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What to do with trapped mice?

29K views 26 replies 24 participants last post by  Tom 
#1 ·
I caught two mice that have been running around the basement I'm living in. I've decided to cage them and take care of them, as Winter is here, and putting them outdoors would mean they would either die in the cold or invade another home.

I'm not 100% sure about doing this, but not sure what else I can do. I had 3 generations of rats (all the same bloodline) before, but I really don't have any interest in mice. Then tend to smell worse and are not as good of a companion as a rat.

Any suggestions of what else I could do with these two?

Pic:

http://www.howdymedia.com/nycfad/meese.jpg

Here is one waving at everyone:

http://www.howdymedia.com/nycfad/himouse.jpg
 
#3 ·
They'll die of cold?? I had the same problem but PETA's board admin told me that these animals easily handle winter (and I told them I live in Canada) and not to worry about letting them outside. Was he/she wrong? I need to know this because winter's coming fast and I have a mouse problem and I've been trapping and releasing them.
 
#6 ·
It would be best for them if you take them quite a distance from your home and let them go. Do you have any parks or anything near you? I have lived in the Buffalo NY area all my life and can assure you these guys do fine in the winter. They are designed to do so. It really is best for wild critters to be left in the wild.
 
#7 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by PortableKitten View Post

It would be best for them if you take them quite a distance from your home and let them go. Do you have any parks or anything near you? I have lived in the Buffalo NY area all my life and can assure you these guys do fine in the winter. They are designed to do so. It really is best for wild critters to be left in the wild.
The mice defenitely can take the cold. We release them out in the woods and I still see them occassionally in the winter.
 
#9 ·
Knowing what I know about rats and mice stress is a huge problem with them. Honestly even if you keep them in ideal conditions I would be amazed if they last the winter in captivity. They'll almost certainly develop upper respiratory problems from stress, plus god knows what else. I really believe (as someone who has cared for, loved and spent thousands of dollars on rats and mice as pets) that it is in their best interest to go outside. They're designed to survive the winter outside, they're not designed to live in captivity.

Plus it looks like you've got them in an aquarium, which is a horrible place to keep any small mammal. They keep all the ammonia vapors from urine in and are almost a guarantee for respiratory problems that can and will kill the mice (or rats for that matter). You've also got them on wood shavings, which again will destroy their lungs and will eventually kill them, or any other small mammals you may have, such as rats.
 
#11 ·
I agree, let them go outside.

Mice can survive subzero temps. I've seen them running and playing on top of the ice and snow.

Wild mice and rats can also harbor hantavirus which is deadly to humans - they don't even have to bite you to trnsmit this - it's airborne...

Sorry, they're cute and all, but this is one time I actually agree with PETA.
 
#13 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by thebelovedtree View Post

Plus it looks like you've got them in an aquarium, which is a horrible place to keep any small mammal. They keep all the ammonia vapors from urine in and are almost a guarantee for respiratory problems that can and will kill the mice (or rats for that matter). You've also got them on wood shavings, which again will destroy their lungs and will eventually kill them, or any other small mammals you may have, such as rats.
I've also spent tons on my brood when I had rats for years. I realize the problem with wood shavings and only used them as I had some left over from a long time ago and didn't have any other bedding available once I caught them.

Frankly, I'm not interested in keeping them as pets, I travel, and pets then need to be cared for when gone. I was concerned about the cold, as it gets to be around -20 F during the winters here. I've found animals in the woods that froze to death before, but perhaps they were just the unlucky ones.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tofu-N-Sprouts View Post

I agree, let them go outside.

Mice can survive subzero temps. I've seen them running and playing on top of the ice and snow.

Wild mice and rats can also harbor hantavirus which is deadly to humans - they don't even have to bite you to trnsmit this - it's airborne...
I was wondering about this too, if there are health risks with wild mice. I've been washing my hands after having anything to do with them, but didn't suspect something airborne. I read that it can come from mouse droppings, and that about 5% of the wild mice population are infected by the Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis virus.

Well, with that in mind, I guess I'll be bringing them to the woods soon.

Thanks for your comments!
 
#20 ·
I saved a baby mouse from my cat a few years back and I decided to keep it because I thought if I let it go, my cat (I had six cats at the time) would just catch it again. I set up a home for it in an large aquarium with a water bottle and everything and it lived for two and half years! It was soooo cute. I like to think it wouldn't have lived that long if I had set it free, but I don't know the lifespan of mice. Anyway, that was before my vegetarian/vegan days. I don't think I would keep it if I found one now. But you should do what feels right to you.
 
