Runt_and_Sasha

       I call Runt and Sasha rescues because that is what I consider them to be, but this is a highly debatable subject. If you disagree with me on this, I am always ready to participate in a stimulating discussion. E-mail me and we can chat :).

        Runt, Sasha, Cyrano, and Snickers came out of a feeder bin (a 100 gallon tub with 200+ mice) at a reptile show. I had the space, and I wanted to save a few of them. I picked Sasha, Snickers, and Cyrano because they were beautiful, and I picked Runt because my friend Hope had pity on her. When I saw Runt, she looked so bad I was almost sure she would die soon. She was obviously younger than the rest of the mice; she looked like her eyes were just barely open. She was lethargic, and had bite marks up and down her back where the other mice had driven her away in efforts to save their own lives. The water bowl was much too high for her to get into, and she was dehydrated. Hope picked her up and told me that I should get that one. I figured it wouldn't hurt since the little mouse probably wouldn't live anyways. I held her up to the man selling them and talked him down from $.50 to $.25 because she was so pitiful.

        I brought all four mice home and spoiled them rotten. All were treated to the best food, the best cages, and the best vet. Runt completely recovered without any scarring, and everyone else fattened up. However, it hasn't all been wine and roses. Sasha and Snickers became symptomatic for Myco, so everyone had to be treated with antibiotics. Total cost about $150. Everyone was fine, until Nick and I went away for the weekend. The heat went out, and we lost Snickers and Cyrano because (being males) they were kept separate and didn't have other mice to snuggle up to for warmth.

        Right now, I just have Mina, Sasha, and Runt, but I take comfort in the fact that even the mice I lost had much longer and happier lives than they would have if I had just passed them over.