# HELP!!! Just saved this little cutie :D Need help.....never cared for a baby mouse!



## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

I just saved this little guy from my dogs. He looks to be only a few weeks old. I found his mother dead with my dog nudging her as if he was saying "Come on! Wake up!!! It's time to play again!"
So this little fella is now an orphan who I am taking care of! If I don't foster him, I know he won't make it...we have too many birds, cats and dogs in my area...he will just get killed. And he doesn't have his mum to care for him anymore so I will be his new mummy 
He is TINY! These photos make him look bigger then he actually is, lol. My brother wanted to name him so he is now Stewie Griffon. I know he isn't a common mouse from the way he walks. He looks to be more of an Australian marsupial or Aussie mouse. You can't see it in these photos but he has kangaroo-like legs and spreads them out when he eats, It's really cute  He also can hop really high! His tail is black which isn't common in normal mice...well at least I think it isn't. Dad normally kills all the mice I find but this onehe is letting me keep because he says it is a native species! Yay! So happy 

But I have never cared for a mouse before....rats I have but not mice. also my rats are GIANTS compared to this guy! What should I be feeding him? He is to small to eat pellets and his teeth aren't strong enough to bite into them yet. I am feeding him chopped sultanas and some crunched up Sultana Bran which he seems to love. He also likes rice bubbles. If this is wrong please tell me. I have water in a bottle cap for him to drink. Anything larger I am scared he will drown. I will get a bottle like my rats have tomorrow when I get paid.

Right now he is in a plastic aquarium (What my bredli was previously in, yes it was cleaned ). He has newspaper as substrate, a climbing log, a food dish, drinking 'lid', fake plant and toilet rolls to climb in and out of.
Should I be giving him milk? He is a baby and I think he was still feeding off his mum......I don't know I just want him to be happy. Any help is appreciated! Sorry for the long post!!!!
I'll get some better pictures tomorrow.
Cheers-Sharkyy


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## Xeaal (Dec 21, 2012)

Oh he is so cute. Do you have a vet near you? They usually have a list of people who care for wildlife babies and have all the appropriate milk etc for them. He will probably eat some fresh veges or cereal happily for now.


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## nintendont (Dec 21, 2012)

Im not sure how legal that is, so I think you were supposed to mention in your post that it is a "friend of a friend" that is looking after it. Tis cute but...as far as vermin go...


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## Shotta (Dec 21, 2012)

aww what a little cutie porr thing it looks like a hoppin mouse wouldnt the husbandry be similar to keeping mice


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## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

I don't know....I am just asking if it is a protected species because then I will apply for my rescue license once I have the species name....identity anyone? If you can from the bad pictures.....
Xeeal, in my area they only specialise in dogs and cats. I have already called 3 vets and they said they didn't take care of rodents unless it was a bunny  
I have heard those toddler milk things are what they normally use?
I know hopping mice like to be housed on sand as they burrow. Maybe I'll buys ome play sand tomorrow and clean it then put it in there.
Thanks for the replies so far! The help is 100% appreciated


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## princessparrot (Dec 21, 2012)

it looks like a hopping mouse but abit big for a baby
do u have a small sock or something you could give it for a "pouch"

have a look at this site
Hopping Mice
Contact Us - Fauna Rescue SA Inc.


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## Bananapeel (Dec 21, 2012)

Looks sorta like a mitchells hopping mouse but I don't know much about ID'ing native rodents.
Just search care sheets for native hopping mice and you should get a basic idea of how to keep him alive for a while until you get somewhere to give him to or a rescue licence.
He's adorable! Lucky you found him!


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## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

Thanks Princessparrot, Just put a sock in with him now, He's gone in and snuggled up in it 
The fauna rescue site is blocked on my computer though  Can anyone PM me their email or number?
I don't think he's a hopping mouse because he doesn't have that 'fluffy' tail


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## oOLaurenOo (Dec 21, 2012)

Photos are to far away for a good ID. But it doesn't look like a baby. Perhaps just young. I doubt it would still be drinking off its mother. From your description it does sound like a native marsupial. Your best bet is to get in contact with wires, or a local native animal trust fund. They can release the little guy somewhere safe. Its a much better life for them then in captivity. It is also illegal to take him from the wild so you would be risking all your licensed babies if you are caught. There are also quite significant fines. Good job saving him from the dogs though.


