New with Two rescued mice

by Donnamae Sat 01 Oct 2016, 11:29 am

Hi
My name is Donnamae and I rescued two mice from the same glue trap at work.
One looked very near death and I really thought would not survive. There is alot of construction going on right now and alot of hysterical , mostly females, if they so much a glimpse a mouse.
Anyway, I was prepared with latex gloves, small carriers and vaseline. (I did this once about 15 years ago also). Althought now I have a bottle of canola oil.
Anyway, I had them in 2 separate carriers. Several times throughout the day, I picked up the small , nearly dead one, to put her mouth by a cap of water I had in the carrier. Both carriers had water and some crumbs for them.
I brought both home that evening and we named them Minnie Mouse and Mighty Mouse. Minnie Mouse looked a little crippled in one foreleg but was very active. My intention was to bring them to a wooded reservation a few miles from my house.
But then I started reading how urban mice, esp if they are from several generations of urban mice, will probably not survive if released outdoors.
So I wanted to figure out what to do and I bought one mouse/hamster cage. Then Mighty Mouse got loose in my house while I was transferring him from soiled carrier to clean carrier. We put Minnie Mouse in the cage and my husbamd put screening all over the outside so she couldnt escape through the bars. When I was going to bed, I thought the cage was a bad idea and she would get out, I tried for over 1/2 hour to get her but couldnt and exhausted, I went to bed. Of course the next morning, there was ahole in the screening and she was gone.
Anyway, I was setting two humane traps - two different designs. Earlier, when only Mighty was loose, he had obviously gone into the trap and sprung the door but apparently broke through the rear exit. I think i hadnt secured it properly. So I learned from that, and yesterday we did catch one. I dont know which one but shes not crippled.
So I need a new cage (or two), ASAP, that will be suitable for a tiny tiny mouse. I also would like to release them, but not until I have both together. I believe mice are very social animals?
I have cats -- 3 1/2 -- the 1/2 is a feral Im trying to catch; three birds, one of which is sick and I just acquired from a neighbor who didnt want her anymore and I dont know what they would have done to her.
And its just hard to have more beings to care for throughout the day.
Can anyone offer any advice about releasing, caring for etc?

PS - the glue traps at work. I tamper with the three in my area every day to try to render them ineffective. These was a new one that I came in two Mondays ago to discover. Horrible

Im glad to find people who love mice.

by CallaLily Sat 01 Oct 2016, 11:53 am

Welcome! How awesome of you to rescue these mice (and the other animals you mentioned)!

If you scroll down a little in this thread it discusses how, where, and when to release wild mice. https://petmousefanciers.forumotion.com/t4-wild-mouse-mice-care-and-information

It's definitely in their best interest to release them once they are well enough. Good luck!

by EverythingAnimal Sat 01 Oct 2016, 12:33 pm

If you need a secure cage a glass tank with a metal screen top and locking clips is probably your best bet, but being wild, try to get one with very fine, hard metal and a very tall tank to prevent jumping on the lid.

by Peachy Sat 01 Oct 2016, 1:20 pm

Welcome! Sounds like those mice are a handful! lol I hope the link CallaLily shared will be helpful for you, it's so wonderful that you're taking the time to help them. Mouse Wave

by MouseLover Sat 01 Oct 2016, 1:55 pm

How very kind of you to help these mice. Glue traps are so cruel Sad

I wish you luck!

by Donnamae Sat 01 Oct 2016, 3:54 pm

Hi All,
THanks you for your support and kind words. I am especially encouraged that not only should be able to release these sweet creatures, but releasing th em is in their best interest. Because, thats what its all about.. Callalily - THanks so much for the invaluable link and the instructions for the safe house. I printed them off and my husband now has a new project for tomorrow.
I just hope that I can trap the 2nd one or my plans will be in jeopardy.
Oh yes -since Im in the northeast - New Jersey - do I still have a few weeks to complete this or will it be too cold? Right now its ok (I think) - 60s in the day, 50s at night. Last week it was alot warmer. And hopefully, next week will be also.
My hugs to all for th e responses
Donnamae

by EverythingAnimal Sat 01 Oct 2016, 5:51 pm

If you put them in a good spot where the sun can reach the shelter in the day, with lots of warm material and food, I think they'll be alright. It is best to release them asap though so they have some time to get suited and prepare for the colder months.

