Last week I shared the surprise of the century when I posted about the mouse babies I discovered in a cage that I thought only female mice occupied.
After convincing me that Brown Eye was the Dad the pet store took him back—
Okay can I just stop right here and say that I did NOT get any of the snickering some of you were doing regarding Brown Eye’s name??? I was not aware, until Michelle emailed with this to say:
Michelle confirmed to me what I was beginning to piece together from some of your comments. Brown Eye seemed a perfectly logical name for a brown mouse when the black mouse and white mouse were named Black Eye and White Eye respectively. No. I was not aware of the dirty double meaning of that otherwise innocent name.
Some of you need to get your minds out of the gutters mkay? This is a family blog. No butthole talk here thankyouverymuch.
Moving ON:
After taking Brown Eye back to the pet store I determined, after investigating his privates, that Black Eye was actually the dad. However, the pet store begged to differ. They called Black Eye fat and told us he’s too big for his age to be a boy and that they think he’s a girl and that they think she is pregnant. Either way, they said it would be best to separate the two adult mice, but they did not take him back.
Which is really just super because I have tons of mouse cages laying around the house.
After a period of time in a toy bucket I finally bit the bullet and purchased an aquarium-like home for White Eye and her babies and moved Black Eye back into his old house. Black Eye ransacked the place. I think he was looking for everyone. He climbed up all of the bars, he wouldn’t rest, he dug through the wood shavings…and I felt really bad for him. I mean, how would you like it if someone stuck you back in YOUR house and removed all of YOUR family? Not so good right?
In the mean time, White Eye has been a phenomenal mother. Tucking her little babies into their strawberry home and covering them safely with tissue paper.
They have yet to crawl out of the cave she’s made for them, but I’ve peeked a few times and they sure are cute.
I’ll tell you what’s NOT cute and that’s White Eye’s growing belly.
Ummmm…my keen sense of animal intuition tells me she’s pregnant again. Apparently these things can get pregnant within hours of giving birth and since we didn’t know she had given birth I’ve got a sneaking suspicion she was knocked up again. I have NO idea what I’m supposed to do with that many mice in the same cage. Won’t they kill each other? And if I take them to the pet store when they’re six weeks old knowing they’ll be sold as snake food…will Jesus still love me? My friend let hers go in a field. She dug a hole and set up all their toys…would that be more humane? Would they have more of a shot at life that way? What the heck am I going to do with all these babies?
Here’s the thing. I think the mice have feelings. Watching White Eye take care of her babies and seeing how seeing how upset Black Eye was in the cage without his family…I don’t think I can bring Black Eye back to the pet store even though I’m certain he’s a boy.
I talk all big like these creatures gross me out….and they do….but I also fill their bowls with fresh fruit and cheese…and I make cozy homes for them out of cardboard boxes…and when no one’s looking I watch them nibble on cheerios they hold in their tiny paws and imagine what life would be like in my own cage…oh wait.
I wonder if we could put a baby boy mouse in with Black Eye to be friends with when it’s big enough….and maybe White Eye can keep a baby girl…that way none of them will be lonely. Don’t you think Black Eye is lonely in that cage all by himself? Surely there’s a mouse expert out there who can help me determine which of these babies are boys and which of them are girls. Surely I won’t make the same mistake twice and end up with two more sets of babies.
Michelle says
I’M A CELEBRITY!!! You say that using that picture of me was an accident although I’m not sure I believe you…. it’s me, with a BUTT! How fitting. Those little mouse babies are cute, I’m trying to convince Todd to let me have one. We’re going to name it Dirty Sanchez.
Mama Kat says
Oh Michelle…I am my mother’s daughter…please don’t forget that. I was browsing your facebook pictures and I was all “oh this one is perfect! Look at that funny face she’s making while seeing the sites in Rome!”
I didn’t realize how really “perfect” the picture was until I previewed it on the blog. Because I’m super quick like that.
But never mind all that…why are you posing with statue butts? Who does that?
