# A mouse - of a mouse - to a mouse - a mouse - O mouse! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 11, 2007, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457 "2007-03-11T05:26:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![mischievous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mischievous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mischievous)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/21 "2007-03-11T18:17:35Z")
In my experience with tame mice (I work in a lab) and cats (I bring home spare mice for a friend who needs feeders for her snake), even good hunting cats don’t necessarily respond to the smell of mouse alone. Oddly, they don’t seem to “get” that the mouse is prey until it starts to run away from them. Then they chase it. The lab mice, which have no fear of cats, were pretty safe from them. YMMV, of course. The snake, on the other hand, killed them immediately. mischievous ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/22 "2007-03-11T18:39:12Z")
Awww, what a cutie! Good on you - it never even wuld have occured to me to follow up and he’s obviously a tame little mouse. I love the story of the mouse house in the bread loaf. **Ana** , can you bake? ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/23 "2007-03-11T18:53:57Z")
We used to have a bevy of pet mice. They are cute and fun, but IMHO they are not as intelligent or affectionate as rats. The main advice I can give is that if you decide to get a second mouse as a companion, and the second mouse is of the opposite sex, be ready for a population explosion. It is amazing how rapidly these little critters can reproduce themselves. We started with a wild mouse that I caught by her tail in the pantry. She was preggers. Several generations later, we had some really interesting-looking mice. Some of them were a beautiful golden color, like [this cutie](http://www.mortalwombat.com/Special/Pets/mouse.jpg). If you give your mousie an exercise wheel, I recommend the plastic ones rather than the metal ones. Metal exercise wheels get all gooked up with mouse urine & feces, and they corrode. Plastic is much easier to take care of. The downside of the plastic wheels: some mice like to gnaw on 'em. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/24 "2007-03-11T19:13:59Z")
Very cute and nice, Rescuer of Mouses. If I’ve any vote on a name, I’m voting for “Samson”. I also like the bread idea, but I’m getting hungry… ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/25 "2007-03-11T21:23:09Z")
Did anyone else think from the title that this thread was going to be about Latin? ---
**Author:** ![Mouse\_Maven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@Mouse\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mouse_Maven)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/26 "2007-03-11T21:31:02Z")
Wow, I got to this party waaaay late. Looks like you have lots of great advise. 🙂 Any commercial mouse/rat chow is good. They _love_ sunflower seeds. Like most rodents, their teeth grow constantly so things to chew on are a **must**. The cardboard centers of toilet paper and paper towels work very well. Small sticks also work. You mouse will want a nice, small secure area to sleep in. I find that small PVC T-joints work very well - they give the mouse multiple exits, they can be washed in the dish washer, and they’re cheap. Mice don’t like having their environments disrupted. They become agitated and stressed if the cage is cleaned to often. For a single animal in a 5 inch by 8 inch cage, I recommend changing the bedding once every 10 to 14 days. There will be an odor. When you do change the bedding, put some of the used litter in there. It will let the mouse know that this is “home” and not a strange place. Since this is a wild mouse, I advise some caution. If its female (I’m at home right now, but I can email mail you a mouse sexing guide from work if you would like), she may be pregnant. (Mouse motto: Live fast, die young, leave lots and lots of progeny.) If the mouse’s figure goes from slim to more of a pear shape, you may have pups on this way! Great job and good luck! ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/27 "2007-03-11T21:49:32Z")
I do appreciate your mouse declension in the title. ---
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/28 "2007-03-11T23:14:27Z")
[QUOTE=Cunctator] Did anyone else think from the title that this thread was going to be about Latin? [/QUOTE] I thought it was about conjugation. Instead, it’s a real mouse story! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mouse\_Maven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@Mouse\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mouse_Maven)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/29 "2007-03-11T23:22:46Z")
[QUOTE=Cunctator] Did anyone else think from the title that this thread was going to be about Latin? [/QUOTE] [Murine](http://www.answers.com/murine&r=67) Latin for “mouse-like.” This would have been my screen name, but it looks to much like _urine_. 🙂 (Gee, its been an age since I conjugated Latin: mus, muri?, 😕 ) ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/30 "2007-03-11T23:35:41Z")
