What unwanted creatures have you seen in your home?

[makemepretty]

I need a box to check for stray cats. Over the years I've fed a few and they've moved on. In the past year, I rehomed one that kept hanging around and now there's another one that has decided this is the place to be. I ended up having her spayed to avoid having to find homes for kittens but now she doesn't seem to want to leave! She pushed her way into the house and helped herself. I am so NOT a cat person and you can believe I won't be feeding any more no matter how sad they look sitting on my garbage can! I keep telling my husband that is NOT our cat, If I gave a hobo a meal and a bandaid it wouldn't make him "my hobo" same rule applies for this annoying cat. There's a couple farms on our road and they have barn cats so I'm guessing she came from one of those. I do have two small non shedding dogs *whispers* dogs are so much better than cats!!!!!

 

[hawaiianorangetree]

I had a dugite (snake) managed to get inside my bedroom and get tangled up in old packing tape from some boxes when I was packing. I had to catch the poor little bugger and try and get it off. It was stuck on pretty hard so I had to get a snake catcher around to take him, otherwise I would have just let him go. I've seen quite a few lizards in the house as well.

In the house I grew up in we had many huntsman spiders. Mum loved them as they used to keep the bugs down. She used to treat them as her pets, one was the size of a dinner plate! I don't see them anymore unfortunately.

Other than that it's just the usual flies and moths!

 

[chrono]

Spiders and centipedes when the weather gets hot. I'm getting ladybugs in the house this spring. I don't mind those but not the centipedes. I arm myself with a fly swatter and bring out my inner wrath!

 

[stargurl78]

iLander the pic of that spider gave me chills! I hate spiders!

The only pests we get are spiders (but none that are too crazy big) and an occasional fly or two. We did have an ant problem twice but I took care of it with a Borax/peanut butter/sugar water mixture.

 

[justginger]

You can't live in Australia if you can't deal with some creepy crawlies, lol. I've had spiders, ants, cockroaches (both the brown and black kinds), geckos, a whole lot more ants, mice in my old rental house (they climbed into the roof via overhanging palm trees), etc, etc, etc.

The worst though? A sandgroper. Sounds like a cute little peeper frog, then looks like this.



I caught the cats batting at one on the kitchen floor a year or two ago.

But the cream of the crop I just discovered last week. When I first moved here I used to shake out my shoes because I had read horror stories of biting and stinging creatures hiding in those sort of places. I stopped after a year or two because there was never anything in them (except sometimes the cat will drop a toy mouse in there).

And then, I found THIS on the floor of the kittens' room, dead. Yes, they had killed it. It was somewhere between the size of my palm and the size of my whole hand.



Kitties: 35085, Household pests: 0.

 

[yssie]

...most creepy crawlies I can deal with. Snakes I have no objection to unless they're poisonous. I like lizards. My dog likes frogs.

But spiders - spiders the size of toilet paper sheets????? iLander and marcy, where do you live? I'm putting it on my list of NEVER MOVE THERE. I don't know what I'd do if I ever saw a spider that big outside a terrarium without double-walled glass in-between... probably never sleep again!!!

 

[ame]

If it's alive or has been alive or has the prospect of being alive and it's not the two of us, it's not welcome.

 

[TC1987]

western conifer seed bug (Stink Bug) -- the long skinny one, except the ones here have an orange V on their backs.

brown marmorated stink bug -- The prehistoric-looking shield shaped one.

Ick! I hate them. I am making traps from 2L pop bottles. And spraying down the porches with a detergent solution.

 

[justginger]

...most creepy crawlies I can deal with. Snakes I have no objection to unless they're poisonous. I like lizards. My dog likes frogs.

But spiders - spiders the size of toilet paper sheets????? iLander and marcy, where do you live? I'm putting it on my list of NEVER MOVE THERE. I don't know what I'd do if I ever saw a spider that big outside a terrarium without double-walled glass in-between... probably never sleep again!!!