3 Men & a Lady says
LMAO again! I figured that was just some random girl-laughing-at-a-statue’s-butt picture from google images.
Too funny!
Zariel says
Hahlalujel! I needed this-you’re my savior.
Kerry Ellington says
OH MY!!! You’ve got your hands pretty full there. Geesh. Poor little Black Eye. He must be so depressed but you are trying your best to accommodate all the mice even though you got a huge shocker about them. I’m not much for a mouse person myself so you seem to be heaven sent for them.
For the record I had NO idea about the “Brown Eye” thingy either. Guess I just crawled from under my rock… lol
Cheers! :0)
P.S. they really are cute…
Givinya de Elba says
Oh. Wow. I live in Australia and that’s like totally on the opposite side of the Solar System to you, but even WE mean butthole when we say Brown Eye.
I thought you totally knew that, and were having a huge joke! I loved the way you said, “The girls had REALLY been wanting to add a brown mouse that they could name “brown eye” into the mix and I aim to please so that’s just what we did.”
Sounded like you and Pat were there saying, “Brown Eye … heh heh … yeah, could you sell us that brown mouse there in the back … ” Snicker snicker.
Mama Kat says
Hahaha…no I had no idea! Reading it back to myself it really does sound funny though! I should take a poll and see how many people knew the meaning of that term. A super classy poll.
dysfunctional mom says
You are such a softie when it comes to animals! And so am I, it’s like we have SUCKER right across our foreheads……..
Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" says
Don’t feel bad about not knowing that meaning of Brown Eye, I didn’t either and am sure we aren’t the only two people who didn’t. I wonder if your kids knew though! What to do with all those mice you are now attached to, hmm. It’s so hard once you get attached to a pet. Perhaps you could have a giveaway at Day Care–you could share the love on Valentine’s Day!
Mama Kat says
Yeah I’ll make “grab bags” that the kids can take on their way today…great thinking! My kid definitely do not know what Brown Eye means…they’re way to innocent for that.
Angel says
Nope never heard of that definition for the term “brown eye”.. Black eye is lonely but putting himin with another male is not going to fix that. It will ho9wever cause one male mouse to have less hair then the other, think male prison and the ranking order and you will catch my drift. However 2 females can live together wonderfully. I am telling you once you let one in your hand and walk around on you it is all over. By the way the babies are now called fuzzies since their fur is coming in.
Mama Kat says
I have a list of interview questions I’m working on to send you. :) You are a plethora of information here. So what you’re saying is that Black Eye can never have a companion again unless it’s a girl? He only wants to knock girls up…just great. ;)
Danielle says
Oh sweet lord. Get rid of the mice. The babies will have babies and the grandbabies will have babies…. oy. If you start making clothes for them I’m calling an intervention.
Have you ever thought of raising a Chia Pet?
Mama Kat says
Wait a minute, you touched on something here that has really made me think…..mice…can…wear….CLOTHES!?!?! Brilliant Danielle! Thanks for the tip! When they outgrow them I’ll send them your way for the new little guy….;)
Los says
I think there is a lesson to be learned here … maybe it’s best just to either get one mouse as a pet … or maybe just get turtles or something like that.
Mama Kat says
Maybe the lesson is to stay away from mice and keep fostering dogs that bite my kids faces off??? Could that be the lesson?
Jennifer says
Never heard of “Brown Eye” either. Must not be as worldly as I thought I was! ;-)
Yikes about the mice! What a dilemma. You’re sweet to worry about them. I’d do the same thing! Hope a solution presents itself soon!
~ Jennifer
http://thetoyboxyears.blogspot.com
Jen @ buried with children says
You have a much bigger heart than I do. First, I would never get mice as pets for my kids, they gross me out. But if my some miracle my kids did talk me into this, I think that I would take them back to the pet store even if they did end up as pet food.
Jesus will still love you. After all, he was the one that made snacks like to eat mice. Its just nature my dear.
Mama Kat says
Why don’t you send Hayden to the pet store than? It’s the circle of life Jen. I mean…er…you know….because snakes are always eating little boys.
