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-   -   Look what I found in the potato patch! (http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=65858)

CearaQC September 26th, 2009 12:30 PM

Look what I found in the potato patch!
 
1 Attachment(s)
I found this little guy while digging potatoes. He was underground a bit under some soil, wrapped in a little grass nest.

A few inches either way and the shovel could have sliced it! :eek: I was really surprised to find it. Good thing I was gentle with the shovel and going underneath and away from the potato plants, since I didn't want to slice up the potatoes with the shovel.

Not sure what to do with it now since I destroyed its little bed. I have it now in a wooden box, filled with lots more grass. Where should I put it? Under the shed? Should I put more grass on top of it and maybe some shedded dog hair?

Winston September 26th, 2009 12:32 PM

CearQC what is it? :cool:

CearaQC September 26th, 2009 12:44 PM

A rodent of some sort? Has a long tail.

Beats me! I didn't want to handle it too much and wake it from hibernation.

hazelrunpack September 26th, 2009 12:53 PM

Under the shed would probably be good--just need to find a place that's out of the wind and away from predators.

Do you have an LP tank? We have white-footed mice hibernate under the hood of our LP tank every year. Just put him in there, cover with more dry grass, and lower the hood.
We have our gas delivery guy trained to leave the nest alone if he has to do a mid-winter fill. :D

NoahGrey September 26th, 2009 01:48 PM

I would leave it where it was. And in the spot that he was in. It could have babies somewhere near, etc. I would also observe him for a little bit..to make sure it is not sick or injured. If so, call you local animal control.

And you are not waking him up from hibernation. It looks like a field mouse or vole.

I think it is a field mouse. Its tail is to long for a vole.

ACO22

JanM September 26th, 2009 04:07 PM

I've heard that rodents won't cross over dog hair so I wonder if maybe just grass was used?????? I don't know this for certain but, since I heard it, thought I'd pass it on..

Cute little critter whatever it is :)

chico2 September 26th, 2009 04:23 PM

It's hard to see how big it is,could it be a Possum??but the feet look different than a Possum:confused:
I hope he's going to be ok:fingerscr

Cathy1 September 27th, 2009 05:57 PM

1 Attachment(s)
My husband seems to think it looks like a deer mouse. This is wahat I found.


Deer mice can transmit Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, a potentially fatal disease. The disease can be transmitted through contact with a mouse carcass or by breathing the urine of infected mice.

Frenchy September 27th, 2009 06:09 PM

It looks too big to be a field mouse (they're usually tiny) it really looks like .... a rat :yuck:

it didn't wake up when you took the pic ? :confused:

you saved it ? really ? :p

CearaQC September 27th, 2009 08:16 PM

Neighbor said it was a Kangaroo mouse. Judging by the size of the rear feet, I agree.

The whole nest was about 4 inches in diameter and it was tiny.

I placed it under the wood shed where it will be sheltered for the winter. If I put it back where it was as suggested, the snow removal service could easily kill it since the truck will drive over that patch of dirt to move snow off our driveway.

[QUOTE=ACO22;829930] call you local animal control.
[/QUOTE]

You forget, we don't have local animal control! This is a hillbilly podunkville Quebec community where we barely even see a police car.

Hanta virus is rare. I'm more worried about human vaccine ingredients than a small critter I found in some dirt around my potato plants.

[url]http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/health/hantavirus.html[/url]

[url]http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hanta/hps/noframes/outbreak.htm[/url]

Tuberculosis kills way more people worldwide than the Hanta virus.

Frenchy September 27th, 2009 08:22 PM

[QUOTE=CearaQC;830329]Neighbor said it was a Kangaroo mouse.


[/QUOTE]

WHAT ?? :eek: we have those here ???? nooooooooooooooooooo all I need is mice that jumps :eek: :eek:

CearaQC September 27th, 2009 08:24 PM

[QUOTE=Frenchy;830336]WHAT ?? :eek: we have those here ???? nooooooooooooooooooo all I need is mice that jumps :eek: :eek:[/QUOTE]

:laughing::laughing: I'm only going by what my friend said and I really have no clue what it is.:shrug: But it looks like pictures I saw online.

Melinda September 28th, 2009 05:56 AM

yes we do have them here, but they don't hibernate, no mouse really does, we see them running across the snow often in the winter

mikischo September 28th, 2009 08:53 AM

A Kangaroo mouse is a jumping mouse that is native to the southwestern United States and is not found in Canada. Many still call the jumping mice we have in Canada "Kangaroo mice" as well, although more specifically they are known by other names. I suspect that what you likely have is a Woodland Jumping Mouse (could also be a Meadow Jumping Mouse). There are Woodland Jumping Mice, Meadow Jumping Mice, and Pacific Jumping Mice in Canada. The Woodland Jumping Mouse (as well as the Meadow Jumping Mouse) does hibernate and sometimes will go into hibernation as early as September. They generally hibernate till April, although they do wake up about every two weeks to do their business and have a bite to eat (so expect this little guy to wake up any day now and wonder :confused:what the heck happened to his home). If this is the mouse you have he/she likely has a stash of food in the ground where you found the nest. The description and habits of the Woodland Jumping Mouse closely match the one you found. Here are some links to info on the Woodland (you can also look up info on the Meadow one on Wikipedia and other places as well):
[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodland_jumping_mouse[/url]

[url]http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/species/mammals/mammalpages/nap_ins.htm[/url]

I live in the city so the only time I ever encountered one was several years ago when we were out camping about 100 miles north of Winnipeg. He came hopping into our campsite when we were gathered around the campfire one night. Very sociable, like the second link said and totally unafraid. I even gently picked him up for a minute and he did not run away after I set him back down. He stayed around us for some time that night and the next morning at breakfast time he came back for another visit. Although I am one of those people who will jump on a chair and scream :eek: if I encounter a mouse in a house, I found this little guy to be absolutely adorable:lovestruck:. Felt like taking him home - lol.

CearaQC September 28th, 2009 09:19 AM

Wow thanks for all the info!

Just to tease Frenchy (I'm naughty!) one of the web pages you posted says

[quote] An extremely agile creature, the woodland jumping mouse has the ability to leap a distance of four metres in one bound.[/quote]

According to Wiki, they eat earthworms, various insects, moth larvae, beetles, berries, nuts, seeds, fruit, leaves, flower petals and buds, crocus bulbs, grapes, gooseberries, rose hips, and apples.

And where I put it, my compost pile is nearby with lots of worms, along with a choke cherry tree and some type of spruce trees (Norway spruce?) that make really long cones. It will definitely not go hungry.

The locals here always mis-name stuff. I'm not surprised.:laughing::laughing: I will pass along the info!

chico2 September 28th, 2009 09:49 AM

Ceara,whatever it is I hope it survives:fingerscrthe tail looks really long:confused:and his back-legs,maybe he'll jump all the way to Frenchys house,after getting big and strong from your compost-worms:laughing:

Frenchy September 28th, 2009 09:20 PM

An extremely agile creature, the woodland jumping mouse has the ability to leap a distance of four metres in one bound.



ewwwwwwwwwwww , I got chills :eek: and not the good one :yuck:

Shaykeija September 30th, 2009 05:58 PM

Ok I just named him Simon...lol cute little bugger

aslan September 30th, 2009 07:46 PM

i'm with shaykeija, he is really kinda cute..all curled up sleepin..


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