Loirs??

[Skye]

My neighbours have been telling me that loirs (which I think are some kind of dormouse)  are really detrimental but very common in attics. Now that I've started renovating the grenier I've found a lot of droppings which are too large for mice and I'm wondering if the loirs have been making themselves at home in the walls. Anyone have any experience of these critters and how I might first identify them and then get rid of them (if I have them)?

[Cassis]

Do a search for dormouse - there are several hreads that will answer your question. [:)]

[Rivington]

To say that loirs are detrimental is something of an understatement!! We are blessed with them in our loft and have tried everything to be rid of them. We had a new roof and converted the grenier a couple of years ago and we thought the upheaval would see them off - no such luck!! I think you have to understand that they are a little bit like the BORG in star trek - you know - they adapt and assimilate! We've tried traps and poison, lots of it,  and I know you'll think I'm mad, but I'll swear they warn each other of impending danger! there was the most almighty kerfuffle last summer when we put new poison up there - but we didn't find any corpses. We put traps up - big ones - and we did catch a few, but then they screamed a lot and then we didn't catch any more, they seemed to have learned about the traps!!

I have heard that they are protected, but I don't know if there's any truth in that. I want to know who's going to protect me from them !- I just want a good night's sleep!!

Carole

[Skye]

From what you say they sound rather admirable in an awful sort of way... does this mean resistance is futile?? But I still want to know how one knows if its THEM or just rats for instance?

[Rivington]

 [:(] We haven't quite submitted completely yet, but feel more drastic measures may be needed. We are coming to the conclusion that the only way to keep them out is to have the outside of the house repointed to try to stop them coming in through the walls, but it would have to be a superb job, - no nooks or crannies whatsoever! They can get in through the tiniest sliver in the walls. I actually found one had commited hari kari under the shed door - the gap must have been all of half a centimetre. The result was that I couldn't get it out! It had decomposed before I saw it (we're only part timers as yet) and it was one he** of a job to even open the door, and once I had it open, I could neither prise the creature out, or shut the door!

As to what they look like, - unfortunately they look quite cute! They are fairly big, about 10-12 cms long (minus the tail, which is quite fluffy) and have quite big eyes. They have a kind of dark marking on their heads and are apparently quite long lived, (in the natural scheme of things[6]!!) about 13 years I once read.

bonne chance!  Carole

[Rivington]

[:(] We haven't quite submitted completely yet, but feel more drastic measures may be needed. We are coming to the conclusion that the only way to keep them out is to have the outside of the house repointed to try to stop them coming in through the walls, but it would have to be a superb job, - no nooks or crannies whatsoever! They can get in through the tiniest sliver in the walls. I actually found one had commited hari kari under the shed door - the gap must have been all of half a centimetre. The result was that I couldn't get it out! It had decomposed before I saw it (we're only part timers as yet) and it was one he** of a job to even open the door, and once I had it open, I could neither prise the creature out, or shut the door!

As to what they look like, - unfortunately they look quite cute! They are fairly big, about 10-12 cms long (minus the tail, which is quite fluffy) and have quite big eyes. They have a kind of dark marking on their heads and are apparently quite long lived, (in the natural scheme of things[6]!!) about 13 years I once read.

bonne chance!  Carole

[chris pp]

If you post a photo of the excrement with some indicator of size, I or someone else may be able to identify it for you.

Loir, Lérot or Fouine are the three creatures that spring to mind, all will use roof spaces.

Chris

[George]

........and do these all play football with their nuts.  Come to think of it that's not a bad idea if I could catch them

[cooperlola]

[quote user="George"]........and do these all play football with their nuts. [/quote]That sounds like a challenge!

[Panda]

Hello All

So apart from playing football with their nuts, which I personally think is quite some trick, are they actually causing any issues with the house, or is it just the noise?  I think I might have seen one at my house but I wouldn't want to hurt it unless it was causing some kind of issue up there.

Panda

 

[chris pp]

I don't think any mention of nuts was made in the original enquiry, but to set the record straight Fouine don't play with nuts, the other two do. At the moment Loir and Lérot should be fast asleep, Fouine on the other hand are wide awake and active.

Personally I don't find any of them a problem but some people it seems do, that's life.

Chris

[Gemini_man]

Fouine are the most likely candidates and although they are lovely creatures to look at, yes I have been face to face with several, they can make an awful mess of your ceiling through using it as their toilet area - apart from that they're noisy bu**ers especially in early Spring [:D] but if you can manage to share your property with them so much the better imo [:)]

[George]

Sadly I've only seen a dead one, I wouldn't want to harm them, except in the middle of the night.  There's not too much to damage in our loft at the moment, it's just the noise of nuts rolling around and the odd scampering sounds, magnified in the early hours.  Would love to see them, they certainly seem interesting creatures.

 

 

[Higgy]

Hello from Higgy.

Our friends have a holiday home near to us in the Correze just outside Uzerche. They have been doing the house up and for the last 2 years have been trying to get rid of their squatters namely Fat Tailed Dormouse or is it Doremice.

They are beautiful to look at big big eyes fluffy fur with a bushy tail about half the size of a squirrel, but noisy. They come out of hibernation about April/May and get playful when it gets dark, being nocturnal they would. Our friends have got rid of most but they can get through the tiniest gap. They nest in the cavity wall areas but dig out runs and will be scurrying about behind the plaster. They have been found in the attic, caves, and all rooms of the house.  Easter will be the crunch time for Howard and Denise but IMHO the little devils will still be about.

The French used to eat them as a delicacy.      

[Gemini_man]

[quote user="Higgy"]

The French used to eat them as a delicacy.      

[/quote]

well you know what the French say about themselves: "if it moves, we eat it" which is mostly true but I must say I've never seen a recipe for slugs and with there being so many here, especially long orange ones, I'm surprised they haven't found some way to make them a national speciality to go with snails. ok, I know some smartypants will now relate how their neighbour fries them in olive oil with garlic, pepper and salt etc [+o(]

erm, sorry to go off-topic [:$]

[Higgy]

We have had the same conversation whilst walking in the forests around our neck of the woods. They are sooooo big and bright orange, now someone will have tested them but yuk the thought.

Thinking about the cute fluffy huge eyed Dormouse on a kebab stick isn't much better.

[Jackie]

Apart from making night noises they really pong like tom cats only worse. They chew their way through insulation and more than one local has told me of fires started by loir nibbling at the wiring. Our friends had their ceiling replaced as the loir had peed all over it. I have been trying to get rid of the blighters for 6 years and have not succeeded yet. Ultrasonics, mothballs, creosote and lots of other things have been tried with no success. Sealing the house up is the only way IMHO and that is not easy as the smallest gap is all they need as has been already said, they have even dug their way down in the drive and through the mud between the stone blocks in our cellar.......John not Jackie (Caught 25 last year, all in the loft and released some kilometers away)

[tracteurtom]

[quote user="Jackie"].John not Jackie (Caught 25 last year, all in the loft and released some kilometers away)[/quote]

Daft fools, should have knocked em on t'eads

[lynpy]

We are also having a problem with a guest in the attic who likes to play right above our bed, usually at 3.00am! My OH now sleeps with a long handled brush next to the bed ready to bang on the ceiling to frighten it away! He only suceeds in waking me up though!

I did come face to face with one of these rather cute creatures a couple of years ago when I was in a furniture shop. I wanted to measure a mattress and I reached into my handbag to get my tape measure out  but instead I pulled out a four legged creature with Mickey mouse ears and a bushy tail! It must have crawled in for a sleep when I'd left my bag open on the kitchen floor earlier! Thank god I didnt pull it out 10 mins earlier at the till at Leclerc!