6 replies to this topic

[Remy]

We’ve been having a bit of a mouse problem in our shed lately, so I set out some live traps. I went back to check them just a few hours ago. They were all still open so I decided to move them around a bit. That is, until I picked one up and peeked in only to see a tiny little mouse peering back at me. He was so little that he didn’t weigh enough to trigger the trap.

Now I have a bit of a dilemma. I’m not sure what I want to do with this little guy. I currently have him set up with some bedding, food, and watery veggies in a small plastic travel carrier of mine. I attempted to give him some kitten milk replacer from a small syringe but he fought me on that. Everyone in my household has made it abundantly clear that it’s up to me what we do with the mousie - whether that involves releasing him or keeping him. These seem to be my options:

1. Release the little guy outdoors. Putting him back into the shed isn’t an option. This would be almost certain death for him. It would be an unfamiliar area where he wouldn’t know where to find food, water, etc. He does have his eyes open, but he’s still very small and a little uncoordinated. It’s also pretty cold where I live and we’ve got quite a bit of snow. I’d feel horrible for (quite literally) throwing him to the wolves.

2. Keep him. This is definitely the option I’m leaning towards right now. The little guy is just so cute and I don’t think I have it in me to leave him outside. However, I would also feel a bit bad for keeping him. I strongly believe that wild animals are best left in the wild in the vast majority of cases, but I’m beginning to wonder if this little one is an exception to that. I just fear that he’ll suffer mentally in captivity. I can image being stuck in a cage would be frightening for a wild mouse. Hopefully he’s young enough to adapt well…

3. Find someone to take the mousie who will rehabilitate him. In all honesty, I have no clue how I’d pull this one off. We’ve worked with a few wildlife rehabilitation centers before because we found a litter of orphaned baby raccoons a few years back. They mentioned that they don’t rehab mice and instead use them to feed other animals they have.

Any opinions/advice would be appreciated!

[lil BIG dwarf]

Please update us no matter what! I don’t have any great advice, but I’d suggest Reddit. There’s a mouse subreddit that I see a ton of wild mouses on that have been with humans since they were young.

[Kikya]

There won't be too many places open right now to rehab him anyway. I think it's ok to keep him since he would definitely die on his own. Good luck and maybe call him Christmas !

[Sparrow]

Can you post a picture of him? I've raised multiple litters of mice so should be able to determine the age of the mouse from a well taken photo.

For now get a small paintbrush and try to offer some kitten milk formula with that. Syringes barely ever work when it comes to giving milk to mice. Depending on his age, he might not even need the kitten milk formula.

Offer him some hamster food and a little bit of scrambled egg.

No matter what, leaving him out in the winter cold would be a death sentence. If he is really young, he should be able to adjust to life with you if it's well enriched.

[Remy]

Can you post a picture of him? I've raised multiple litters of mice so should be able to determine the age of the mouse from a well taken photo.

For now get a small paintbrush and try to offer some kitten milk formula with that. Syringes barely ever work when it comes to giving milk to mice. Depending on his age, he might not even need the kitten milk formula.

Offer him some hamster food and a little bit of scrambled egg.

No matter what, leaving him out in the winter cold would be a death sentence. If he is really young, he should be able to adjust to life with you if it's well enriched.

Spoiler

Those were from last night. His fur is much less unkempt now.

I initially assumed he was about 2.5 weeks. I’m beginning to think he’s older than that, but I’m certainly not an expert. He was very wobbly when I found him and looked sickly. I didn’t really expect him to make it through the night. I found him this morning burrowed under the bedding. He had eaten some of the veggies I set out and hoarded the majority of the food I scattered around. He also darted away from me when I startled him. I didn’t feed him any KMR last night or today and he looks healthy and seems to be very active. He’s definitely not fully dependent on milk.

[Robin~]

I’d have a look at other rehabbers in your area—many specialize on certain types of animals (ex the one you took the raccoons to likely has been specifically licensed to care for rabies-carrying species), so there’s a chance you may come across someone who at least has a bit of advice to offer (although, like you said, rodent rehabbers aren’t exactly easy to come by, in fact I don’t even think my state has a test category for them). I’d also check the website of your state/area’s wildlife rehabilitation organization as sometimes they have advice there too.

Not that the authorities would really have time to care or anything, but I’d also make sure it’s legal for you to keep a wild animal if you go that route. At least in the US many states outlaw keeping wild animals without a license.

[Remy]

I’d have a look at other rehabbers in your area—many specialize on certain types of animals (ex the one you took the raccoons to likely has been specifically licensed to care for rabies-carrying species), so there’s a chance you may come across someone who at least has a bit of advice to offer (although, like you said, rodent rehabbers aren’t exactly easy to come by, in fact I don’t even think my state has a test category for them). I’d also check the website of your state/area’s wildlife rehabilitation organization as sometimes they have advice there too.

Not that the authorities would really have time to care or anything, but I’d also make sure it’s legal for you to keep a wild animal if you go that route. At least in the US many states outlaw keeping wild animals without a license.

There aren’t very many wildlife rehabilitation centers in my state, and none of them take mice. I’ve done quite a bit of looking these past couple days. I don’t have a driver’s license yet (though I do hope to get my permit soon…), so getting someone to drive me out of state for a mouse is not possible. I’ll definitely check a bit closer at their websites and see if that could help like you suggested.

That’s a fair point, about the legality of this. I’m not too worried though. I live in a small, rural community and the police are pretty lenient. I’ve known many people who have kept wild raccoons and squirrels as pets without a permit/license or anything of the sort. As long as they don’t bite anyone, the police turn a blind eye. I’m sure if they’re okay with that, they won’t bother with someone keeping a wild mouse. That’s probably not the best mentality to have, and I realize that.