by CinnamonPearl Sat 01 Oct 2016, 9:51 pm

Welcome! How great of you to protect those mice. You should be proud! Best of luck with their release; I agree, sooner rather than later. Good luck wrangling them.

by Donnamae Fri 07 Oct 2016, 3:26 pm

Hi All,
My husband made the safe house last weekend.
Then what happened is the 2nd one got loose also! I was so depressed.
But as of this morning, I caught both of them. THey are in the two critter cases which is too small but hopefully this weekend, I will be able to release them.
I was going to go to a reservation nearby. What do you think is better - an area near a picnic area (although no one is picnicing this time of year unless its a really warm day), or an area by a small zoo - Turtle Back Zoo.
That checking with flour on the path etc seems kinda difficult but I could try it.

Also, and this is IMPORTANT, Minnie Mouse still has a bad front leg. I dont know if she got nerve damage from being on or pulled from the glue trap (boy she was REALLY stuck), or she was born like that. But shes pretty spunky. So is it ok to release her? I wouldnt want to just release one.
Im going to reread the instructions on the safe house and I know I will have questions.
Hugs to all humans and kisses to all mice.
Donnamae

by Donnamae Sat 08 Oct 2016, 6:57 am

Hi,
Actually, I just took a good look at the leg and it seems like both mice are using all four legs. Maybe some of the time she holds it up and I thought it looked like her foot was deformed, but I saw little toes on all four front legs of the two of them. Now I cant really tell the difference between Minnie and Mighty. I guess they are growing.
I'll check the legs again later after we scout the site. It will at least make me feel better that no one has a handicap. Its a tough world out there.
Gee, I never realized that mice were so gamey smelling..... Umani. Smile

Donnamae

by Donnamae Sat 08 Oct 2016, 6:45 pm

Boo hoo.
No one is answering me.
I feel abandoned...

by Peachy Sat 08 Oct 2016, 7:21 pm

Sorry. I first read your posts when I was half-asleep! lol I think either spot would be okay to release as long as they're away from human homes, have ground cover and places to hide, etc. The flour path isn't something I would bother with either.

If you're worried about the one who might have an injury, you could just try to find a rehabilitator, maybe. Otherwise if she seems lively, I'd release her.

by Donnamae Sun 09 Oct 2016, 9:26 am

THanks so much for answering. I just am so afraid of releases them at a bad location. I have the safe house built, but in rereading the document, it sort of looks like is more for mice raised in captivity. Ill probably use it anyway becasue I dont think it could hurt.
Im going to scout out different parts of the reservation today. I maybe would have done the flour thing yesterday but rain was forecasted and it rained quite a bit thoughout the night. So it wouldnt have worked.

Its rainy today too so will not be releasing today and its going to go to 49 tonight. Later in the week will be a little warmer. I just dont want to wait too long becasue i dont want to risk them escaping again. BUt Im afraid to give their cases a good cleaning becasue that affords them the possiblity of getting away. Do you think they mind the smell and stuff? The document says they are very clean animals.
Ill see .......

Maybe Im overthinking and overobsessing everything.
THank you so much.
Donnamae

by Peachy Sun 09 Oct 2016, 10:07 am

Do they have bedding or something to absorb their mess until you can release them? If they do I'd probably just leave them alone so they don't get extra chances to cause trouble, especially if you plan to release soon. Or else, maybe try cleaning them in a small room with a towel or something blocking the door so that they can't get out of the room if they do escape.

If their cage is big enough to fit the shelter, it might be a good idea to put it in early so they can get used to it. But plenty of people release without any sort of shelter at all, so I'm sure that's not a necessity. Smile

Fingers crossed that you find a nice release spot and get some good weather! It sounds like these two might enjoy not having to escape every few days. And you'll probably enjoy not having to catch them! Razz

by CallaLily Sun 09 Oct 2016, 8:00 pm

This is the release shelter I made and used for the wild baby mouse we found. http://mouseranch.com/FYI/releaseShelter.shtml Not sure if that's the one you're meaning.

I was able to place it in her tank (29 gallons) for the last 1-2 weeks before releasing her - we just didn't screw the top on until the day of release. She seemed to like it very much and I felt better being able to leave her with a food stash and shelter. I think especially if it's going to be a little cool it would be a good idea. You could give the mouse a bunch of nesting material too.

by Sponsored content

New with Two rescued mice

New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice

Re: New with Two rescued mice