A Little Mouse

March 2012
There are certain creatures that can be a pain to some people's belongings.

Some creatures make holes in antique clothes, chew wires in houses, and just aren't liked by humans. One creature in particular is mice. I know mice are dirty rodents, who sometimes spread diseases, but they are just so darn cute. I remember in my childhood when my mummy would read me a Beatrix Potter book, the illustrations of the mice looked so adorable. Those illustrations, to me, match the exact description of little field or house mice people often capture in traps. One thing that I absolutely despise are certain mouse traps. If I ever have to trap a mouse it will be done with a teeter-totter trap, where the door closes when the mouse gets in, but also doesn't get hurt. I'm also not a big fan for snap traps. These are the old fashion traps where the mouse goes and gets the cheese in the middle and his head gets snapped. Even if the trap is quick, it still makes me sympathize with the little animal, but the most unruly trap for mice, snakes, insects ever invented was the sticky trap. Sticky traps should be outlawed. They are harmful to house hold pets and are just flat out cruel. The animal gets stuck on the trap and if he moves he will break a leg or his skin will peel off. The idea of the trap is to only starve the animal to death, which again is inhumane. Yes you are probably thinking that I have never killed anything, you are right unless you are talking about mosquitoes. I'm not a big fan of them. Anyway, all I can say is that I have respect for all creatures great and small. 
The reason for my long tangent at the beginning is to explain my position on trapping situations. One day in March, I went to visit a friend at her college. I was a fairly big college with about only two thousand students. As I was walking through the hallway, I heard a little squeak, but it didn't sound like a cute squeak you hear in cartoons. This squeak sounded as if the animal was in pain. I tried to follow where the sound was coming

from. I turned the corner in the hallway and went into the utility closet. There was a little mouse on the floor. I noticed that he was standing on something black. I picked it up and he was stuck to the paper, but it wasn't just black paper, it was of course a sticky trap. The poor little mouse was attempting to gnaw off his own leg. 
I tried picking him up but it was no good and of course he bit me out of fright. I ran the paper under hot water, and it seemed to help the mouse some. Finally, I was able to pry his body off of the paper. While he was sitting in my hand he bit my thumb, I guess out of generosity. I bandaged up his leg so it wouldn't get infected and I put him outside to scurry away. After he hopped down from my hand, he looked at me as if to say thank you for helping me. 
As he ran away, I saw some other mice come to greet him. That moment really put a smile on my face to see such a loving family.