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## princessparrot (Dec 21, 2012)

*ph:8289 0896*


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## Snapped (Dec 21, 2012)

Fauna Rescue of South Australia Inc.
PO Box 241, Modbury North
South Australia 5092
PHONE: 8289 0896
FAX: 8395 8769


E-mail us:
[email protected]


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## princessparrot (Dec 21, 2012)

bout how big was the mum?
might help identify it


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## Snapped (Dec 21, 2012)

Could be a Spinifex Hopping Mouse, looks similar.

They like sand to dig in (or soft substrate) and you can feed them on rat/mouse mix and some fresh fruit/vegies like grapes, corn, apples, carrots etc. Nothing too acidic though.


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## Leasdraco (Dec 21, 2012)

Easy way to tell if its a native rodent (if female) is to check the number of teats.House mice have twice as many nipples.


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## Bananapeel (Dec 21, 2012)

Hmm got any more pics if you don't think he's a hopping mouse?


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## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

The mum was about 8-13cm. I din't really inspect her that much....I just picked her up in a tissue, wrapped her up and burried her next to my bearded dragon....
The mother didn't look so much like a hopping mouse though. Leasdraco didn't look at her tummy where the teats would be, sorry!

I just contacted the Fauna Rescue of South Australia as well. They said I should be able to take care of him if I get my license or they can take him if I choose not to take care of him. They are coming around Sunday to see if I am able to properly take care of him and provide the right environment or take him into their own care if they choose.
While on the phone they gave me a list of foods for him to eat including various vegetables and seeds he would eat. They said if he is a hopper he should be on sand as a preferred substrate.
I think I'm going to give him to them so they can take him back to the wild. I don't want to deprive an animal of their freedom...


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## princessparrot (Dec 21, 2012)

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glad it worked out


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## Snapped (Dec 21, 2012)

Good job on saving the little guy anyway.


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## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

Thanks everyone! I hoped I made the right decision, he is such a cutie and I already know I'll miss him......oh, well! Got to do what's best for the animal


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## emmalene_bunny (Dec 21, 2012)

Oh what a tiny little cutie!!! Unfortunately I can't help you with this situation, but I'm sure someone will be able to, all the best with the little one though  your the best foster mum clearly with everything you've given him already 

Opps my post didn't post!


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## sharky (Dec 21, 2012)

I would still like to see what species you guys think he is though...Bannapeel as you requested! here are some pics I just took via the webcam  Hopefully someone will be able to identify him now 
Shows all angles. Thanks for the help! APS is the best!!!!


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## Bananapeel (Dec 21, 2012)

definitely made the right decision and good on you. It's hard I know. My cat brought in a TINY brown mouse while living in singapore. well there was no wildlife support to hand an injured mouse over to so I raised him. had to clean his cuts and give him all the necessary medication including a shot which I succeeded at haha. He was still requiring milk though so I decided to try something real stupid. I had hamsters at the time and mine was a grown female who I had got off a friend. I bought a male for her and she bred little hamsters. soo cute. about 3 days after her having the baby hamsters I found this mouse. He just wouldn't eat anything. gave him soft fruit/veggies, seeds, bread soaked in milk etc etc. Knowing he would die soon I removed some of the baby hamsters and put the mouse in with the mum and a few hamsters. well took a day or too and a bit of uncertainty but finally he fed. most amazing feeling ever. after a few more days of putting him in to feed, he was ready for real food. Kept him in a spare hamster cage for a while then converted my balcony into his habitat so he had a 2.5 x 1.5 m 'enclosure' which I covered the tiled floor in soil and other bits of substrate combined. heaps of hides and stuff, a food dish, sand bath, water and he even became toilet trained with a designated toilet spot! he lived there for another year and a half before passing happily.

Sorry about the life story!


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## thomasbecker (Dec 22, 2012)

not a mitchell's hopping mice, not fur on the end of the tail (although it could have come off). My suggestion is it could be a baby plains rat


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## sharky (Dec 22, 2012)

Sadly little Stewie past away last night :cry: I found him lying on the bottom of his cage stiff and lifeless  I buried him besides his mother this morning.
RIP little fella, I'm sorry that failed you  I know you are up in the skies now with your mummy.


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## disintegratus (Dec 22, 2012)

Don't feel too bad. You did the best you could under the circumstances.


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## Bananapeel (Dec 22, 2012)

Yeah ^^^ you did a great job!


