Posted by Katie Gooder on April 19, 2006

Q: Hello, We caught a tan mouse in our house this morning, very friendly. He is tan with a white band around the neck, soft hair. We have him in a cage, he looks very domesticated. Do domesticated mice just show up in a persons house? We have had field mice before, but nothing that loks like this. He has a small patch of hair missing on him do we need to be concerned about this? Is it safe to keep him. Any help wil greatly be appreciated. He seems healthy and eats and drinks good.

Thanks

Katie

Habitat: field/meadow

State: Minnesota

Habitat: field/meadow

A: Sounds to me that your mouse is not a House Mouse. House Mice are pretty much uniform gray without the white. Check out the tail too. If it's tail is two-colored (tan and white) it's probably NOT a House Mouse. Granted House Mice can vary quite a bit in color but I think you have something else.

Mice can be especially difficult to identify but I do have some possibilities for you to look up. Try looking up the North American Deermouse, White-footed Deermouse, and Western Harvest Mouse. If you can get a photo of these 3, it may tip you off to your new "boarder". These are the 3 species that seem most likely to be your animal.

Just to be on the safe side, do be careful if you handle the mouse in any way. Sounds like your mouse is doing well but there's always the chance that it will nip so avoid that possibility. Other than that caution, I think you may have a nice little pet. Once you're sure what you have, you can find out if there are any other needs that will help keep your animal healthy. Enjoy.

John Wiessinger ( April 20, 2006)