'I still have nightmares': Mouse plague wreaks havoc on mental health and finances

A NSW Central West man was bitten by a mouse while he slept while others are being driven to the edge financially and mentally as mice continue to multiply and rampage with no end seemingly in sight.

These issues compound the huge financial costs that burden regional families, already ravaged by bushfires and drought.

It's been a devastating blow for farmers whose crops have finally taken off, only to be destroyed by hordes of mice. Not to mention their stored hay and grain supplies, which have been decimated by the rodents.

Grains Committee chairman Matthew Madden said a third of respondents to a NSW Farmers survey reported estimated financial losses between $50,000 and $150,000.

Mr Madden said the survey results also showed the costs of baiting for some farmers has exceeded $150,000, with 30 per cent having spent between $20,000 and $150,000 already.

CWA CEO Danica Leys said the social and mental health impacts on farmers, their families and rural communities were also rising sharply.

"A staggering 97 per cent of the survey respondents felt the influx of mice is affecting their stress levels making farm business decisions," Mrs Leys said.

"People are having issues with sleeping, which we all know as a significant impact on mental and physical health."

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Barry Wade was sound asleep in Piambong, when he was awoken by a "savage bite", that sent him flying out of bed.

"I was well and truly snoring, but I've never moved so fast my entire life. It felt like like someone drove a pickaxe into the back of my head," he said.

"They're eating anything, and I've got a bald patch which might have made a difference."

Mr Wade has since found it difficult to fall asleep, as he fears another mouse might attack him.

"You get sick of going to the trap all the time, you put it down and within less than a minute it's gone off again," he said.

"If you leave the mouse in a trap longer than two minutes, half of it's gone because they're eating each other while they're stuck in the trap. They've turned cannibalistic, because there's so many of them."

Grains Committee chairman Matthew Madden said a third of respondents to a NSW Farmers survey reported estimated financial losses between $50,000 and $150,000.

Bibi Liati, has been under immense stress as she has tried to keep the mouse numbers down, while living on a pension.

Due to the drought, Ms Liati was paying $26 dollars a bale of hay for her horse, double the normal amount. Her chances at financial recovery have been interrupted by the mouse plague.

"I live on 25 acres by myself, and it's really difficult because every fortnight I spend at least $200 on bait," she said.

"I can't afford it, and I'm very worried because if this continues I'm going to have trouble buying food."

Ms Liati has cared for her horse, William, for the past 18 years but is now in constant fear for his health.

"I'm worried about the hay, and what is going to get inside the lucerne chaff when they're making it. What's my horse really going to be eating, is there going to be dead mice in it?" she said.

"I have nightmares about it because my horse could get sick. I'm very anxious about it, because my horse is my life."

Alison Nipperess, a clinical psychologist in Mudgee, has seen the mouse plague become the latest in a long line of issues for clients who have already experienced the hardships of bushfires, drought and COVID-19.

"Whilst we're capable of dealing with stress and have our degrees of resilience, I think for a lot of people there's a cumulative effect that's building up, particularly now with the mouse plague."

"In terms of our mental health, when there's no end in sight people can fall into a place of helplessness and hopelessness. It can tip people over from having a hard time to developing depression or long-term anxiety issues."

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The long-term chronic stress that regional and rural community members have been under is been relentless, according to Nipperess.

"The chronic stress people are under is what we're going to be concerned about. damage to people's property and livelihoods will have a ripple effect, even after the mouse plague ends, they'll have to deal with that."

Ms Nipperess said it was crucial for people to engage with their local community and reach out for support, on both a practical and emotional level.

"It's important that we have conversations with people, not just debriefing about the mice, but just talking about other things as well, and feeling like life is more than just the mouse plague," she said.

"It's about maintaining a sense of recovery, even if at the moment it feels like this is too hard or too much, if people try and hold onto a sense of recovery, then that's incredibly protective."

The NSW Government announced a $50 million support package, which includes free of charge grain treatment for farmers and rebates for small businesses and households.

Under the package, households will be able to apply for rebates of up to $500 and small businesses will be eligible to claim up to $1000 through Service NSW.

CWA of NSW CEO Danica Leys said it was good news for affected farmers and communities, who have been dealing with the financial and health impacts of the catastrophe for more than six months, and hoped the NSW Government would continue to monitor what was an evolving situation.

"We were hopeful after our meeting with the Agriculture Minister on Monday that they would respond to our calls, and those of the NSW Farmers' Association, for urgent action on this crisis, and the measures they have announced today do address some of the issues around the high costs to farmers in trying to control the mice in and around their properties, and to small businesses and households in affected towns," she said.

"This assistance package will provide some relief, and lets these communities know that the NSW Government have acknowledged their plight. We are now hopeful the Government will continue to monitor the crisis and be able to act with further measures as the need arises, and our association and NSW Farmers will continue our advocacy on behalf of these communities for as long as it takes."

NSW Farmers' Association President James Jackson said the acknowledgement by the NSW Government of the enormous impact of the plague on rural and regional NSW communities was welcome, with costs of baiting running into the millions of dollars.

"The assistance announced by the NSW Government today is welcome," he said.

"We look forward to further discussions with the Agriculture Minister on these measures and how they're going to be implemented, but a timely and efficient rollout is essential, especially with winter planting now underway."

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