# I found a fat mouse...



## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

Weird thing happened during my morning jog today - I found a mouse. A fat one! It was just crawling around on the curb slowly, ready to be picked up by a bird or smashed by a car at any moment. The weird thing is that it didnt even try to run when I went down to pick it up. It seems sociable, hardly afraid of me, which makes me wonder if it was a pet at one time. Its currently in my spare cage with some food and water. I washed my hands and didn't touch my rats for fear of spreading fleas or something else. I don't know what to do. I don't mind taking care of it, but I'm afraid of 2 things:

1) It bringing in some kinda disease or fleas. Its currently downstairs and my rats are upstairs.

2) Its pregnant. I'm 99% sure its a female, and its fat and kinda slow. I can't handle a litter of mice. 

Should I just let it go in my backyard and hope for the best?


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

Here is a short video of her.

http://youtu.be/-4P2HLWyuUE


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

Well, I'm not 100% sure its pregnant. But its pretty fat otherwise.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Homer117 said:


> Weird thing happened during my morning jog today - I found a mouse. A fat one! It was just crawling around on the curb slowly, ready to be picked up by a bird or smashed by a car at any moment. The weird thing is that it didnt even try to run when I went down to pick it up. It seems sociable, hardly afraid of me, which makes me wonder if it was a pet at one time. Its currently in my spare cage with some food and water. I washed my hands and didn't touch my rats for fear of spreading fleas or something else. I don't know what to do. I don't mind taking care of it, but I'm afraid of 2 things:
> 
> 1) It bringing in some kinda disease or fleas. Its currently downstairs and my rats are upstairs.
> 
> ...


That is a domestic mouse...it won't survive too long outside  Are you sure its pregnant or is it obese? A lot of domestic mice end up older and obese from the wrong diet.


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

I honestly don't know. All I can seem to find online about pregnant mouse is that they are really fat.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Homer117 said:


> I honestly don't know. All I can seem to find online about pregnant mouse is that they are really fat.


I saw the video afterwards and she doesn't look pregnant to me. She is a bigger older mouse, fat but not obese. She looks like someone's pet and a real sweetie.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Old(er) mice girls I hve taken in

Daisy









Saffron









Old Daisy introducing her to a much younger Shasta









Macy









Latte


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

Don't put her out on the street or in the wild. That is cruel. if she is too old to be scared of you it would be more humane to find her a safe home or put her to sleep. Why can't you keep one little mouse if you already have rats to take care off. She can eat their food.
Please consider this. She might live only a few more months.


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## calisphere (Oct 25, 2011)

Aww! She's like "You food? No? Well, put me back with food!"

I don't know much about mice, but I can tell you for sure that's no wild mouse. It's probably an escapee or someone got tired of it and released it. I say, wait a day or two to see if she perks up. If not, then I vote for her being a grandma mouse. If she does, then I say might be young enough to still be able to be a mama. If she does end up being pregnant, it wouldn't be too bad to have a litter. You would just have to wait until she weans them and then find them homes. I don't know where you are located, but I'm sure homes will be available pretty quickly. Perhaps trying a mouse forum as well?


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

What an adorable girl! Don't turn her loose- she will die. That is someone's pet, probably that an annoyed parent turned loose. She needs a home.

The gestation for a mouse is, at most, 23 days. Prepare her cage for birth, and if by 23 days there are no babies, you're safe. You can also weigh her daily, and then PM Ms Beach on thefunmouse website for help determining if she is or isn't pregnant.

If she doesn't have babies, she will need a friend or two.


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

I don't mind taking care of her, its just the pregnancy thing I'm really afraid of. I don't know how to handle a whole brood of mice. So weigh her daily and prepare for it? How do I prepare for it?


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

Go to the mouseloversforum. They are very supportive and not so critical as the funmouseforum. Mice generally birth easily. Give her a house for privacy but one you can easily lift up to check later. Leave the mouse alone for two days after birth, then check the babies. As they are born you will hear faint squeaks from the babies, which is normal. Make sure she has good food and fresh water at all times. Give her nesting material, like newspaper with based ink only. The funmouse has an informative website about their care. Sometimes mice will dispose or eat dead or sick babies. You cannot change her mind. I always let them do their thing as mommy mouse knows best. And maybe she won't be pregnant after all. Enjoy and love her, she deserves it after her ordeal.


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## 1a1a (May 6, 2011)

What a great find, good luck with her.


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

Well, shes 34g, which is pretty heavy for a mice. I'll keep track of her weight over the next week to see if shes pregnant or not. I don't think I'm going to get more mice. There are none up for adoption locally that are females, and I don't want to be trapped in a perpetual loop of finding mice buddies. I don't know how old she is, but if she is just fat from poor diet, then I reckon she won't have long. At least now she has food, water, and a warm place to sleep. Better than the alternative.


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## Maltey (Jun 26, 2011)

Awww, she's such a little cutie! i'd just gone off wanting mice but this has made me start again. You're not in the UK if she does have babies...?!


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

I love having both mice and rats. There is nothing cuter than a sleepy mousey face looking at you. But I love my rats for being such good buddies with people and for being so interactive.


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

You can also try fancymicebreeders, they are a great site also.

Mouse girls unfortunatly need company more than rats do and can actually die of loneliness. If you're sure it's a girl (boys can hide those testicles, check for nipples) then she does need at least a single buddy. It can be an older rescued doe, just as well as a young one. Or, you can post to one of the mouse websites and see if you can find her a good home if she isn't pregnant.

To prepare for a litter, put her in a tank, and start giving things like scrambled eggs. Off lots of nesting material- I use paper towels with my mice at all times. It's safe. she should do well with a supplemented diet on her own. If you ask one of the mouse forums they can help in more detail.


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## TobyRat (May 24, 2011)

She seems very tame and was probably someone's pet up until the day you found her. Please don't release her to the wild, she would most likely die very quickly. She doesn't look pregnant in the video, but only time will tell. Female mice are very social and do best with cagemates, but personally, I think it would be understandable if you chose not to get more mice if that is what you wish to do. The fact that you rescued her and gave her a place to live is definitely better than the alternative.


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## Homer117 (Aug 2, 2010)

Well, I have 2 roommates who arn't really big on rats or mice, so I'm the only person who is doing all the chores. And they didn't want me to start "collecting" em, which is understandable. The closest females I found up for adoption are a pair, so unless those people want to give me a bigger cage, I don't really have any more room in the one she is in right now, which is my rat's cleaning transfer cage. I also want a dog someday, so I don't want too many critters on my hands when that day comes. I'm sure you guys know how tempting it is to just keep getting more.

Are nipples indicative of pregnancy, or just female?


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

Just female. They will enlarge with pregnancy, but should be findable all the time.

I definitly know how tempting it is. I have 26 creatures, and it is a LoT of work. I don't mind, since animals are my passion, but it sure gets tiring some days to "do the rounds" and feed/water/clean everyone.


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