[nanette37]

i just thought i'd share something that i did that was very stupid of me back when i used to have mice. i was only 10 years old so please dont criticize me or anything. i have definitely grown and learned (im almost 18 now). alright so let me start my short story..

it was saturday so that meant it was time for me to clean out my mouse cage. i live in arizona where the temp in the summer can be over 115 degrees farenheit (about 46 degrees celsius). my mom wanted me to hurry up so i just brought the whole cage outside with my mice in it just to quickly clean out the bedding (i had 6 females in it). so i had their cage outside and my mom wanted me to quickly run to the pet store with her that is less than a mile away. so i wasnt really thinking and i left their cage out there. we were gone for less than 10 minutes and when i came back, 4 of the mice were dead, one was dying, and the other was buried under the bedding and healthy. i quickly ran to my mom with the dying one hoping i could save it by cooling it down with some cool water but she also died.. i ended up with only one mouse left that day..

it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. i felt absolutely terrible about ending the lives of those poor little mice.. i have never forgotten about it even though it has been almost 8 years. i dont want anyone else to ever share this tragedy. it was just one of those things.. ya know, when you are just trying to hurry and not really thinking.. i definitely wasnt thinking. well thank you for reading my story.. i hope this hasnt already happened to someone =/

 

[moustress]

I'm sure we have all made stupid mistakes with our meeces. I was brokenhearted last summer when I went up to my mousery to find that the AC wasn't on, and the temp was up to around 92 degrees F in the mousery. Very unhealthy for the little darlings. I had a pregnant doe who had delivered at some time during the day, and died along with all the babies. I bawled over the tank like a baby for about a half an hour as I couldn't face removing the dead babies and their mother. It had to wait until some hours later, and I cried then too. That is not the only dumb thing I've done, just the most recent and definitely the worst. My other meeces were okay, thankfully.

Pet owners need to remember that animals, especially small furries, can't tell you what they need, and rely on us to provide safe conditions and all the care they need. Providing a place that is neither too hot or too cold is just so basic I can't fathom how anyone wouldn't try to do it. I was so pissed off at myself, as it was me that turned off the window AC in the mousery so I could tune my guitar without the interference of the noise.

Now, I stop and look around before I leave that room after doing my mousework late at night, just to make sure everything is as it should be. I check the thermostat on the little space heater in the mousery, scan the shelves to be sure no cage lids are loose, make sure all food is stored away from housemice and insects, and then turn out the lights.

Even thinking about what happened last summer brings tears to my eyes.

 

[nanette37]

sometimes little things like that dont get noticed until something bad happens. but in the end we learn from our mistakes. back then it never even occurred to me that a short amount of time in that kind of heat could do such damage to little mice

 

[laoshu]

sorry to hear what happend to your mice.. Its horried when something like that happens when it could of been avoided but you cant beet yourself up about it.. nothing will change the past but these mistakes will make you a better mouse keeper in the long run.

I worry so much about the heat in the summer, I do have Air con unit but it struggles to keep the shed cool enough in the hot summer.. i was thinking about painting the shed a different colour or getting a better air con unit. can anyone recomend a good one that is maybe wall mounted? also is the reflective paint for shed roofs any good?

 

[nanette37]

i dont know any ac units or anything about reflective paint but you could paint it a light color like white or tan. all the roofs in my city are white or tan because of the heat haha

 

[moustress]

Mylar, also known as Space Blankets or Emergency Blankets are cheap and they do a great job of insulatin against heat and cold. I have them hanging on the exterior walls of the walk-in closet my meeces are in, as well as over the big picture windows in my living room. they only cost a couple of bucks a piece.

 

[Lizzle]

When I was 15-ish, a similar thing happened to me so I know how you feel.. trust me. I felt beyond guilty and devastated (it was incredibly hot and I forgot to give my mice more water)..

Moustress, where can you buy these Space Blanket materials?

 

[Yelena]

I did a similar thing with my fish when I first moved out of Uni and in with my boyfriend.

We had wall to ceiling windows and I plonked their bowl on the kitchen counter whilst we unpacked a bit. It got to about 2pm before we realised we had no food in. It was roasting so we went for a stroll exploring the new area.

When we got back my fish where dead- scales everywhere. Turns out that as time passed the sun moved so it was direct onto the fish bowl and boiled them to death...

Dont beat yourself up over doing something silly when you where a kid- as I've just demonstrated you can do stupid things as a grown up haha!

 

[nanette37]

haha i guess sometimes things just slip the mind! in the end i guess its always a good learning experience

 

[Yelena]

speaking of other stupid things. I've just got one of my mice out about 20 minutes ago and what does he do?

He freaks out and dives into my shirt and hides in my bra. I am sweating!! I've never handled a mouse before and the first time I tempt one into not biting me he runs for the hills- quite literally!