I remember the first time I saw a huntsman spider after moving here. I literally left the house. Then I found out how good they are for keeping other bugs away, so I will allow them to live in the house now. BUT, there is an unspoken rule. Whatever room I see them in the first time is where they must remain. If they change rooms, DH must evict them by hook or by crook. I'm petrified they'll end up migrating to my bedroom and then I wouldn't be able to ever sleep again.

 

[Laila619]

Gah, this thread is scaring the crap out of me.

We have ants and silver fish. The ants are just a nuisance but the silver fish are NASTY.

My one cat is awesome at killing bugs.

 

[lulu]

You can't live in Australia if you can't deal with some creepy crawlies, lol. I've had spiders, ants, cockroaches (both the brown and black kinds), geckos, a whole lot more ants, mice in my old rental house (they climbed into the roof via overhanging palm trees), etc, etc, etc.

The worst though? A sandgroper. Sounds like a cute little peeper frog, then looks like this.



I caught the cats batting at one on the kitchen floor a year or two ago.

But the cream of the crop I just discovered last week. When I first moved here I used to shake out my shoes because I had read horror stories of biting and stinging creatures hiding in those sort of places. I stopped after a year or two because there was never anything in them (except sometimes the cat will drop a toy mouse in there).

And then, I found THIS on the floor of the kittens' room, dead. Yes, they had killed it. It was somewhere between the size of my palm and the size of my whole hand.



Kitties: 35085, Household pests: 0.

I know we have scorpions here in Florida and I even have the house sprayed when we're not here because I worry about the cats getting stung. I once found a little dead one in the garage. We had a little black snake on the lanai once. We put him back in the woods.

In Michigan we have lots of snakes in the garden, but venomous snakes are rare. In our old house we had a lot of mice but the cats took care of that. There isn't much worse than stepping on a dead mouse with a bare foot on your way to the bathroom in the morning. Unless it's a headless dead mouse.

 

[maccers]

This thread is going to give me nightmares, I'm sure of it.

 

[melave]

hi i am a bit late to this chat

I agree with JustGinger, you can't live in Oz and NOT deal with crawlies

When i live in the NT it was snakes!!!!!! heaps of them in my place there

Where i am now, we seem to have plagues
So 2010 it was locusts!!! just walking to your front door you would be swarmed with them, a few made it inside and would scare the crap out of you by landing on your face

2011 was a quiet year

2012 it was army worm that turn into moths. they kill your lawn turn into moths and bother the heck out of you

in between it has been, mice, ants, cockroaches, snakes, spiders and the weirdest bugs i have seen!!! also we get wasps building nests wherever they can.

2013 seems to be the year of the frogs. they come up all the drains and run around the house and up the walls. I am getting sick of cleaning frog poop out of the spa and bath. Those little frogs can poop a lot

we have a huntsmen that hasn't realised he isn't allowed in the house. We have moved him out a couple of times but he keeps coming back. I wonder if he is after the frogs. Plus a daddy long legs in the kitchen. We leave him there as he gets the flies and bugs And Goldern Orb spiders. They have the strongest webs!!!! You actually bounce out of them. Huge ugly things. you tend to get tangled in them when you mow the lawn. This is not my pic but this is what they look like




we also have dingoes here that take peoples pets. I haven't seen many but a few people in town have been chased.

And white corellas!!!!!! arrrrgggggghhhhhh. yes you will think they are cute, but not when you have 1000 of them and they are weening their babies. The noise and destruction!!!! this is what they are meant to look like but they don't look like that here, they are mangy and brown and noisy



again not my picture but a great pic showing how many you can get in a tree. I hope it is ok to put here




Oh and we have a kingfisher here that loves to fly full pelt and attack himself in the window. we have hung up metal objects and fake birds to distract him but he is one determined bird i tell you. Cute little thing, but the bashing into the window was getting a bit much. I haven't seen him for a few days now so maybe he has tired of it. This is the best pic we could get. That bird could move!!!

