I found a mouse!

Question
Me and my dad found my cat hunting this mouse so we took away from her and now we want to keep it BUT we arent sure how. We bought it this giant fish tank and aspen bedding. We bought it this organic drinking bowl and put a paper towl roll in. We were feeding it hamster food is that ok? We gave it apples and bread too. The thing is it stills seems kind of afraid and its already jumped out when we were feeding it! It took forever to get it in its cage again! We think its a deer mouse but we have no idea what gender! Can you actually tell if its a female or male? Also does it need a friend or will it be okay? Can you get it fixed just so that if we get it a friend it wont have babies? i look stuff up but then its the opposite on another website like i hear that they can eat cheese but then other things say its bad for them. we would have let the poor guy go but theres owls and cats and hawks! so for the time being i have this pet mouse that were not sure how to take care of. OH one last question if i make him toys out of popsicle sticks is it ok to use elmers glue (non toxic)????? Thank You! :P

Answer
Hi Rachel,

Let me start out by mentioning that deer mice can carry hantavirus, which is a very serious disease that can be transmitted to people.  You can test for it, but it would be a very good idea to bring the mouse by a vet and get it identified before deciding you definitely want to keep it.  I don't know much about deer mice (outside of my expertise, heh), so check out this site for better help if I don't get your questions answered well enough:  http://www.mouseranch.com/main.html

Sexing is definitely possible, and here's a great guide on how to do it:  http://www.thefunmouse.com/info/sexing.cfm  The simplest way to tell is by looking at the distance between the genital region and the anus.  You probably won't be able to do this until the mouse is "tamed," but you may get a guess in by watching it when it perches on cage decorations or a bowl.

A water bottle is better than a bowl in most cases, as a bowl can easily make the bedding wet and chill the mouse.  You can attach a bottle to glass or plastic walls using velcro strips, available at your local craft store for pretty cheap.  :)

For pet mice I would say that hamster food is inappropriate, and that you'd need something saying it was for mice and/or rats.  With deer mice, though, I can't actually say much about their diets.  I would check out the first link (mouseranch), as I believe it has a section on deer mouse diets.  There's also a list of foods pet mice can and cannot have here:  http://www.fancymicebreeders.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5  Mice cannot (or should not, rather) have cheese, as they are lactose-intolerant.  This means giving them cheese will upset their tummies and can lead to diarrhea and dehydration.

Elmers glue is safe in small amounts, as is hot glue, but mice are very good at chewing.  Replace any toys you make each week to keep them from getting gnawed to the glue.  Making toys out of popsicle sticks is one of my favorite things to do for my mice - have fun!!

It's possible to neuter mice, but I have never heard of a vet that would do it.  Because they are so small and fragile, the anesthesia required would be very difficult to control.  You can ask around, but it might be better to leave the mouse without a friend.  That brings me to my last point - it's important to consider whether or not the mouse is happy being in a cage.  Wild mice cannot always be tamed, and constant stress can lead to illness.  If you can't tame it in a few weeks, I would consider whether or not release might in fact be safer - after all, wild mice are built to avoid predators.  :)

Let me know if you need more help, but hopefully my links will help you out.  I'm really not a deer mouse expert, but maybe I answered some of your questions!

-Tam