[QUOTE=pinkfreud] She was preggers. Several generations later, we had some really interesting-looking mice. Some of them were a beautiful golden color, like [this cutie](http://www.mortalwombat.com/Special/Pets/mouse.jpg). [/QUOTE] It took me a second to see the mouse. That the lady in the pic was wearing a “golden” shirt only added to the confusion. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/31 "2007-03-11T23:52:48Z")
[QUOTE=pinkfreud] We started with a wild mouse that I caught by her tail in the pantry. She was preggers. Several generations later, we had some really interesting-looking mice. Some of them were a beautiful golden color, like [this cutie](http://www.mortalwombat.com/Special/Pets/mouse.jpg). [/quote] [QUOTE=Hypno-Toad] It took me a second to see the mouse. That the lady in the pic was wearing a “golden” shirt only added to the confusion. [/QUOTE] I’ve highlighted the mouse in the pic and de-emphasized me. Hope nobody thought I was describing myself as a cutie! ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/32 "2007-03-11T23:54:16Z")
I heard mice also like demon ichor. Or something like that. Just keep an eye on the scheming; you never know what might go wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/33 "2007-03-12T03:09:21Z")
Gah. I’d recommend keeping a close, close eye on him; I’ve just today discovered that [the](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=397773) [two](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=409877) mice (plus at least one more I saw while cleaning) in my place have been living in my biking gear bag, eating some power-bars I left there last fall, chewing up my spare inner tubes, and generally making an incredible mess. Apparently they can sense my evil intentions, as none of them have voluntarily approached me. Those with ‘Pied Piper’-like auras looking for a free mouse, let me know before I go nuclear on the little squeakers. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/34 "2007-03-12T03:14:31Z")
[QUOTE=Mouse\_Maven] (Gee, its been an age since I conjugated Latin: mus, muri?, 😕 ) [/QUOTE] mus, muris. It’s third declension. ---
**Author:** ![LorieSmurf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a587f6/32.png) [@LorieSmurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LorieSmurf)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/35 "2007-03-12T07:39:35Z")
Yes, get a wheel so the mouse can have exercise and not be bored. I don’t know about mice, but I’ve often read that hamsters can get paralysis in their hind limbs from lack of exercise if they don’t have wheels. The wheel I like best is the Silent Spinner. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/36 "2007-03-12T09:54:59Z")
[QUOTE=Mouse\_Maven] [Murine](http://www.answers.com/murine&r=67) Latin for “mouse-like.” This would have been my screen name, but it looks to much like _urine_. 🙂 (Gee, its been an age since I conjugated Latin: mus, muri?, 😕 ) [/QUOTE] :eek: you mean my [eye [del]ggts[/del] drops](http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=154681&catid=10&brand=29500&trx=PLST-0-BRAND&trxp1=10&trxp2=154681&trxp3=1&trxp4=0&btrx=BUY-PLST-0-BRAND) are… What were they thinking? How are eye drops “mouse-like”? ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/37 "2007-03-12T14:56:05Z")
My advice is to weigh down or otherwise secure the entrance to his abode. We caught a completely wild mouse in our kitchen once (I witched him into holding still, I claim) and he leaped straight up onto the underside of metal top to his Habitrail™, forced the metal up, and escaped easily. Sailboat ---
**Author:** ![Monster104](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Monster104](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monster104)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/38 "2007-03-12T15:12:43Z")
I had some mice when I was younger, if it gets hot where you live I advise keeping their cage in a spot out of direct sunlight. One of my mice died when I was in school when I accidentally left it’s cage near the window after I changed it before school, it must’ve been in direct sunlight for only a couple hours. It had lots of food/water…just couldn’t stand the heat. Poor thing. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/39 "2007-03-12T16:08:26Z")
[QUOTE=Autolycus] Hey, maybe you’ll get lucky and this will be a mouse from NIMH 😉 [/QUOTE] NIMH? Nickel Metal Hydride? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2007, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457/40 "2007-03-12T16:23:57Z")
[QUOTE=brewha] NIMH? Nickel Metal Hydride? [/QUOTE] The Secret of N_I_M_H_ - a cartoon movie from the 80’s? I think? Anyway, it was about: A bunch of super-intelligent rats that got loose from a research lab. or something. Anyway they help this little mouse-wife, who’s husband died in heroic endeavors. And there’s a cute crow which I always loved. And cute little kids who almost get run over by a tractor. Here: [The Secret of NIMH](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084649/) Edited to fix linky. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mouse-of-a-mouse-to-a-mouse-a-mouse-o-mouse/395457.md?page=3)