A rat moved into my RV once when it was closed up for winter. I don’t know how long it was in there, but when I first noticed its droppings, it grossed me out. I looked around and found a couple little chewed items and spots of urine on couch pillows.
All of a sudden, my little sanctuary was violated and felt very dirty.
I never saw the rodent, and wasn’t even sure it, or they, were still there. But I set a couple of traps baited with pieces of Snicker Bar to be sure. A few days passed, but no creature. Gail and I cleaned up the RV, and tossed away the pillows.
I concluded the rat was gone. Then, a few days later, as I was about to step out the door, I noticed a rodent along the way, dead. It was a small rat. I have no idea how it died, but that was the invader.
Which brings me to our poll question. Has your RV ever been occupied by a rodent, rat, mouse, squirrel or other creature? If so, please leave a comment about what happened, and how you got rid of the invader(s).
Four cats would deter their existence inside the RV.
Once, in the engine compartment of my Class C – squirrel was hoarding nuts.
Twice in the engine air intake box on our Class B Sprinter.
Only time was in my two travel trailers that were on a seasonal site. Now with a class A that I store in my yard I have an agreement with a feral neighborhood cat. I provide it with food, water, and a cozy bed. It provides me with critter control. It is a wonderful arrangement.
Not with our current MH of 4.5 years, but with our Ol’ beloved Aliner camper it happened twice, NOT fun.
We have a 5th wheel on a permanent spot. Twice we have been invaded by mice. One year it must have been a breeding and birthing location. We trapped seven, two adults and five younger/smaller ones. Another year they invaded the duct work. Still having strofoam snow storms when we turn the air on.
Yes, once. He got shredded in the heater blower. I guess he couldn’t keep up with the speed the blower was running at.
When we are not out camping we remove all food products that would attract these types of visitors. And we always vacuum after we unload.
Squirrels got into the back of my refrigerator on my 5th wheel 2 times and destroyed the wiring for it. The first one did not survive. He was a crispy critter when I discovered it. Got it fixed and 2 years later another one did it again.
Yep and it disproved the dryer sheet myth, they used the dryer sheets as toilet paper
Mine too!
Mouse, one time, while at an RV shop. Our RV is normally parked, and stored, in our driveway. The feral cats keep the mice away.
Haven’t had any of those critters but did have a family of raccoons that liked to sit on the top of my diesel engine during one winter. I later discovered that my Engine Pre-Heat Switch had been turned on keeping the engine nice and toasty.
Mouse, twice in 20 years, but I broke their little necks.
No, I have set several M-44’s around my camper…
While it was parked at the Tiffin RV Lot waiting for work to be done, hubby stayed with the coach while I flew off to be with my kids for a week. I had a large bag of almonds that I like to snack on while we drive. Seem a mouse had found them and had taken small amounts and “stored” them away in all sorts of “future” spots for his winter food. Hubby called me and asked about the “empty bag” that he found (I had informed him it was full when I left). When I returned, the rig was fixed and we drove off. No mouse, but for weeks and weeks we kept finding his “stored winter almonds”! I still picture him sitting outside yelling at us, “wait, wait, that’s my house you’re driving away in!”
We keep all pantry food in sealed IKEA tubs and they have still found their way in at times. We have sonic lights, but our best defence has been our cat who is undefeated against the critters who dare try and invade his RV.
Only one problem; Our cat played and injured one mouse who retreated to a place underneath the hot water tank to die. The smell was atrocious for about 2-3 weeks!
It saddens me to think that half of the poll respondents are untruthful. If you have an RV you HAVE unwelcome visitors. Despite my best efforts to rodent-proof our RV’s over the years, the little buggers ALWAYS find a way in. And we have tried EVERYTHING!
Lol, I was thinking the same thing!
To the best of my knowledge we have never had a mouse inside our motorhome. I take many efforts to keep everything sealed up, when not being used we keep all food products out of it, also I place bait stations under the wheel covers when sitting for a few days and long term, also snap traps just inside the woods at home, historically we need to add new bait every few months and reset the snap traps every other day. When we use our lot in South Carolina we put some bait stations away from the motorhome along with a few snap traps and reset the traps everyday for the first week and less as time goes on. I have never had a snap trap go off in the motorhome, better to stop them outside!
The 50 years we’ve been in Central Florida and have not seen any mice inside RV, house or barn. Opossum in the house attic that ate thru electrical wires and fried himself, but that is all. Now, if you want to talk ants…..
“It saddens me to think that half of the poll respondents are untruthful.”
Did I miss something in the question or answers?
Which half is untruthful? The half that had a rodent in their RV or the half that did not have one?
Not yet.