Never mind this response sucks. I’ve got nothin. You’re right the mice should go back to the pet store. Eff’em.
Jen @ buried with children says
I don’t think that sending Hayden to the pet store would be a good idea. Right now he is watching Animal Planet and cheering as the lions kill.
Yeah, I am a little worried.
Ruth says
Aw! I feel so bad for you right now because I think they are super cute too… feed them a sunflower seed and watch them hold it, tear it open and eat it… darn sweet I tell you!
…but you are seriously going to have 100’s babies if you don’t get rid of them somehow. I think that it is really hard to tell whether they are boys or girls, so I really think you should take them back to the pet store. It stinks that they will become snake food but what else are you going to do? If you put them outside this time of year they will probably end up little mouse-sicles… not a better prospect really. I’m sorry!
Mama Kat says
Maybe the pet store can help me decide which are boys and which are girls…you know…cause they’re really good at that.
Stephanie says
Ok I knew what it meant but I’m slow and passed right over it. Must have been early. Mice are like flies they just keep popping out babies. I agree with some of the others one mouse is better than two.
Miss Angie says
LOL, I thought that about the brown eye, but I didn’t say anything… lol
Christy says
I didn’t know brown eye meant butthole either!
About the mice, so I’m going to get nerdy here, but hopefully it will help you. I am a research assistant at a University in an immunology lab. We use mice for all of our experiments. (I know, I know, I sacrifice mice, but its for the better good, I promise) My main responsibility is to take care of our mouse colony. Once your babies reach 6 weeks old, they will start to breed with each other. If you put a boy in with your other boy, they will fight and scratch each other. Boys are very competitive. But, if you do keep the litter of pups, you can keep all those boys together without anything to worry about. If you would like to know how to sex mice (so they don’t make more babies) feel free to email me at c.killion@yahoo.com. I will help you the best that I can! I hope my nerding out helps with your mice.
Mama Kat says
You are TOTALLY a nerd! And I love it!! You can “sex mice” so they won’t have babies anymore? I don’t know if I can take that risk with my two grown mice. With my luck it would backfire and I’d have a thousand more babies on my hands. The pet store says I can take the babies back at 6 weeks so if they don’t procreate before then I should be in good shape. I just feel bad that Black Eye can’t have any friends in his cage with him. Will he fight another male even if it’s from his own litter?
Christy says
haha, I can help you look at the mice’s privates to tell wether they are boys or girls. In the science world that’s called ‘sexing’ them, lol! Black eye won’t fit with another male that is from his litter, and he may not fight with another male that is around his same age. Depends on the mouse. With the babies they won’t be able to procreate till after 6 weeks and usually litter mates won’t even try at least 8 weeks of age. We all gotta have our quirks…it makes for a fun ice-breaker question answer.
Christy says
oooo, and if you hold White Eye by the tail and see a little bump that looks like its sticking out the side of her back, she’s pregnant.
Raine says
I too care for a large breeding colony, at Mass General – And I second all of Christy’s advice :D
S Club Mama says
I would get rid of them ASAP. Ewww. And you never know, Black Eye might eat a baby if it’s put in there with him. Gross cannibals.
I also did not know the double meaning to Brown Eye. I have never heard that in my life. Sick.
Sandra says
I must live under a rock… I had NO IDEA… the words Brown Eye meant butthole…I swear… NO CLUE!!!
i AM SO NOT “IN”
Jennifer says
What would you do if it wasn’t a mouse that you spent money for and put in a cage and it had babies in your house? Maybe that will relieve some of the burden of the babies being snake food. I mean, they are mice after all.
Mama Kat says
Yeah I think about that too…what if they weren’t pets and I just happened to stumble upon them in my kitchen. No doubt I’d be buying mouse traps and killing those pests instantly.
