Help! What to do with an injured mouse?

[Nević Nenad]

In Serbia where I live there are wild cats in the cities (wild in the sense that they don't have owner, and they care for themselves), but in recent years the number is smaller because of the bigger number of stray dogs in the cities.

In the villages, the thing is different. Every household have at least one or two cats of ordinary breed (never fancie ones). People usually don't feed them (or only just little, usually with human food leftovers, never saw special cat food in the village) they feed themselves by eating mice and rats. The cat which cant hunt rodents are considered "stupid" and actually no one wants them.

Now, they are "domestic" in the sense that they have houses where they generally hunts and sleeps, but they also go to other houses, and sometimes stay there, changing the owner (you don't need to have document of cat's ownership here, that would be really silly). It really is like they chose the owner and the house not the otherwise :)

They are "powdered" sometimes against the fleas, but I wouldn't say that that's big problem. I don't know what "worming" is though, I saw some of them eating grass on purpose and later vomiting, I guess it's some cleansing they do. Thing is, everything they do is pretty much without human care, and it seems there is no need for it.

There is no cats in the nature (in the wild), always around people.

 

[D69]

Well , I have same problem with pests :/
I seriously put a lot of heart to grow my lawn this year .... with great effects ... and these *&^(*%&%^$@ started to come ... in hordes lol
Voles and moles. Thing is that we don't have cats around , only snakes (not venomous) and snakes cannot deal with that amount of voles - lazy asses ;P
I have plenty of ideas how to slay them , I actually even prepared to it. But then again , I couldn't do that.
What I was thinking was that after all this is not my private lawn , I mean it is , but in a sense of nature it is not , so unless I am not catching voles and moles for food I shouldn't interfere with it , therefore leave`em alone. So instead of slaying them I decided to buy solar powered pests repellers. At first it worked , but now they I are coming back.
I suspect it is another generation so they have to learn repeller sound all over again until they move out. They are breeding every 21 days so my fight for lawn is pretty much doomed and lost ...
What is your opinion guys ? Shall I simply get rid of those voles and moles in a hard way ?

 

[shellycheval]

No suggestions, but here is my experience with cats and voles. There were many voles in various areas of my two acre lawn, but as I really only cared that the lawn remain green enough to survive and attached to the soil to prevent erosion, I kept it mowed, but otherwise was not too concerned with its quality and so let the voles alone. As did my three cats. They hunted, and still do, mice inside and out of the house, small rabbits occasionally, and a bird now and then, but never showed much interest in the voles. I suspect because they are more difficult to catch. Four years ago, my sister moved into my basement apartment and brought her declawed, house cat with her. We live in a very quiet area isolated from car traffic. When she let her cat outside, he began systematically hunting down entire colonies of voles. Some days he would leave four or five "gifts" on the doormat. Eventually the numbers dwindled and now there is only 3 or 4 all this spring and summer.

The point is that, as Guardian and others have said, domesticated animals have lost much, and in some species, most of their abilities to survive on their own. We have genetically modified them to suit our purposes and owe them protection and support in the ways they are no longer able to provide for themselves. But, my understanding of the domestication of cats is that their instincts to hunt and kill grain loving rodents was a most desirable trait and one well preserved even after they were domesticated to coexist peacefully with humans.

So, I think there is a lot of variation in cats and their hunting and survival abilities in different areas of the world depending how their needs have been met, but in most places domesticated cats live near humans (or in areas where humans have removed the larger predators that will prey on domesticated cats), and they retain some degree of their hunting abilities. Some cats, like many horses, retain more of their wild instincts than others do even though they are technically domesticated. So some horses are easier to train than others, and some cats prefer their kibble (GRAIN FREE ) over more "natural" food and view the house mouse that runs out in front of them as "entertainment" but too much work to catch. Just my observations.

When the cats bring wounded, shocked (freeze mode), animals to me I take them, thank them for "sharing," put the animal in a small quiet dark place (shoebox) and leave it alone for a day. If it comes out of shock and trauma, I release it. If it doesn't, then I know I have provided a peaceful, safe environment for it to transition on to its next place. If you leave a wounded, shocked animal lying out in the yard, often insects will begin to eat it alive, and although this is too one of "nature's ways," I see little harm in helping another entity transition with the least possible pain. If an animal is obviously suffering with its wounds then I usually have it killed immediately (brave neighbor or vet). I cannot know on a comic level if my actions are "right" or “wrong," but I know my intentions are to do no harm and relieve suffering when it appears I am being "asked."
shellycheval

 

[Guardian]

only snakes (not venomous) and snakes cannot deal with that amount of voles - lazy asses ;P

Snakes won't usually hunt on manicured lawns (unless they're REALLY hungry) because they're too exposed...and people kill them. They need trees, bushes, fallen leaves, weeds, etc. places they can hide to hunt.

 

[D69]

Snakes won't usually hunt on manicured lawns (unless they're REALLY hungry) because they're too exposed...and people kill them. They need trees, bushes, fallen leaves, weeds, etc. places they can hide to hunt.

You are probably correct , I just noticed that when snakes are around (ocasionaly they show up) , there is no "underground" movement for few days. One day I also saw a snake lurking into a mole hole , so i concluded that they hunt moles and voles.
Or maybe rodents are to scared to show up hence that "silence".

 

[Guardian]

You are probably correct , I just noticed that when snakes are around (ocasionaly they show up) , there is no "underground" movement for few days. One day I also saw a snake lurking into a mole hole , so i concluded that they hunt moles and voles.
Or maybe rodents are to scared to show up hence that "silence".

