Three MYSTERY MICE

[Die Fledermaus]

Some months ago I sexed all the fancy mice and put some lone males in individual habitats. One white went into a CT1 habitat.

Recently I noticed odd noises, and it seemed "busier" than for one mouse. I took a closer look. . . and there were three agouti mice in there!!

I moved the white one into a separate 5.5 tank. He IS a male. The three agoutis stayed. I have no idea what sex they are, and with those wild types it is very hard to control them. When I had my infestation (an old story) I released dozens intro big Prospect Park. I have not seen any since, and I assure you there are none around here! Impossible.

The CT1 bars are very close together.

If one was a female and had a litter there would be more.



Fortunately, in a CT1 I can trap them in the Petting Zone up top (I will NOT be petting them!) while I clean the bottom. So long as they don't breed I do not care. If they breed. . . they get released in the park in two or three months.

The only time there was enough apparent space for a mouse to get in was the minute I removed the bottle to refill it, and even then I usually blocked it so the white guy could not get out.

I saw no holes in the plastic habitat.

It was the CT1 I got with Lil Bit, the rescued mouse whose story was told in this forum.

So, the mystery remains! I suppose this is why in Medieval times people thought about "spontaneous generation"!

[Die Fledermaus]

*coughs from cold*

So, I checked the CT1 cage today as I cleaned many other habitats. Ugh.

I saw a total of FIVE agoutis and one small white mouse that may not have been weaned!

It proved impossible to clean the very dirty bottom half of it, so I had to dismantle it. As you may recall, agoutis are crazy wild and unbelievably fast; great jumpers too. But I managed to get four of them in a new clean tank along with the white one. I did this in one case with a glue board, and then oiling them off. Mostly, I put peanut butter at the bottom of a big opaque jar and waited until one went in. I instantly pressed it against the side of the tank and then put a DVD case over it. Had to be very very careful.

Right now, one is left to be moved - a male in a dirty tank. I know he is a male as he was climbing upside down on the mess tank top, a top that has a hinge so I did not have to life it all off to get my hand in there. Tricky.

If the four do not breed they will stay, but the white one I will try, later, to pull (and to sex). The male is lucky in that I've been able to isolate him from the rest, so he can stay here - no dumping in the park!

I can only assume there were some very small young agoutis around and one or more squeezed into the CT1.

[Die Fledermaus]

Here is the latest on this.

I can only assume three very small young agouti (wild) mice squeezed into a CT1 cage with a long fancy male who is mostly white. I did not even notice this for some time as the agoutis are darkish brown. I have not seen wild mice in here for years, and with cats I am not likely to, but the cats do not go in the room the CT1 is in, but I have never seen nor heard wild mice in here either.

I pulled the agoutis out, but they had bred.

A spiny mouse is now in the CT1 and the white fancy in a tank.

I just pulled five off-white (grayish) young weaned mice from the tank which now has at least six agoutis and a new litter. One pinky is So pink he too may be white.

Note: the whitish ones are much different in demeanor being calmer; the agoutis are SO wild and crazy it has, as in the past, proven impossible to sex them or even clean their habitat. Yes, years
ago I had a lot of agoutis running around due to a pregnant pair (were not supposed to be) of lovely fancies I brought home and I caught them with Havahart traps and glue boards (they were oiled off at once and were fine). They got released in huge wild Prospect Park here in Brooklyn, NYC. That will happen to this bunch in several weeks as the weather warms up and the leaves come out. Nothing else to do.

The whitish ones? I will try to keep them and I will make every effort to sex and separate them asap. As they are significantly calmer that should be possible.

I guess the original three came in through a tiny crack in the wall near the floor.

Go figure.