Choices

Yesterday I wrote about a little mouse named Guy but tonight I'd like to write on a more serious note.

This is the time of year when wild mice seek out warm shelter and food supplies to help them through the winter to come. In the process some will enter our houses if given the opportunity (improperly sealed external walls, etc.). This occasionally happens at my work place and the company puts down glue traps or spring traps. Glue traps are notoriously cruel causing the mouse to lie stuck and in terror until it starves to death and the spring traps are little better when they don't kill outright but only strike and maim the mouse where it is also left to die slowly. To counter this, I started searching for humane alternatives and lo and behold they are readily available, cheap and effective! One needs only go to Zeller's or a similar store or hardware store and buy a live trap.



Check out humane traps here and here. A friend of mine actually constructed one herself and caught several mice one season which were taken outdoors to a suitable location (there should be plenty of cover like bushes or tall grasses) and released. Her large dog became fascinated by this process and insisted on accompanying her to the release site where it would put its face close to the trap and watch the mouse's exit. He never attempted to hurt the mouse and just excitedly watch the event.

So the more we can deal with the little lost animals on subway platforms to the little hungry ones seeking warmth in buildings in humane and life-affirming ways, the better off we all are. Here's to the tiny creatures that need some empathy!