Well. Nothing has really happened since yesterday, when nothing happened. They say, "What a difference today makes!", but I'm starting to wonder.

I've decided to let Sage go on mini field trips. Right now he's in the female mouse (the Mousettes) cage, because he's neutered. But he could also go in the male mouse (the Mouseketeers) cage  because...he's male. It works either way. So I'm going to put him in the Mouseketeers' cage every day for a little while, to visit with the boys. That way he can tell the Mousettes what's up with the boys, etc, etc, etc. You wonder, why doesn't just leave Sage in the Mouseketeers' cage all the time, and do field trips to the Mousettes'? Well, see I like the idea of him living with his "wife" (Nutmeg) all the time. You know, a Stay-At-Home-Dad. I feel that it's unfair to break these two up after all they've been through.

Well, that's all  folks!

MOUSETTES:

SAGE: the now-neutered father. Black and white, long-haired. White face. Large for a mouse (I think),probably because hormones got mixed up when he got neutered.

NUTMEG: the mom. Medium-brown and white.

OREGANO: daughter. Dark-brown and white, longhaired.

BASIL: daughter. Dark-brown and white, with a large spot over one eye.

CELERY SEED: daughter. Dark-gray and white.

MOUSEKETEERS:

THYME: son. white albino.

DILL WEED: son. Black and white, longhaired. Lokks like Sage.

PARSLEY: son. Silvery-brown, with  a white dot on forehead.

TARRAGON: son. Black with a white face.

CLOVE: son. Very-light-brown and white bands. Longhaired.

Hey this is #2 entry in my mouse log. Not much has happened except that I've seperated the males and females. Before, I had two cages hooked together with tubing. I took the  tubes out, blocked up the holes, and took out the males from the females. I left Sage (dad) in with the females because he's neutered.

I also got permission from my mom to keep all of the mice as long as they don't become a problem. I'm not sure how my dad is going to like this as he is the one who will probably have to make another, larger  cage to keep the males in permanently. If I do keep the males, I have to name them. So I've come up witha list of possible choices. Thyme, Bay Leaf, Clove, Tarragon, Parsely, and Dill Weed. There are five males, and six possible names, so I need to eliminate one.

That's all for today.

MOUSE TIP FOR THE DAY: ADD VARIETY TO A MOUSE'S DIET BY MIXING OATMEAL IN. THEY ALSO LIKE UNSWEETENED CEREALS, LIKE SHREDDED WHEAT. I REGULARLY FEED MINE CONVENTIONAL MOUSE FOOD, BUT I ALSO ALTERNATE WITH AN OATMEAL-BARLEY-SUNFLOWER SEED MIX. THEY PREFER THE LATTER, AND IT DOESN'T CONTAIN TASTELESS ALFALFA PELLETS.

Hi! This is my first entry so there's a LOT to tell.

When I first decided to get mice back in August, I did a ton of research on line to learn about mouse care. The BEST website is one called Mouse @horns. You get there by typing "pet mice" in to the AOL search, scroll down a little, and clicking on Mouse @horns.

Anyway, I had my dad build me a cage (which is actually better than most that you buy in a store), out of 1/2" held by a wood frame. The removable pan in the bottom is a LONG cake pan that my dad found somewhere.

Even though I'd done a lot of research on mice, I was still kinda vague as to the visible difference between males and females, so when I went to the pet store, I took their word that I was getting two female mice. I got a brown/white one (Nutmeg) and a black/white one (Sage).

Well. About a week later, I was watching the Sage climb around the cage when HELLO!  That is NOT female! I mean, I wasn't watching for anything, but it was hard to miss: Sage was a guy. I guess the mix up was because sometimes males can hide the...evidence.

So, here I was, with a male that I couldn't keep (because I couldn't handle multiple litters), but was becoming attached to. I didn't want to just return it to the store, I mean, it's not like a pair of socks. You can't just trade a living thing like that, like it's nothing. So, I decided to get Sage neutered so that I could keep him worry-free. A few days later, $25 less, Sage was...fixed.

But, of course, it was too late to stop the inevitable, Nutmeg was pregnant. Swollen up like a peach, she waddled around in the cage and nesting box, while I took notes at Mouse @horns.

On Oct. 16, she gave birth. A few days later, I peeked a look at her new litter. Eight squirmy, naked, blind, wrinkled...pinkies.

Now, all eight are running around with Mom and Pop, three weeks old, fuzzy, and fun. There is (ready for this?) one longhaired black male w/a white face; one longhaired back/white male; one silvery brown male; one albino male; one very fuzzy light brown/white male; one longhaired dark brown/white female; one medium brown/ white female; and a gray/white female. Five males, 3 females. I am definitly keeping all of the females. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep the males; I'd need a seperate cage. I don't want to bring them to a pet shop, because of the possiblity of reptilian futures. And it's hard to just give them away beacause you want them to have good homes. Hmm.

Well, because I know that I'm definitly keeping the females, I've named them. The dark brown/white one is Oregano, the medium brown/white one is Basil, and the gray/white one is Celery Seed. For those of you keeping notes, that makes Sage (dad), Nutmeg (mom), Oregano, Basil, and Celery Seed. And five unnamed males.

Just in case you haven't noticed, they are all named for spices. I do this for two reasons: (1) I'm a nut, and (2) it makes it easier to remember names if they're all related.

Well, I've talked enough for now, so bye!

MOUSE TIP FOR TODAY: BUY A SEPERATE SAFETY WHEEL AND EXERCISE BALL. IF YOU GET A BALL THAT CAN BE USED OUTSIDE THE CAGE FREE, AND INSIDE ON A STAND, IT WILL BUILD UP WASTES WHILE THEY USE IT INSIDE, AND START TO REALLY REEK. GET A MOUSE SIZED BALL, AND A MOUSE SIZED SAFETY WHEEL, AND SAVE YOURSELF THE SMELL.