But think about Stewart…if someone had killed him we would have missed out on the great Stewart Little series. Maybe I could train the mice to be like him…
3 Men & a Lady says
LMAO!!!! I wondered if you realized you named your mouse after an anus, but didn’t want to be the one who mentioned it. I seriously have been cackling like a witch here reading the picture and caption up there. My baby started laughing, too, b/c I was laughing so hard. Okay, going to read the rest of the post now. (Still LOL here)
Mama Kat says
Hahaha….her email was pretty funny. I love it when people call me out like that.
Angel says
I was wondering about Brown Eye’s name but I totally just decided Mama Kat is WAY above making jokes like that and snickered silently to myself. I love the picture up there and the fact that it is with a statue’s behind is even more awesome! SO white eye is pregnant again? I would offer to take one of them but mice give me the hibi-jibis (is that a word?) and we have enough running loose at the apartment complex as it is.
Poor Black eye, he misses his family..
3 Men & a Lady says
Okay, read the whole thing now. I would take them ALL back or set them loose in a field. But I hate mice, so that’s just my take on it. Since you have a heart, maybe just keep one NONPREGNANT mouse and get rid of the rest. I had no idea mice were such sluts. Geez, they don’t waste any time do they?
And don’t name any of the babies what Michelle said. That’s a bad word, too. LOL
3 Men & a Lady says
Oh and you are going to get LOTS of perverts visiting your blog now with all the butthole talk going on, lol.
Emmy says
I didn’t know that about brown eyes either so don’t feel bad. And yeah, it will be interesting to see what google searches lead to your blog now :)
Mom Taxi Julie says
I never thought about the brown eye thing but I should have known lol.
I have a mouse somewhere running loose in my house and it’s not from a pet store! Dammit.
Joy says
had no clue about the double meaning of brown eye.
get rid of those little buggers or if you want to keep one girl go to an actual qualified professional, you do realize those kids working in the chain pet stores are morons right? get out your yellow pages and find a small pet store in your area they usually have an owner working there that knows a little something about the animals they are selling. or just grab them one by one by the tail hold it & up snap a picture of the goods and put them here on the blog. surely one of us can give you a correct answer after all seems like we r more qualified then the pet store workers:)
do you know they aren’t just snake food? Son got a bearded dragon for xmas and it says when they are adults they can eat little mice! OMG I could never poor thing will just have to gorge himself on tons of crickets cause I can’t do the mouse thing that is just gross
Lisa says
Um, mouse stew? Actually, I’m wondering if you could put an ad on Craigslist for free mice under the pets section? You never know, you might could offload a few.
Sara says
You could always get Black Eye fixed. Stop laughing, I’m serious! Once upon a time I had two rats–Mayhem and Danger Mouse. They were totally in love with each other. Danger Mouse had her babies, and we separated them. They were both miserable, so I called up my vet and asked if he could snip Mayhem. $25 and a day in the hospital later, the lovebirds were reunited and they lived out their last 2 years together. (You know that mice only live 12-18 months, right?)
Find a pet store that differentiates between “fancy mice” and “feeder mice”. Most stores keep the feeder mice in the back and the mice to be sold as pets up front. Since the pet mice are more expensive, they’re less likely to wind up in a snake’s stomach.
Phew. That was a long comment.
(And yes, baby mice are TOTALLY cute. Wait till they start moving–the jump like little itty bitty rabbits.
Mama Kat says
Oh man…that’s a lot to think about right there. I wonder if I could get Black Eye fixed…Pat would have a heart attack if he knew I was taking a mouse to the vet to get it fixed! Hahaha…but at least they would be together.
Sadie at heyMamas.com says
Oh my god, never knew that either but that is freaking hysterical and really gross at the same time.
Sadie at heyMamas
Sammy says
Aww, the baby mice are kinda cute now! Good luck figuring out to do with the little guys, and I hopefully she didnt’ get knocked up again our you’re might as well be a mice breeder. (kidding) Oh and the brown-eye thing, I figured everyone knew that haha.