YES. A mouse that kept me pretty occupied and on alert for 3 days. Catch a release system employed. We traveled with a cat for several years, no mice that I’m aware of but less chance of implenting catch a release during those years.
LOL Cacth and release? You’re a better human than I, friend. I say swift and instant death to them disease carrying varmints!
Cracked me up at the time too. Wife was recovering in the RV after a big surgery, done out of state, and she spent a lot of time watching the little fella from her recliner. It may have been the meds she was on, but no matter, she made the request and I dutifully respected her request. LOL.
Full daylight, block out the outside world, look in every cranny for light and seal. Full night, turn on every light, open every cranny, head outside and look for any light and seal. Squirrels and other pests (including ants) thrive where our mostly stationary RV is parked. Have yet to find any sign of entry over 6.5 years.
Thank you, Chuck! Residence? I’m not sure, but we have had problems with mice in both RVs. I’m not sure that the mice “took up residence,” but they certainly were present long enough to build a nest, pee, and poop. Currently, they are all gone, we think.
European auto industry uses soybean leaves for in their insulation, especially in electric wiring and under the hood. That makes your vehicle a “a traveling vegetable bar.” Rabbits, squirrel, rats, mice, any rodent just love to snack on your RV. My Class B MB Sprinter chassis had a field mouse that chewed my fuel line. Diesel fuel went all over. Luckily we were in a town with a MB Dealer. Had to get it towed in.
We brought our brand new 5th wheel home and parked in the driveway. Loaded a few kitchen items before calling it a day. The next day we saw that a critter had chewed up the paper towels stowed under the sink. Job one was to find and seal all the access holes with copper wool and foam. We never had another problem.
Late last spring while at a campsite in Montana, we found signs of a rat or mouse getting into my granola bars in a drawer. It left some shredded and chewed on wrappers…
We set a trap and heard it go off in the middle of the night. Next morning there wasn’t any sign of the rat or the trap. To this day, I still haven’t been able to find signs of the trap or the invader. 😕
MT is where I picked mine up. I think it traveled to WY, back to MT and finally to NV with me before he finally got caught on a sticky trap. Have him on the Blink camera avoiding them.
We had a mouse about 20 years ago. Dad could hear it once in a while under his bed. Got D-con bait. The bait was disappearing every night. We then added some water. No more mouse. Found it very dehydrated a couple of weeks later. Then the next spring cleaning, we found the D-Con. It was in a T Pot under the sink. About 4 boxes worth.
We’ve had mice and a 4 1/2’ Black Snake going after said mice.
FWIW. We also had a large Black Snake in our B&S house attic this spring.
I found and caught both snakes; I’m still hunting for my wife
We had a 5th wheel that had one living in the front wall. We could hear it at night. As far as I know it was still there when we traded it in for our MH. We had one in the motorhome – saw the droppings. A little Decon took care of it.
I have never had a mouse “in” the motor home – but I have been plagued with them setting up camp in the tail/brake light housing and chewing the wiring! Finally think I solved it this year with spray foam around the edges between the housing the back cap! Also had them in the genset electrical box and in the fuse box in the engine bay.
…Not to be outdone, I was working on the motor home,with the door open, a small red squirrel got in unnoticed by me. I closed it up and a couple days later found insulation on the floor under the dash, 4 screens torn and misc. other items chewed up in a bedroom drawer. I finally found him – under a couple throw pillows on the bed; starvation death I guess
No…hope didn’t just jinx ourselves😂
We have had mice a couple of times over 20 years. Traditional mouse trap with peanut butter for bait got them each time. They got in from grassy fields nearby. In our current location we hear from neighbors closer to the edge of the park about kangaroo rats and other rodents causing damage. We run under lights and are friendly to the owl that likes to perch near us.
Oh, I forgot about the Robin! We never saw it, but found the nest with 4 eggs on top of the radiator after a 400 mile drive. I have this image of the robin returning to sit on the nest wondering where it had gone.
I said more than once but it might have been the same one that just came along for the ride. I have a blink camera system in the RV and caught him several times on it avoiding my sticky traps! Finally put one in a different spot and got him.
You should have had a ‘not yet’ choice. From what I have read, it seems inevitable that some critter will get in at some point
I was looking for that option also…
We had a mouse problem in Alaska last summer. We were working in Skagway, so stationary. We had a whole family try to take up residence. Used glue traps, found sealed and sanitized the possible entrance. Took two weeks to get them (12 in all). No problems since we returned to the lower 48.
We picked up our most recent invaders in Alaska too. In Haines we were parked on grass in mid August. I think they just wanted warm and dry and possibly a trip south. Lots of extra washing of the items in the drawer. As much as I hate them, we used glue traps. . .
How about a tree frog. They have taken a summer trip and serenaded us a couple of times.