EXCUSE ME, DID YOU SAY FOX URINE?

It's been almost three months of not being able to drive after breaking my ankle, and I finally got cleared to drive. (she sighs great relief)  I decided to go out to my car and just give it a start to make sure it was good to go. It started fine. I even went as far as to pull it up and back in the space to be sure I felt confident my ankle could handle the pedals. It seemed fine.  I had made the decision to run my errand the following day because I had just walked back and forth, with a walker to the post box for the first time on my own, and made the decision to save my energy.

The next day came and I was so excited I couldn’t sleep with the thought of actually being able to leave my house and drive somewhere without a chaperone. Driving is something that I really missed. I got my brace and shoe on and got to the car, feeling like a queen, and guess what, it would not start. Not only would it not start, there was this strange clicking noise that had something to do with the alarm system, and that clicking would not stop. I asked a neighbor for a jump and nothing! The car was dead.

(Let me back step here a bit. While I’ve not been driving my car, those that take me to doctors’ appointments or out and about, use my car. On one occasion, there was a ticking noise before starting but it did start. Both myself and the driver, decided it was just because the car had been parked for a couple weeks and just needed to charge. After that, no trouble starting that is, until my friend from California came. On our second outing, the car wouldn’t start. It sounded like a battery thing. I asked a neighbor for a jump and we went straight to the auto shop I got the battery less than a year ago. They replaced the battery and my friend and I went about our errands. Not another problem.)

So, back to that clicking. While I was inspecting the car, on crutches mind you, I sat my queen crown aside and I noticed many strange things under the hood. Like, there was an abundance of pine needles, some leaves, and I noticed that the material that is just on the underside of the hood was partially gone…..and where was it? There, under the hood, mixed in with all the leaves, and pine needles. I just used my hand as a scoop to get out what I could. The whole time, I was fixated on why the car wasn’t starting, and that freaking ticking noise. The car is dead, how is it that that ticking keeps going? In fact, I asked another neighbor to unhook the battery for me and it did stop that ticking. I manually locked up the car and headed inside.  I was exhausted after all of that so I took a nap which turned into a full day inside as the weather was shifting.  

The next day we had a drop in temperature and had snow and ice that lasted a couple of days, so I had time to reflect on the car situation. As I was reflecting, that debris came to mind. I wasn’t really focused on the debris as much as maybe I should’ve been. Because as I was reflecting, common sense started to sink in. Like, I can understand how the pine needles and leaves were gathered at the area at the windshield wipers and the top edge of the hood, but how in the heck did that debris get down under the hood near the engine? How did the debris stay there enough that I could scoop it out by the hand full? How did that material from the hood get there?

As I sat looking out of the window, I saw some squirrels running about, and then a few minutes later, rabbits, and then it dawned on me. I realized that it was possible that something had been living under there. And if something was living there, then what I was scooping was a nest of some sort. CRAP! The clicking and ticking, the car starting and not starting, the alarm system wasn’t working properly, then it was fine. OMG!!!!! Something chewed the wires. I had heard of this happening, but it had never happened to me.

I called the dealership and asked my friend in the parts department what he thought of my idea and he began to laugh, “Yes ma’am, that is a thing here” and when I asked what to do, he said, you should tow it to the mechanic and let them look it over. He said, “In your situation, (referring to my broken ankle) you are really lucky that it wouldn’t start because it is highly likely it would have stalled and you would’ve been stuck.” Considering I was walking at a turtle’s pace with a walker/crutches, I am grateful that it didn’t start that day.

I called my regular mechanic and after talking with him we made arrangements to have the car towed for them to look over. When the tow truck driver came to get the key, I told him I had unhooked the battery and that it wouldn’t jump. So, a comedy of errors ensues. Because I unhooked the battery, the remote-faub would not work….the car was covered in ice and he had to scrape the windows and couldn’t get the key in the key-hole due to the ice. He had to use one of those tools to unlock a locked car. After about 15 minutes he finally got inside the car, and because you cannot raise the hood unless you pull the lever, inside the car he couldn't even look at the car until he got into the cab.  Once he did, he hooked up the battery and went to check and it started right up. In fact, he drove it up on the tow truck. However, when the battery got hooked up the alarm system began to go off.  😊 I watched my car being taken away with the memory of that horn honking all the way to the mechanic. Even though I knew that he would unhook the battery for the drive the thought of it made me giggle.

After a few days, the mechanic called and laughingly said, “yes they seemed to have chewed many wires, in fact we haven’t been able to start it yet, but the good news is that we can fix it and it will likely be less than $500.” “um…gulp….OK”, I said and authorized the work.

Timing is everything. Later, going through the mounds of mail and what is in there? The DMV form stating that it’s time for my emissions testing by the end of the month. (They did send in time to have about 30 days to complete but because I wasn’t getting to the post box daily, I didn’t have that 30 days.) I called the mechanic and told him my tale, and he was so kind to volunteer to go and get that test for me while they had my car. The guys at Ellis are the BEST!

I texted a neighbor and told them what had happened and they said that many residents have had issues with that in the past. He said that they used fox urine to detour the animals from coming around the car. Yah! You heard it right, fox urine! I asked how do you get a fox to pee around your car. 😊 He told me to purchase it at a sporting goods store and just put it all around my parking space, and the tires, and under the hood in certain places. Um…..do what now?! I was just completely caught off guard.  Immediately I knew there had to be alternative.  I mean, purchasing urine? SMH

I found a few different things of interest. The one I chose was made with water, vinegar, peppermint, rosemary, white pepper, and garlic oils, in a spray. However, there were so many to choose from, I opted to get the more natural…..wait, is anything more natural than urine? I digress, anyway, I placed the order. I decided I’d go for the essential oil route and consider the urine if my way doesn’t work. “If my way doesn’t work, I have no problem with spreading the urine”…ugh….that’s a phrase I never thought I’d hear myself say. WISH me luck! I really don't want an animal urine purchase to be on my amazon account.

In conclusion, you can get all kinds of animal urine on the internet, sent right to your home or business.  Yes, I'm still processing it too.  But, who actually uses animal urine, you ask? Gardeners, farmers, people with small animals that run free outdoors near the woods. People that live in a lush green or wooded landscapes, deal with all kinds of animals and pesky varmints, coming into their garden digging holes and wreaking havoc.  So, this is something that they swear by.

I  understand it’s a thing but, it’s not my thing, not yet anyway. No judgement….just so many thoughts come to mind. Like, how do they collect the urine? Is it humane? Is it synthetic? Is it okay for the environment, if it is synthetic? These are all questions we should be asking when we are buying products these days. We each need to do our part to help save our planet. That is why I opted for the natural avenue for now but also, its urine.  eewwww.

So, you heard it hear first, spreading fox urine around your car/garage will surely keep the squirrels, rabbits, and rodents away, "it makes them run the other way" so they say. I’ll keep you posted if they run the other way with my all-natural, essential oil, product. I've opted for peppermint oil to detour mice, spiders, and ants around the house for many years, so fingers crossed that the environmentally safe alternative works!

Have a great week!

S

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Information provided in this blog is not intended to treat, cure, prevent, or diagnose any disease, nor is it intended as a prescription or therapy in any way. The descriptions provided are for educational purposes only.