Casey says
Cracking up over the “brown eye” double meaning thread. Reminds me of the “Guess How Much I Love You” book that my girls have. Every time I have to say “Nut Brown Hare” I snicker to myself like a 12 year old….and since it’s in the book like 57 times I eventually change it to brown rabbit or something. Please tell me you’ve seen this book and know what I’m talking about and that I didn’t just ramble on in your comments forever and you are like geesh….shut your pie hole already with the nut brown hare talk. And by pie hole, I mean mouth :)
Mama Kat says
I HAVE read that book and oh my gosh I’ve NEVER caught that! I’m never going to read the book the same again…I’ll be snickering like a 12 year old right beside you. Hahahah…such dorks.
Rhonda says
Me in all my randomness:
I once named a baby hamster “Eyeballs”. I’m pretty sure he had Grave’s disease. It was frightening.
Our rabbits had babies like that. You can refer to my post on bunny porn if you like. It goes something like this: Baby rabbit spent his days with Mommy rabbit. One day I stepped outside to see Baby rabbit “doing” Mommy rabbit. I totally freaked out and scooped up Baby rabbit and tossed him in with Daddy rabbit so I could go to work in peace. Immediately, Daddy rabbit was “doing” Baby rabbit, who apparently swings both ways. Mommy rabbit was soon a mommy again, but we had no idea who the father was.
And lastly:
I saw mice going from our deck to our bunny hutch outside several times, so finally decided to dig and see what was there. I dug and dug and eventually found a nest of bunny hair and straw. I dug into that with my shovel and to my horror discovered a nest of little newborn mice. I immediately beat them with the back of my shovel. After a few smack-downs, I remembered that my children were out there with me and it wasn’t a very positive experience for them, so calmly asked them to go and get the garbage can, where I ever so gently placed them before closing up the bag. Now after reading your post I almost feel bad.
Almost.
Mama Kat says
Oh my GOSH you’re BRUTAL!! Hahaha…remind me to NEVER hide my babies in YOUR backyard!
Janine says
As Charlie Sheen says, this article is “W!IGNNNI”
Lolli says
I had no idea about the brown eye thing, either, so you’re not alone.
Your pictures turned out great. As creepy as mice can be, I totally understand your fascination in watching them. And I can sympathize with you in not wanting to “get rid” of them. One of the hardest weeks of my life was the week that a “hurt” white rabbit that we brought into our kitchen to keep safe through the night had 8 babies early in the morning. We moved the bunnies and their mommy to the backyard that day. I cared for them, fed them, made little beds for them, and had to lift each little dead baby bunny out of the cage and dispose of it when each one died, one by one. Unlike your white mouse, our white rabbit was a horrible mom. Never fed them. Instead, she would literally kick them out of the soft beds I would make.
It was heart breaking.
Mama Kat says
sad! Bunnies are so cute…in moderation of course.
GAmommy2two says
This was such a cute little photo story. And yes, I agree..Mice have feelings…even if they are creepy!
Dawn says
Mouse ownership sounds entirely too stressful.
CC says
Brown eye?
Well, truthfully, I wouldn’t have associated it with being “naughty” and didn’t know it was, but it does make total sense.
And here I thought it was bad that my daughter has crabs… hermit crabs dammit… HERMIT CRABS!
karin Katherine says
I say you give these little babies to the daycare parents as a GIFT.
Or you put an ad up on craigslist….
I’m sort of in the same predicament with the geckos.
I hatched them and now I’m all, “Who wants all these gecko babies?”
BigMamaCass says
Awwww! How cute!!!
Love your new page too btw!
parenting BY dummies says
Do a giveaway. Everyone loves a giveaway. Then you could send the mice to people who enter. Not sure how you ship live animals, but seriously, I can’t figure out everything, can I? I’m just the idea person, the rest is up to you:)
Erin says
Oh dang, and I think I just saw that on DIrty Jobs last week….Mouse sexing! I guess I should have paid closer attention?
Kaycee says
Is that really all there is to it because that’d be flbgiergastbna.