Yeah, if there is a snake in the neighborhood, the rodents leave. We're on 20 acres, and I've seen exactly 4 mice and one mole since we've been here, but I see Adam and Eve laying out sunning themselves quite often with BIG lumps in their tummies. What's VERY interesting is that the snakes learn who is and is not a threat to them too. Adam and Eve don't even bother to move if I come near them while they're sunning, but they disappear in a heartbeat when the mailman comes up the drive. I'm guessing they are afraid of him for some reason?

 

[Mr.Anderson]

We had a Bull snake (non-venomous) who sunned himself right outside our bathroom window. The window as ground level since the house was basically underground. He ended up in our cabin once. I figured he would take care of the mouse problem and leave. That is exactly what happened after about 10 days. That bull snake kept the rattle snakes (venomous) away and rat population down. Ah, yes, life in the country. BTW I hope that mouse is not suffering. Let the cats go to work.

 

[Ben]

Regarding the difference between cats from the US and those in France it is very similar to the situation with ferrets. European ferrets (completely domesticated animals) are reportedly larger and seem to suffer from less of the myriad health problems which affect American ferrets. The difference is they receive less vaccines and less commercial ferret food (which is grain based garbage ) and they are less inbred (ONE ferret farm in the US supplies the vast majority of pet and laboratory animals).

As for the snakes I totally agree would love to see wild ones here in the UK, but they are mostly gone, I have a houseful of 'pet' ones though! Love them!

 

[Nević Nenad]

Well , I have same problem with pests :/
I seriously put a lot of heart to grow my lawn this year .... with great effects ... and these *&^(*%&%^$@ started to come ... in hordes lol
Voles and moles. Thing is that we don't have cats around , only snakes (not venomous) and snakes cannot deal with that amount of voles - lazy asses ;P
I have plenty of ideas how to slay them , I actually even prepared to it. But then again , I couldn't do that.
What I was thinking was that after all this is not my private lawn , I mean it is , but in a sense of nature it is not , so unless I am not catching voles and moles for food I shouldn't interfere with it , therefore leave`em alone. So instead of slaying them I decided to buy solar powered pests repellers. At first it worked , but now they I are coming back.
I suspect it is another generation so they have to learn repeller sound all over again until they move out. They are breeding every 21 days so my fight for lawn is pretty much doomed and lost ...
What is your opinion guys ? Shall I simply get rid of those voles and moles in a hard way ?

There are also some breeds of dogs who hunts rats and moles.

 

[Z...]

We actually had a hard time finding an ordinary kitten other than expensive ones advertised in the paper. But we finally did and had to put in our claim early because demand was high.

Next time you need one let me know. Its very tough to find home for all abandoned kittens around here.

I don't want to be rude, but when my cat hunts a small animal, as painful as it is, I leave nature be. I think it's best to respect the animal's natural instincts and not to try to save what he sees as food. After all we all eat and we're also eaten.
Except when he gets the living mouse inside the house, because of diseases, of course.

Sorry if it sounds harsh but eat and being eaten is part of life.

I agree. I just received a glowing report that kitty consumed two mice within the last 15 minutes.

Let's face it, they are destructive pests in a human environment plus they carry diseases. Over the winter, we had a contest between Mr. Scott and Kitty to see who could get the most mice. (Tons of them come into the house when it is cold.) The score ended up being Mr. Scott - 40 and Kitty - 20. Think about that! 60 mice in our house, and I'm sure we didn't get them all! I'm also sure that Kitty MUST have won because we only counted the mice that we saw her with, not the ones she consumed in privacy!

Now there are large rats living in the woodpile (we've seen them) and they'll be soon going the way of the mice.

We used mini-bombs to get rid of the moles.

I am late to this discussion. Just wanted to say my thought exactly.

In fact Howtobe I suspect that by interfering into this situation you have possibly prolonged the suffering of the mouse. If the mouse is still dragging his hind legs most probably he has suffered spinal injury which is very often the case after the cat grabs them. The damage to spinal cord in cases like this is almost always irreversible.
I like mice, unlike rats they are sweet and look like soft toys, but IMO we have to be realistic and perhaps observe the nature with more caution.

 

[Ben]

[quote author=Herr Eisenheim]
I like mice, unlike rats they are sweet and look like soft toys, but IMO we have to be realistic and perhaps observe the nature with more caution.
[/quote]

They may look that way but in reality mice are territorial and aggressive animals, males especially need little provocation to bite each other and humans. In my experience rats are reluctant to bite (if they are familiar with being handled) and rarely do so without warning, mice will bite you as soon as look at you even if they are used to handling.

 

[Gonzo]

Guardian,
I laughed out loud when I read you Edenic names for the snakes. Your rich humour is often beyond compare. Adam and Eve, great names for serpents. LOL

Gonzo

 

[Z...]

They may look that way but in reality mice are territorial and aggressive animals, males especially need little provocation to bite each other and humans. In my experience rats are reluctant to bite (if they are familiar with being handled) and rarely do so without warning, mice will bite you as soon as look at you even if they are used to handling.

Well they are tiny in a big bad world, they have to make up for it somehow :P

 

[HowToBe]

Well, news update! Several days ago my mom checked the mouse and his use of his back legs had returned! :) We kept him a few more days so that he would be fairly healed, and this evening we released him nearby in some brush.

After reading the replies so far I think our response to the situation was reasonable. The mouse was inside our house on a carpet floor when it was caught, and ours are completely indoor domestic cats (our neighborhood has dogs, some of which roam free at times). We never handled the mouse directly and we always washed our hands after giving food and water. Now he's on his own, for better or for worse.

I've enjoyed reading the discussion, and I've learned a few things along the way.

 

[Guardian]

Well, news update! Several days ago my mom checked the mouse and his use of his back legs had returned! :) We kept him a few more days so that he would be fairly healed, and this evening we released him nearby in some brush.

Kewl! Now hopefully he will tell all his friends about his experience, and they'll stay out of your house! ;D