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## PrecisionPythons (Dec 22, 2012)

should of just threw him in your bredlis cage, a natural burial and therefore stewey will always be with you


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## Snapped (Dec 22, 2012)

Aw, sorry to hear he didn't make it, but you did your best for him, he might have been sick already, seeing as his mum was dead. Rip little one.

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Aw, sorry to hear he didn't make it, but you did your best for him, he might have been sick already, seeing as his mum was dead. Rip little one.

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PrecisionPythons said:


> should of just threw him in your bredlis cage, a natural burial and therefore stewey will always be with you




Probably not the best time to be making jokes.....and potentially making your python ill if the little mouse was already sick.

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PrecisionPythons said:


> should of just threw him in your bredlis cage, a natural burial and therefore stewey will always be with you




Probably not the best time to be making jokes.....and potentially making your python ill if the little mouse was already sick.


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## Leasdraco (Dec 22, 2012)

Sorry to hear. i had the same thing happen a couple of weeks ago with a baby kookaburra found in the driveway. at least you did what you could for it


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## Asharee133 (Dec 22, 2012)

Looks just like a field mouse to me...


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## sharky (Dec 22, 2012)

Thank you every one for your support even though he really didn't belong to me...I still feel terrible but I have a feeling he may have ate some rat poison that the neighbours use next door.  He looked in a bad way when I found him this morning. I just hope it wasn't from something I fed him.
he is in a better place now though


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## princessparrot (Dec 22, 2012)

:'( r u ok?


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## sharky (Dec 22, 2012)

Yeah, I'm okay I guess...thank you for asking  I just wish I could of just saved him  Then again I guess if it was rat poison there wasn't much I could do....


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## Snapped (Dec 22, 2012)

Try not to stress over it, you did a wonderful thing by bringing him inside to safety, out there a cat or anything could have eaten him. You tried, that's the main thing. It's just a poo thing to happen though that he didn't make it, but certainly not your fault.

ETA: Is "****ty" a swear word on here or something? :shock:


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## PrecisionPythons (Dec 22, 2012)

@ snapped 
it's a mouse on an aussie pythons and snakes forum how could u not expect a joke or two considering we do feed mice and rats to our snakes. In regards to the poisoning of the snake, do u think i was being serious as to feeding a wild rodent to the bredli? 

Atleast im not the only one that thinks it "looks just like a field mouse to me"...


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## Bluetongue1 (Dec 22, 2012)

I am sorry for you to hear it died. Other than poisoning, it may have sustained internal injuries before you got you got to it. Or given it was still associating with its mother it may also not have been fully weaned. Who knows?

I am not good at IDs from pictures for small mammals - so many look so similar. I can, however, tell you a couple of things to look for in the future. Rodents (Family Muridae) have two upper and two lower incisors. There is then (in most cases) a substantial gap in the teeth, before you get to the grinding premolars and molars. They lack any canine teeth. Almost all of them are totally herbivorous. The small marsupials (Family Dasyuridae) are carnivores. They have four pairs of pointed upper incisors and three pairs of lower pointed lower incisors, then upper and lower canine teeth, followed by a cutting ridge of premolars and molars. They tend to bite with the front teeth to subdue or kill their prey and then tear off bits using the side teeth when eating.

As a generalisation, the carnivorous dasyurid marsupials tend to have a longer, more pointed snout than the herbivorous murid rodents. 

It certainly looked like a rodent that you had. An exact location of where it was collected would assist in narrowing down the possible species.

Sorry I cannot be more helpful than that.
Blue


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## sharky (Dec 22, 2012)

Hey blue, firstly thank you for the information! I am always keen on learing more about all the animals who live around me and in my area  I can tell you that the exact location I found him was in Woodside....I don't want to give you my adress but I can tell you it was on Fowler Street, Woodside, SA. (Mods if this illegal feel free to edit it out)

PrecisionPythons, I don't mind the joke. It really doesn't matter, it's just good to see that some people can be brave enough to have a sense of humor in a sad time  Always lightens the mood imo. He would have been to small for my bredli anyway :/


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## Snapped (Dec 22, 2012)

PrecisionPythons said:


> @ snapped
> it's a mouse on an aussie pythons and snakes forum how could u not expect a joke or two considering we do feed mice and rats to our snakes. In regards to the poisoning of the snake, do u think i was being serious as to feeding a wild rodent to the bredli?
> 
> Atleast im not the only one that thinks it "looks just like a field mouse to me"...




I know, I know. :lol:


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