[ian]

Three of my elderly retired does managed to escape. I had them in a temporary tank over night, they were all fine at lunch and just went in to sort out their tank and almost jumped out of my skin when I thought I saw a wild mouse run out from behind the bin. My elderly choc tan rumpwhite doe has vanished but my cinnamon and my choc hereford are on the run in the garage.

I tried to catch them for a while but gave up and started clenaing and feeding the breeders. They both popped out to sit next to me and were even sitting on my shoes but each time I tried to crouch down to catch them they shot off. I cant get them, I have a feeling they will both get out of the garage like the rumpwhite.

and meeting Ivor the rabbit, he did not appreciate having an intruder in his territory, he's being very huffy:

 

[Maplewood Stud]

cant u make up a "trap" with a bucket and a ramp up to it?

put some really smelly treat such as a piece of bacon in the bucket, and where they cant see very well they should walk up they ramp and just fall in... so ive been told..

worth a try

 

[Velvet_Meece]

Or you could buy a couple of humane traps, theres a few places that sell them, all else fails theres ebay...

They should in theory stay in the garage where its sheltered and theres probably food scraps on the floor.

 

[ian]

I've put down a few humane traps and have set upa bucket trap too. I've also blocked the bottom of the gargae door so I odnt think they can get out. Unfortunately I cant find them this morning while yesterday they were out and about all the time and quite cocky, I'm hoping they are just hiding away.

 

[Rowangate]

Ian
I hope you manage to find them soon. I recently had a 2 litters of 31/2 week old babies (rats) escape. I was my fault I had put them into a large Rody (the one for cavies) as I was going into hospital, and had put the two mums with their babies into the Rody (not thinking babies would manage to clamber out the top) so hubby would have less to feed water and clean. When hubby came to see me after the op he said that the babies were wandering around my shed and he still hadn't manged to find two! I got him to put a small cage with bedding food and water on the floor and the next morning the two still missing were in the cage asleep. Perhaps you could try that with your mice?

 

[ian]

I've managed to get hold of the cinnamon. Not really down to anything I did, she just seemed to decide to give up, I was on the floor with the rabbits and she just wandered out and onto my hand. The hereford is gone though, I've looked everywhere. Before the cinnamon came back I sw her climbing the walls, they are breeze blocks and the mouse just walked up. Maybe the hereford went up into the rafters the same way, she would have been able to get into the other garages attached and then out into world.

I hope the hereford and the rumpwhite dont start jumping out at my neighbours.

Out of interest do you think its likely they will be able to survive in the wild for long?

 

[Rowangate]

I've managed to get hold of the cinnamon. Not really down to anything I did, she just seemed to decide to give up, I was on the floor with the rabbits and she just wandered out and onto my hand. The hereford is gone though, I've looked everywhere. Before the cinnamon came back I sw her climbing the walls, they are breeze blocks and the mouse just walked up. Maybe the hereford went up into the rafters the same way, she would have been able to get into the other garages attached and then out into world.

I hope the hereford and the rumpwhite dont start jumping out at my neighbours.

Out of interest do you think its likely they will be able to survive in the wild for long?

Glad to hear you have one escapee back. I don't think that any that escapee into the wild would survive as they don't nowdays have the necessary skills due to years of domestication

 

[ian]

A neighbour just knocked on the door, they found the rumpwhite doe in their garden a few mintues before and were going door to door to find an owner. She managed to get about 200 yards away from the garage, she was lucky to find a nice family and when I went to collect her she was being hand fed bird seeds. She looks a bit bedraggled as she is old and has been in the rain but she seems quite happy and not traumatised. I've treated her for mites incase she met any wildlife during her escape, and IM hoping she is too elderly to have managed to get pregnant.

She managed to be in the wilderness for over 24 hours, I'm amazed she didnt get picked off by a cat or soemthing. I've just got the hereford to find now.

 

[Rowangate]

A neighbour just knocked on the door, they found the rumpwhite doe in their garden a few mintues before and were going door to door to find an owner. She managed to get about 200 yards away from the garage, she was lucky to find a nice family and when I went to collect her she was being hand fed bird seeds. She looks a bit bedraggled as she is old and has been in the rain but she seems quite happy and not traumatised. I've treated her for mites incase she met any wildlife during her escape, and IM hoping she is too elderly to have managed to get pregnant.

She managed to be in the wilderness for over 24 hours, I'm amazed she didnt get picked off by a cat or soemthing. I've just got the hereford to find now.

That is good news, she was lucky to be found by 'friendly' neighbours. Fingers crossed you find the hereford

 

[vickyholt13]

sounds like they have an adventure i hope they settle back in and no escaping again. i do hope the last one turns up too. ria one of my bucks decided to chew through the lid to his rub unnoticed to me. i seached the shed high and low for him but i couldn't find him. that eve he waltz's up the garden path and sits on my foot silly boy he was fortunatly he let me scoop him right up. fingers crossed for you last mouse to turn up

 

[ian]

The rump white which went missing has got a wound on her side, its scabbed over and healing nicely. I cant believe I didnt notice it when I got her back but I assume it was quite a small puncture hole and now much more noticable with the scab. Anyway I assume its an injury form another animal she has met while out in thw wild, what are the risks of diseases etc to my other mice? She is not kept with any of my breeding mice luckily.

Ian

 

[Maplewood Stud]

hey ian,
did u manage to find them all x

 

[ian]

No the hereford is long gone unfortunately (she was my only hereford left), the rumpwhite has survived so far despite her bite mark which is actually quite bad on closer inspection. I'm quite shocked but both of the mice I managed to recapture are doing really well, they both lost a lot of weight and condition in the day they were loose and are getting better but still not 100%

 

[Maplewood Stud]

ian. how r these 2 doing now x

 

[ian]

The choc rumpwhite doe had to be put down about a week after I got her back, she lost a lot of wieght and looked very ill so I think she had picked up an infection from the bite wound, although it seemed to be healing well.

The cinnamon died recently of old age she was about 18 months old so I think she had a good length of life.

 

[Maplewood Stud]

oh hun im sorry

 

[moustress]

I have several live traps that are always set up to catch loose meeces; I get rid of the wild ones by putting them out by my composter. The traps do well enough catching my fancies when they get out. Sometimes if one of mine manages to avoid the live trap I tempt them into a small cage set up so that it's easy to get into, and I think they climb in mostly for the water, but I put treats in there and some nice fluffy bedding as well. If a mouse gets loose while I'm doing my mousework I usually have them back with 5 or 10 minutes by use of stick and a Toob that's plugged at one end. *meow*