#21 ·
Yeah, letting them go is the best idea. I've saved a ton of wild mice from work and I usually end up letting them all go in my backyard. I usually find a few mice and lizards in the house. It doesn't really bother me, lol. I think we have a family of mice living in a closet right now. My husband isn't crazy about them but he'll get over it. They were probably living in the house before we were.
 
#22 ·
I found this via a google search, "what to do with live trapped house mice in the winter". I can't stand dropping them outside, even though I think I've found a great little new home for them. I work at my computer and hear them when they're just caught and I actually take the trouble to dress for the cold New England winter and take a flashlight (they come out at night) and walk them up the drive to a great stacked wood pile no one uses. They immediately run into the cave-like holes and I know that soft snow can be a great insulator.

But the Human Society says they'll probably not survive and... well... I can't stand that idea!

I don't think I'm being ridiculous. It isn't OK to live trap them then put them out to freeze to death. I put them in the same place so they can find each other and maybe they can stay warm by snuggling. I also leave them seeds and nuts for the transition because where are they going to find food if they're not born and raised outside?

I feel terrible about this.

Any other ideas?

I agree that keeping them until warmer weather would be terribly traumatizing to the mice.
 
#23 ·
Sure mice are small and look fragile but they are meant to survive winter no worries. They dig tunnels in the snow, they know where to find their food, they know what to do to survive. I live in Canada so winter here is harsh but we have rats and mice too and they do just fine. Just release them.
 
#25 ·
I keep finding deer mice within my home, and I give them large housing in my greenhouse, because I love mice and other rodents. Although they have lots of space and fun things to do that I provide, such as tunnels and hamster habitrails, I struggle with whether it's fair to the mice to be forced to be my pets, or to return them to the wild. I can increase their lifespan by keeping them, but is it a life that's humane and kind, or a mean thing to do to a wild animal. I've already released many deermice to our nearby woods, and I hoped that they'd by okay, but the mice are a prey species, just one level above insects as a food source for predators. I know that all rodents have a heightened sense of awareness, and are constantly in a state of stress as they struggle to evade the predators that love them as a food source. But there's nothing that I or anyone can do about that, so I keep wondering if I have the right to oppose nature by keeping the mice in captivity to keep them from being eaten. I keep reading on here that the mice belong in the wild regardless of my desire to expand their lives and to take care of them. I think that I'll keep releasing them, and hope that at least some of them can beat the odds, and not become some animal's next meal. The deermice are so cute, and that makes it even harder for me to release them from my care, but I know I should so they can have their freedom, however long that freedom will last. I believe that's the right thing to do for the mice that I care about so much.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Good points about the differences between house mice and native wild species of mice.

I had a few mice in my house. I think they got in because, on a few warm summer nights, I left my front door open with only the screen door shut while I was dozing on the sofa, and one might have gotten in that way. I managed to corner one when they were in the front vestibule so that they had to go out the front door, even though they wanted to get back inside. I heard two others rummaging in paper bags at night, picked up the bags, and turned them loose outside.

I live-trapped the last three with one of those Havahart traps; one of them was very stressed when I released them. The last one I caught when cold weather had arrived, and I have them in a 50-gallon aquarium (no water, of course). It was being thrown out because it leaks; I'm going to make into a terrarium when I evict my little freeloader as soon as warm weather arrives. House mice aren't native to my area, of course (a city in the Northeast); since he came from outside, I figure he can go back out there (and since it's a male, he won't be having any little mice... although yeah, he does smell). Meantime, I wash my hands well after I handle anything in the tank, like his water dish or cleaning out an area of soiled bedding, and even avoid breathing in anything when I clean his home.

He seems to be losing some fear of me, but I'm sure he'll run like a streak when I put him back outside. He hides in the hay whenever I drop food in or reach in to clean an area.

ETA: @Mr. Mouse Lover. : it's kind of you to keep them inside; I think they have a much better life with you, protected from predators, than they would outdoors.

BUT...

You didn't trap them and bring them inside- they came in uninvited- although that's understandable, considering that it's safer and more comfortable for them than it would be outside. You're certainly not obliged to keep them if you prefer to give them the boot.
 
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