too afraid to get up and go check, however, the small brown pellets that rest in the corners of my living room each morning tell me that the sounds are, indeed, coming from inside the house.
I'm at a loss right now. I already have a serious case of OCD so I'm
not really sure what else I can do to rid myself of all these house
guests. I sweep and mop every single night after dinner...I make sure to never ever
leave any dirty dishes sitting around (I wash dishes after each meal:
breakfast, lunch, and dinner)...I double containers for food storage...the list
goes on. My house is beyond clean, and
they somehow still manage to find their way back to me. I guess it could be the fact that my back
door is almost three inches off of the ground and it's not exactly difficult
for things to make their way into the safety of my home. I think next up on my list of things to try
will be rat poisoning and any other poison
that might kill the little insects that keep me company day in and day
out. Regular insecticides don't
work...African insects are invincible in every sense of the word.
Love and Peace Corps,
Dametreea
P.S.
I have no objections to critter
care packages and secret remedies :) Please do share if you have any ideas or
suggestions as to how I can win this seemingly infinite battle.
At Scout camp when I was a kid, we'd fill a jar (narrow neck) with a mixture of water and something sweet (sugar/honey), and many critters (flies, ants) will crawl in, but can't get out. It seems to work the same way with one of my hummingbird feeders here.
ReplyDeleteAt the horse barn, we'd sprinkle Diatomaceous earth around. It is organic, and the flies eat it and die. It is a rock.
Charles Norton who served in Cameroon just stopped in, and suggested talking to farmers and to neighbors who probably have the best ideas. He found wood ash to be very helpful. Stuff a towel or something in the space between the door and the earth. A hungry cat to eat the mice. ...though that is another set of issues. Different herbs or plants may also help. Chemicals....not so good usually inside your house. Oh, and mice traps....you don't need cheese...just put 'em out. Boric acid is also good for roaches they say. There's a wiki article on a combo of boric acid, flour and cocoa. Talk to your neighbors first. We found out that fly strips will just attract flies from beyond your immediate territory, but maybe something off a ways from the latrine would help. Do you have lime or something to put in the latrine? Good luck! Keep us posted. You will figure this out!!!
Thanks for all these tips Georgia!! I'll let you know which ones I try and which ones work best!
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