Kristin says
Oh dude, I don’t even know what to tell you. I am such a wuss with animals I would keep them all and end up with a rodent overrun house. Ok, maybe find them homes!
lori says
We had the very same problem and the darn things grew on me too. I was fascinated by the little goings on in their cage. (Not the goings on that produced the babies, mind you – I didn’t see that, hence the problem) But when we moved into our new house, I was determined not to have mouse smell, so my hubby tried to take some of the mice back to the petstore and they wouldn’t take them back. So he let them loose in the field behind the petstore. Shhhh. The kids think the mice ran away.
Life with Kaishon says
This is truly a dilemma! Oh. My. I don’t envy you in the slightest.
I had no idea that brown eye was an innuendo either.
I need to get cooler.
Lourie says
I was in the dark about the whole brown eye thing too. ??? Haha. I guess it makes sense after people call it “brown nosing” right? I would talk to the manager of the pet store. Especially since you haven’t been blessed with babies from black eye whom they insist is not only female, but pregnant as well. If that is the case s/he has been pregnant a lot longer than W.E. ever was. Oh there you go, you can call Brown Eye “BE” to eliminate any accidental google finds. hehehe.
Jenners says
The plot — and White Eye’s belly — thicken.
I know this is horrible for you but it is making for great blog reading.
Texan Mama says
I know I’m way late on posting a comment, but…
if you let those mice go in a field by MY house, please don’t hate me when I set out a torturous glue trap and they get their tiny feet stuck in there, then get their little noses stuck too because they’re trying to free their feet. Then I throw them into the dumpster where they die, but not right away.
Yes I know I am mean and this sounds a bit sadistic, but I don’t think of mice being in Heaven so it’s all good.
heather says
here’s my experience with mice…maybe it will help but likely not. atleast you will know that you are not alone.
as a kid i had white mice as pets. and i do believe they DO have personalities and feelings. my first one stayed in his cage just fine…til i went to visit my grandma for a week. my parents had to catch and return him many times. as soon as i got home, he never did it again. we figured out he must have been looking for me.
take two…as a teen i had 2 white mice who began to fight. we seperated them into seperate cages, but left them next to each other. wouldn’t you know…the bully of the two found a way out of his cage and into his brother’s…just beat him up and to ride on the brother’s wheel. bully. we seperated their cages.
take three…as a young adult my boyfriend at the time decided instead of mice, he’d like to get rats-he’d heard they were smarter. i know, i know. yuck. but i gave in and we got “lennie” and “george” (from of mice and men, ha-ha!). despite the pet shop’s expertise we ended up with “georgia”. and also a bunch of little pink things that looked like “toes”. after they grew a bit they really were cute. but of course we couldn’t keep them. we quickly had them running everywhere. and i do mean everywhere. eek! fortunately they were easy to catch and put back into their then more secured cage.
sadly, we did take them to a pet store. i wanted some sort of guarantee that they wouldn’t become snake food but obviously that didn’t work out. if we had freed them, they likely would have met the same fate. rodents are sadly low on the food chain. not that it made me feel better, but the pet store did pay us for the babies.
if i had to do it over now, i would probably put an ad in the paper offering them free to a good home. or like i’m doing with kittens that i’ve rescued, i am advertising them at a low price but am not actually charging those that adopt them. the humane society suggested that we don’t offer them free because that would encourage people to take them for not so nice reasons. we’ve invested a lot into them with shots and getting them fixed, not too mention have bonded with them. we want them to have good homes! and i’d try to find out the intentions of the potential adopting homes. it’s worth a try.
like you brown eye didn’t mean anything gross to me (and i’m glad about that!). it went nicely with the other names. and unlike others, i don’t know if mice/animals make it to Heaven or not. they are God’s creatures so i tend to err on the side of kindness when i can.
good luck!
Tracy P. says
Brown Eye. Who’da thunk?
Maria says
As an old preschool teacher who has gone through the experience too many times, I give you the only advice you need. Only ever have ONE animal at a time. Love it all it’s life, then move on to the next ONE. I could tell you some guinea pig tales. I have a theory that they can actually change gender. Btw I bet Barbie clothes would fit perfectly…
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