Posted by Amanda Hinton on October 31, 2007

Q: so i am a huge animal person and i was going to let the cat in the house, who is declawed (not my cat) and it was trying to catch a little field mouse, picked it up in it's mouth and dropped it i got the cat in the house and went back out and picked the cute guy up, I have pet mice so I thought it wouldn't be a big deal, besides i think all animals should like me and know i'm an animal lover. anyway, I picked it up by it's tail and put it in my hand to observe it to see if it was hurt from the cat and it bit me. I squeezed the blood out and rinsed it, it was only a little bite, do I have to worry about rabies, I really don't feel I need to and would like to not die or have to get six painful rabies. i wanted to keep the little guy but my mom said I couldn't, oh the voice of reason, i really wanted the cute guy.

also, why don't they sell field mice as pets instead of domestic whatever they sell mice? they are very different looking. thanks!

State: Illinois

A: Nice to see that you're so animal-friendly Amanda. I'm not a physician or veterinarian so I really can't give you medical advice. You're right in thinking that a field mouse is unlikely to have rabies, but who knows. Your best course of action is to call your doctor, explain what has happened and let him/her decide what's best. I remember when I was a child I wanted my brother to help me catch and tame a rat. Well...he ended up being bitten and the doctor gave him a tetanus shot just to be sure. Share this email with your folks so they understand that your doctor should at least be aware of the circumstances.

Field mice are wild animals and these just do not make good pets. Oh, they can live in captivity but never as easily as the House Mice that are really domesticated animals (like a dog or cat). Do keep one bit of information in mind for future reference - wild animals should never be held without proper equipment or safeguards. That little mouse that bit you was only defending itself, it couldn't possibly know you were a friend and not about to eat it. Good luck to you and thanks for asking.

John Wiessinger ( November 1, 2007)

A: After sending my first answer, I decided to look online to see what I could find regarding rabies in mice. Apparently, this disease is very rare in small mammals. Check out this website for additional info on the subject at: edcp.org

My guess is that your doctor is very unlikely to seriously consider that rabies is possible for you but you may want to share this website with him/her as well. Again, best to you.

John Wiessinger ( November 1, 2007)