Opened the hood on my Mustang the other day to find this.

[wtd]

Needless to say, I was not happy. Cat hair and cat prints everywhere and cat crap down below this area. These are the connectors to the two passenger side VCT solenoids and the other picture is of the low pressure AC switch where the wires were chewed off to it which is below this same area.

I know people will say it's rats or mice but I found no signs of either like feces, acorns, or nesting material. We have had problems in the past of cats having their kittens up in the engine compartments of our vehicles. So whether it's cats, rats, or mice, I'm not sure but it's not a good deal. I know cats will chew on wires and cords in the house so I imagine they could possibly do the same under the hood of a car.

When I went to change the air filter on my fiancé's 17 F150 yesterday, there was a cat sitting on top of the engine when I lifted the hood. No wiring damage to it that I could see.

I'm not sure what to do to keep any of these out. We have about 15 cats/kittens running around with most of them being feral barn cats so you never see any rats or mice around.

 

[Krieg]

Ouch! Squirrels are a problem for me. Too many Coyotes for feral cats! The hawks love small pets too!

 

[loneryder]

I keep a block of mouse bait under the hood of my truck which sits outside. Mice ruined an old truck I had when they got in the heater box and pissed in there. Couldn't get the smell out. Keeping a block of bait in there works.

 

[Lyman]

I am thankful for the Hawks and Eagles that hang around my house. Even cats don't come around much.

 

[Doc8404]

Amazon.com : shock mats for cats

 

[jhs914]

Typical mouse damage. I've never known a cat to chew on wiring. If they don't make a nest in the engine bay you won't see feces. Mice were there and attracted the cats. You saw the cats but not the mice.

 

[ctrcbob]

Typical mouse damage. I've never known a cat to chew on wiring. If they don't make a nest in the engine bay you won't see feces. Mice were there and attracted the cats. You saw the cats but not the mice.

Ditto. DITTO.

 

[FT92]

yep looks like mouse damage to me, I'm glad to have plenty of black snakes around , they sure help keep the mice away and most people

 

[wtd]

Well I would figure with 15 cats running around outside, mice would not be a problem but who knows. I've had this car almost 8 years and this is the first time this has happened.

 

[wtd]

Typical mouse damage. I've never known a cat to chew on wiring. If they don't make a nest in the engine bay you won't see feces. Mice were there and attracted the cats. You saw the cats but not the mice.

Cats do chew on wiring. I've seen them do it indoors and if you google search it, there are many articles that state that they can and do sometimes chew on cords and wiring. I'm not saying that is what did this but it's possible.

I guess I will try putting a mouse trap under the hood and see if I catch anything.

 

[Dave9]

Due to the location I also suspect mouse or rat over cat.

There are wire wraps with hot pepper impregnated or you can put a light coat of a very hot sauce (or pepper defense spray) on them yourself. Just don't rub your eyes after touching them. There may also be some kind of predator urine scent you can spray to keep them away but I've never tried that. Example below but I wonder if even (local) cat urine would work.. though personally I love the smell of hot peppers but urine not so much.

Natural Mouse Repellent | Bobcat Urine for Mice

Solve your mice problems with a natural mouse repellent. Bobcat urine for mice is an effective, easy way to keep pests away from your home and stored vehicles.

www.predatorpeestore.com

 

[wtd]

I just took off the plastic engine cover to see if I can see any signs of mice and looked over the entire engine compartment and there are 0 signs of mice other than the chewed wires.

I've got dryer sheets under the hood for now. We leave for vacation on Sunday for a week so I won't be around to see if any other damage occurs.

I guess there is no point in trying to fix any of this until I can figure out what to do to prevent it from happening again.

 

[zzyzzx]

Not a cat.

 

[Oillover]

I just took off the plastic engine cover to see if I can see any signs of mice and looked over the entire engine compartment and there are 0 signs of mice other than the chewed wires.

I've got dryer sheets under the hood for now. We leave for vacation on Sunday for a week so I won't be around to see if any other damage occurs.

I guess there is no point in trying to fix any of this until I can figure out what to do to prevent it from happening again.

Dryer sheets as well as a plethora of other home remedies do not work.
I was once told that bars if Irish Spring will keep the mice and rats away. Total nonsense, they'll snack on that too.

Get some Riddix Bloks and you won't have to worry about further damage.

 

[wtd]

Dryer sheets as well as a plethora of other home remedies do not work.
I was once told that bars if Irish Spring will keep the mice and rats away. Total nonsense, they'll snack on that too.

Get some Riddix Bloks and you won't have to worry about further damage.

Thanks, I will check the Riddix bloks out. Is this something Walmart would have?

 

[jhs914]

Thanks, I will check the Riddix bloks out. Is this something Walmart would have?

Go to a farm supply store like Tractor Supply. They will have all different kinds of mice/rat poison's. I had a mice problem in my hunting truck after leaving it parked next to a barn while hunting. I can't recall the brand but using the green blocks of poison under the hood eventually solved the problem. I think it would also work on squirrels if that is your problem.

 

[Oillover]

Thanks, I will check the Riddix bloks out. Is this something Walmart would have?

They have in the past (that's where I got it when I used to store my vehicle in mice/rat infested areas).

Not only do they love it, but after a year or two, I noticed the rate at which it was consumed had steeply declined (with no further damage to my vehicles).
That's a good thing, as it means their population was being decreased.

 

[Oillover]

Go to a farm supply store like Tractor Supply. They will have all different kinds of mice/rat poison's. I had a mice problem in my hunting truck after leaving it parked next to a barn while hunting. I can't recall the brand but using the green blocks of poison under the hood eventually solved the problem. I think it would also work on squirrels if that is your problem.

Yep, that's what Riddix Bloks look like

 

[wtd]

No Tractor Supply close by but we do have a MFA that I will try.

 

[odie]

Fine black pepper helps . Spread on area under and around the vehicle .