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Mice: small furry rodents

Regarded as vermin or as pets according to preference and experience, mice are small rodents, mammals. The Wee Timrous Beastie (poem by Robert Burns - see www.worldburnsclub.com/poems/translations/554.htm including translation!). Unlike rats, mice are not feared for attacking people. However, if you've got them loose about your hoose, I mean house, then that is a problem. They despoil much more than they eat, and if they get inside your computer through the little holes at the back, they will probably destroy the main board. Mouse urine conducts electricity and isn't compatible with the continued working of surface-mount integrated circuit design! Mice can get through surprisingly small holes, and can get inside an empty cola can through the ring-pull hole. Mice can induce fear, but less than spiders.

If you are a clutterer, a hoarder, a collector of junk and treasure, you need to defend yourself and your collection against mice!

If you've got a few mice in your house, if you don't do anything about it, you soon will have a house "infested with mice". Mousetraps are quite effective, but there is a more traditional solution which is very effective against mice: get a CAT! To get a cat which you can be sure will catch mice, probably the best way is to go to the local cat rescue charity and say you have a problem with mice. Cats' homes match up cats and potential cat owners by a type of "arranged marriage" where you are allocated a cat that's best for you. Believe me, this usually works amazingly well! For example this cat caught hundreds of mice that were infesting a farmhouse.

Mice can't see in the dark but have very good memories. They can navigate in complete darkness by knowing the route map of their territory. This works very well unless a cat parks itself on the route.

Mice are unhygienic to have in the kitchen of a restaurant, but pet mice are surprisingly hygienic, and it has been said (by a mouse expert) that your health is better off with you having mice as pets than if you had gerbils

Also see rats

Rats and mice, in the context of the government's failure to do sensible things about them, get a special mention in Terry O'Halloran's book: If only Politicians Had Brains

If you know that you have verminous rodents in your house, but you don't know whether you have mice or rats, here's a way to tell: How to Tell if you have Mice or Rats. Either is bad, but it's best to know which, as the methods of solving the problems are different. Also, not that it's much reassurance, but generally you either have mice or rats. It's unlikely that you have both. Rats eat mice.

If you're going to catch/kill mice, it's worth considering the relative cruelty of different ways of catching mice so as to minimise suffering.

A plague of mice can occur if there's a good harvest. It can be a big problem in Australia and occurs every now-and-then. In a plague of mice, each mouse is starving, and they are so desperate they'll attempt to eat almost anything. Pigs aren't safe.