28
May
2007
We had a bit of disastrous day here Saturday when not only did Old Bear the spiny pass away (the third spiny I’ve lost :() but I also found Gracie with two big bites on her after I thought the gradual intros had gone so well. Left with two lonely spinys now (Bear lived with Hoggle) I’ve spent the weekend trying to decide what to do for the best for them. Given what she’s been through I daren’t risk trying Grace with more adults, I couldn’t put her through the stress of it again but there are now no baby girls for me to get to live with her. Given that I’m also very worried about how introducing Hoggle to more boys would go the perfect solution seems to be having Hogs neutered so he and Grace can live together. However I know most vets, mine included, have never even seen a spiny mouse so I’m very apprehensive about what the risks would be with the op, if they’ll even do it.
Plus I really need to decide if its really fair to let my Charlie go on. Every time I think he’s had enough he seems to perk up for a couple of days but the reality is that he’s 2 and half, has limited use of his back legs, struggles with solid food, needs me to help him wash and is generally bald, frail and asleep most of the time. And its only going to get worse. 
ETA: Have just been speaking to the foster home my spinys came from and it turns out Hoggle has had an operation before, he had his mangled tail amputated when he was first rescued. Knowing that he has successfully come through an op before makes a big difference, anxious to talk to my vet now!
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20
May
2007
Baby the spiny mouse died unexpectedly on Friday evening, no signs I just found her lying on the floor of the cage. I know given the background her and that one of her litter mates has also died it shouldn’t come as a great surprise but it never seems fair when an animal dies so young. Grace is missing her friend already and seems very down in the dumps, poor love so I’ll be trying to introduce her to my other 3 girls later on today - wish me luck!
Also I think I’m nearing the time I have to make a difficult decision with my beloved Charlie. He’s had rough patches several times now and remarkably has always bounced back but at nearly 2 1/2 yrs old I think its unlikely this time and sadly he’s deteriorating by the day now. Its all a bit doom and gloom here today.
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7
May
2007
I came home Saturday evening with not two but four spiny meeces. As well as Grace and the originally named little girl I’ve called Baby I’m now also mummy to two of the most adorable spiny boys, Hoggle (because it sounds a bit like hobble!) who has half of one of his back feet missing and Old Bear who’s a big old scruffy, soppy lump of a mouse. I had planned on taking them after my foster boys had been homed but Sarah (see www.sprogpages.co.uk) had brought them with her when I met up with her and having seen them I figured what the hey, the more the merrier! 
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5
May
2007
Well its been a busy week here but not all that much to report mouse-wise. Benji’s skin is looking much better and he is definitely much happier to be back with his friends bless him. The girls are all fine although Hazel is starting to show her age now so I’ll be keeping a close eye on her. Amelia the spiny finally seems to have recovered from loosing Heidi and bonded with the other two, she really had me worried for a while! The foster boys are having to live separate for a bit as the lilac one decided to start taking chunks out of the other one despite having lived with him his whole life. A bit of fighting was to be expected given the new territory but unfortunately blood was shed so wounds need to heal before I can try them together again. Oh and I very nearly had some fosters of a very different kind when a friend asked if I’d be able to look after a pair of chipmunks for a few days! As it turned out they found a home closer to where they already are though so it wasn’t necessary.
Today’s news though is that I’m taking two more spiny mice from the recent huge rescue case. They’re two very special little girls, one is a little runty one who hasn’t been too healthy and the other has no back legs! Her wonderful foster Mum said the way she gets about despite her disability is just amazing so what else could I call her but Grace! The other one hasn’t a name yet but no doubt it won’t take me long once I’ve picked them up this evening. 
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25
April
2007
I had two little foster boys arrive last night from a lady who had advertised them on the freeads website. Its been several months since any young, entire males were in the house and somehow I always forget just how much they whiff! There are currently 15 other rodents in the house and you can’t smell a thing but within minutes of these two arriving and being transferred to their new cage the whole house was delicately frangranced with ‘L’eau d’boy mouse’ musk. 
Fortunately I not only have a bottle of the wonder that is Tap-a-drop odor neutralizer I also know that it’ll improve once they are settled in.
Anyway smelly or not the little men in question are totally gorgeous, so gorgeous in fact that I nearly made myself late for the school/work run this morning by letting them out for a run first thing….opps! Who could resist these little guys though….
…….now just to get them used to being handled and find them a loving new home!
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22
April
2007
My poor Benji had been on his own in the hospital tank for a week whilst I treated him for an itchy skin condition. I knew he wasn’t particularly happy in there but last night he near enough begged me to be let back in the main cage!
He was playing on the sofa whilst I cleaned his tank and the big cage was stood nearby ready for me to clean that next. He stood on his back legs sniffing in the direction of the cage for a while (making me feel totally guilty and sorry for him in the process lol!) and the next thing I knew he’d gone missing from the sofa!
Less than a couple of minutes later I spotted him though - hanging half way up the side of the big cage rubbing noses with Felix through the bars!!! After that I hadn’t the heart to put him back on his own so needless to say he got his own way and is back in with all his friends, even if it does makes it that bit harder for me to keep an eye on his skin. Of course it was only minutes before he and Felix started scrapping over their favourite wheel (you’d think they could play in different ones given there’s three in there but no!) …boys eh!!
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16
April
2007
More sad news to report unfortunately, I found Heidi (one of my new spiny girls) dead this morning when I went to clean the tank. She obviously hadn’t been dead very long as she was still very soft to touch, first time I’ve really been able to handle one of them. Haven’t been able to make myself bury her yet, four in less than two weeks is four burials too many!
On a more positive note my newest little addition has settled beautifully in the main cage as this piccy of her sleeping with Ebony and Emily that I took this morning shows.
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12
April
2007
Welcome to the very first entry in my brand new blog! Here you will be able to read about all the ups and downs here at AAM headquarters, follow the stories of my own mice and gain a general insight into what its like to be ever-so-slightly mouse mad!
My first post in ‘The Mouse Diaries’ as it turns out is a bittersweet one. Bitter because I’ve buried three of my mice in the last week (two very old girls who were both sad but not unexpected losses and a year old male which was a total shock) and sweet because in just over an hours time I’m off to pick up the newest addition to my rodent family. She’s been lucky enough to have two wonderful foster mummy’s to take care of her whilst we were finding a way of her getting to me from Wales but as she’s lived alone the whole time I’m itching to get her here and settled with my girls. Look out for pictures on the forums later today!
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