Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Thursday’s Thoughts. #34
Good morning to everyone on this fine December day! Only 2 days until Christmas and all through the apartment, not a creature was stirring except for a mouse. But fortunately he is only stirring in the walls at the moment, actually for 2 days now. That is the way it always works, it takes them a while to get enough courage to come inside. Then there is a lot of stirring! Until Muffin finally catches the critter and I toss it outside for the birds breakfast. It is obviously another deer mouse, basically all that comes in this time of the year.
I don’t like deer mice, they carry disease such as hantavirus, which has been found in deer mice in our area. They also carry salmonellosis and lyme disease. All of these are dangerous, especially the first and last one. With hantavirus 37% of people who get this disease die from it. That is a high percentage. But even besides that, if people survive they often end up with health problems the rest of their lives from it. So, I don’t really like having these critters in my apartment.
It is snowing a bit this morning, there was an inch (2.5cm) of new snow when I went out with food for the birds this morning. There is another half an inch out there now. The grosbeaks were a little late showing up this morning but they are sure busy out there now. So are all the other birds. Then there is Junior. He came along this morning as well, but he came onto the deck this time. That is not good, so I had to chase him off the deck. If someone sees him on my deck they might call the police. I do not want that to happen.
That is why I am not feeding the deer right now, for one thing I don’t know what my new neighbors are going to be like, so I have to be a little careful. You will probably notice a bit of a change in my posts over the holidays. I will still be here since Muffin and I have no plans for Christmas. But my mystery story will not be around until we start with our new stories on January 1st. But I will fill that spot with other posts while our PI team has a nice quiet Christmas.
The blue jays are finally back again. They were having a noisy reunion with a bunch of their friends and relatives. They do this sometimes, though I’m not really sure why. There was at least 30 or more of them, but my regular 8 are back again getting peanuts. The snow has basically stopped and we are left with 2 and a half inches (6.5cm) of new snow. Well, I must be off for now, but I will be back a little later. Have a wonderful day and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2021 Steve McLeod.
Steve`s Country 
Bad company is not welcome anywhere. So the faster you can drive those mice away, the better. The photos are, as always, magnificent. I take advantage of the fact that today is Christmas Eve and tomorrow Christmas to wish you a Merry Christmas and a better New Year. Big hug Steve
Manuel Angel
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Yes, that is so true Manuel, the mice need to go! Thank you so much, I’m glad you enjoy the photos. I wish for you a very Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year ahead Manuel! And a big hug to you also, thank you so much!😀😺☕☕🎄
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You are welcome
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i live in an area which is in the middle of two areas where the kangaroo mouse is know to carry the hantavirus. also it seems i live near an area which that mousse is protected. but i have lots of open area around me and of course mice and rats (voles) are also living. though i have never found any in my house, the mice, two different types which include the kangaroo mouse, have been found in my garage and i have set out traps. over the years the numbers have decreased. I dont keep any type of food in my garage, but that does not stop rodents from going in there.
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Mice love going in my landlord’s garage and nesting in there, nice and safe I guess. The mouse droppings in there is unbelievable! I don’t like to go in there without wearing a mask. We have the kangaroo mouse too, hard to imagine they need to be protected, mice multiply so fast. the problem with mice isn’t so bad now like it was when I first moved in. But in summer we have skunks visiting regular and they are better mousers than cats. Plus we have a fox that is around all the time, they also go after mice. Plus the owls. It has made a difference. But they still come in now and then.
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Be careful with them, especially if they are carrying serious diesease. Take good care of yourself, Wishing you a beautiful Advance Christmas wishes and a Happy New year Uncle Steve 😍🥰 From Simon & Nisha ✨🕺💃
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Yes, I am very careful with these mice! I don’t want to pick up that disease at all.
Merry Christmas to all of you!! And a beautiful New Year ahead!😀😻🎄🎉🎊🎆🎇
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The gift of happiness, the gift of peace, the gift of prosperity. I hope you can unwrap all these gifts on this Christmas day! Merry Christmas to you and your friends Dear Steve Uncle ✨🥳
From,
Simon, Nisha, 👼Juvaan & Riyaan 👼
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Thank you so much for those kind wishes Simon! Merry Christmas to you and all your family and I pray that you have a healthy and happy New Year too!
Steve and Muffin.😀😻🎄☕☕✨🎉🎊
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Thank you Uncle Steve ✨🥰
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Our birds are busy and taking advantage of the warmer temps…thankfully we do not have any mice here ! Be very careful and tell Muffin to catch any intruders ! Your pics are always such a trove of happy thoughts ! Thank you for sharing them with all your readers ! Sleep well tonight ! ☕️☕️😍😻🎄☕️☕️
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Yes, the warmer temps are nice, I was able to stand out there with seeds on my hand for half an hour as the chickadees kept coming! Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words! Have a nice evening!😁😻☕☕🌙😴😴🎄🔔
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At least Muffin catches them 🐀 😼
But you can’t feed the little critters in your deck? 🤔
Wish you both a happy and relaxed time 🎄😻
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Yes, Muffin is very good at catching those intruding mice! Unfortunately all those seeds and shells out there likely do attract some mice.
Merry Christmas Ribana!😀😻🎄☕☕
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Would love to see some broader range pictures of your feeders and yard. Looks interesting, but hard to get a perspective with only close ups, though they are wonderful.
Merry Christmas, c.a.
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I will try to put a couple pics on next week. There are lots already on posts, it’s just trying to find them. I do try to have some now and then for my newer readers. I really only have a deck, no yard, all the trees around are in neighbor yards. Merry Christmas!😀😺🎄☕☕
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I guess Junior wanted to go inside for a visit…
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He just might have done it too!
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🙂
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