 

[canuk-gal]

hi i am a bit late to this chat

I agree with JustGinger, you can't live in Oz and NOT deal with crawlies

When i live in the NT it was snakes!!!!!! heaps of them in my place there

Where i am now, we seem to have plagues
So 2010 it was locusts!!! just walking to your front door you would be swarmed with them, a few made it inside and would scare the crap out of you by landing on your face

2011 was a quiet year

2012 it was army worm that turn into moths. they kill your lawn turn into moths and bother the heck out of you

in between it has been, mice, ants, cockroaches, snakes, spiders and the weirdest bugs i have seen!!! also we get wasps building nests wherever they can.

2013 seems to be the year of the frogs. they come up all the drains and run around the house and up the walls. I am getting sick of cleaning frog poop out of the spa and bath. Those little frogs can poop a lot

we have a huntsmen that hasn't realised he isn't allowed in the house. We have moved him out a couple of times but he keeps coming back. I wonder if he is after the frogs. Plus a daddy long legs in the kitchen. We leave him there as he gets the flies and bugs And Goldern Orb spiders. They have the strongest webs!!!! You actually bounce out of them. Huge ugly things. you tend to get tangled in them when you mow the lawn. This is not my pic but this is what they look like




we also have dingoes here that take peoples pets. I haven't seen many but a few people in town have been chased.

And white corellas!!!!!! arrrrgggggghhhhhh. yes you will think they are cute, but not when you have 1000 of them and they are weening their babies. The noise and destruction!!!! this is what they are meant to look like but they don't look like that here, they are mangy and brown and noisy



again not my picture but a great pic showing how many you can get in a tree. I hope it is ok to put here




Oh and we have a kingfisher here that loves to fly full pelt and attack himself in the window. we have hung up metal objects and fake birds to distract him but he is one determined bird i tell you. Cute little thing, but the bashing into the window was getting a bit much. I haven't seen him for a few days now so maybe he has tired of it. This is the best pic we could get. That bird could move!!!

HI:

Thank you for sharing. I think. NOW I know why I live in the foothills of the Rockies and get 30 cms of snow and temps in that - range as well...no locusts, plate size spiders and lawn eating moths. But I thought the KIngfisher was adorable!!

cheers--Sharon

 

[Tuckins1]

hi i am a bit late to this chat

I agree with JustGinger, you can't live in Oz and NOT deal with crawlies

When i live in the NT it was snakes!!!!!! heaps of them in my place there

Where i am now, we seem to have plagues
So 2010 it was locusts!!! just walking to your front door you would be swarmed with them, a few made it inside and would scare the crap out of you by landing on your face

2011 was a quiet year

2012 it was army worm that turn into moths. they kill your lawn turn into moths and bother the heck out of you

in between it has been, mice, ants, cockroaches, snakes, spiders and the weirdest bugs i have seen!!! also we get wasps building nests wherever they can.

2013 seems to be the year of the frogs. they come up all the drains and run around the house and up the walls. I am getting sick of cleaning frog poop out of the spa and bath. Those little frogs can poop a lot

we have a huntsmen that hasn't realised he isn't allowed in the house. We have moved him out a couple of times but he keeps coming back. I wonder if he is after the frogs. Plus a daddy long legs in the kitchen. We leave him there as he gets the flies and bugs And Goldern Orb spiders. They have the strongest webs!!!! You actually bounce out of them. Huge ugly things. you tend to get tangled in them when you mow the lawn. This is not my pic but this is what they look like




we also have dingoes here that take peoples pets. I haven't seen many but a few people in town have been chased.

And white corellas!!!!!! arrrrgggggghhhhhh. yes you will think they are cute, but not when you have 1000 of them and they are weening their babies. The noise and destruction!!!! this is what they are meant to look like but they don't look like that here, they are mangy and brown and noisy



again not my picture but a great pic showing how many you can get in a tree. I hope it is ok to put here




Oh and we have a kingfisher here that loves to fly full pelt and attack himself in the window. we have hung up metal objects and fake birds to distract him but he is one determined bird i tell you. Cute little thing, but the bashing into the window was getting a bit much. I haven't seen him for a few days now so maybe he has tired of it. This is the best pic we could get. That bird could move!!!

wow, that Kingfisher is BEAUTIFUL!!