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A week in the life of my pets and guests - April

Wednesday

A bit of a slower day today. I was tired and it's very cold today so I mostly spent the day working and sitting around listening to podcasts (though I did also go out to post a parcel and for a walk). I also spot cleaned Leo's cage as his hammocks were full of empty seed husks and his wheel was filthy.

I did try to get Magic the mouse out but he wasn't interested today. I was able to hold him the other day and I love the way mice curl their tails around your hand when you hold them! Here is Magic deciding whether he was going to be brave and step onto my hand (he didn't).

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Mice are lovely animals, very active and agile, naturally friendly and curious, and very rarely bite. Unfortunately they can smell a bit, especially the unneutered males. But I'm getting used to it.
 
That is a lovely photo :-) Yes it has been cold and damp! It's supposed to be nicer weather at the week-end (in our neck of the woods anyway).

That looks like such a lovely enriched set up for the mouse.
 
Sorry to hear you are tired today. I hope you can get a good sleep. Magic is so cute! It sounds lovely that mice curl their tail around your hand when you hold them.
 
Beryl said:
Have you ever had harvest mice?
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I haven't (very few people keep them). I thought about getting some myself once as I like the idea of creating a natural habitat for them, but I don't think I have space.
 
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Thursday
I worked for a couple of hours today but I haven't got much left to do for the week now, so I mostly spent the day doing other things. I did a bit of house-cleaning and went for a walk.

My mum was joking a few months ago about wanting a Lego plant that she couldn't kill, so my brothers gave her a Lego orchid kit for Christmas. It's very fiddly with many tiny pieces and I helped her build it this afternoon.

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I also worked a bit on a cross stitch. I started this a long time ago but I keep being distracted by projects for other people, such as a birth sampler I did for a relative's new granddaughter and a gift I'm currently doing for someone else. This project is purely for myself and it will probably take years to finish! This is the finished picture and it's actually one of a series of four, one for each season.

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Leo sulked for the rest of the evening after I spot cleaned his cage yesterday but he's back to normal tonight. He's very easy going about most things but he really doesn't like his cage being interfered with so I try to keep spot cleaning to a minimum.

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I gave the gerbils a forage bar today. It was supposed to be one of their birthday presents but I decided to give it a couple of days early. Astra really liked but Twiglet wasn't as impressed.
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I was able to hold Cali again (she's selective about when she will allow me to touch her) and I still can't get over how cute she is. I'm very jealous of her young owner. She reminds me of Bramble although she's lighter in colour. She makes me want to get a Russian dwarf again even though I really shouldn't right now!

I didn't get a photo but I had my Syrian boarder Alex out for a bit. She's a difficult hamster to photograph for some reason, but she's a banded chocolate hamster. She's stayed a few times now and she's an all round great hamster - friendly, tame and calm. She can also fill her pouches more than any other hamster I've known and sometimes unbalances herself in doing so!
 
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Firstly - I am incredibly impressed with that cross stitch :-) It is something I couldn't do. And it's such a beautiful and intricate pattern. I love the lego orchid! I didn't know lego made things like that. Leo is looking as cute as ever, and glad he has got over his spot clean (perhaps he will pee on his wheel less now!). I love the photo of the gerbil with the treat bar - she looks really happy! So is Cali a Russian Dwarf (I was thinking that was the mouse as first).
 
Maz said:
Firstly - I am incredibly impressed with that cross stitch :) It is something I couldn't do. And it's such a beautiful and intricate pattern. I love the lego orchid! I didn't know lego made things like that. Leo is looking as cute as ever, and glad he has got over his spot clean (perhaps he will pee on his wheel less now!). I love the photo of the gerbil with the treat bar - she looks really happy! So is Cali a Russian Dwarf (I was thinking that was the mouse as first).
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Cali is the Russian dwarf, yes. Magic is the mouse :)

I didn't know Lego did that kind of thing either but they now have a range of kits aimed more at adults which my brothers like.
 
What a lovely day! I really enjoyed reading about your day and found it very relaxing.

I love the lego orchid and didn't know that they do orchid kits. My kind of orchid and will have to look it up.

Your cross stitch is a very ambitious project i could never even dream of attempting.

Had to laugh at sulky Leo. Sulky or not, he looks super cute and so does the happy gerbil.

Lovely to hear about your borders as well.
 
You all did a great job of putting the Lego together. I remember last Christmas their flower kits were sold out. I was going to buy one for my partner.

Your cross stitch work is beautiful. I love how cross stitch looks.

I smiled at Leo sulking over the cage clean. Looks like he is settling in very well.

Happy birthday in advance to Astra and Twiglet.
 
I've just had a word with Albert and we think you should get another russian dwarf hamster 🐹💕
 
That orchid really is amazing!
Lovely to see little Leo, glad the sulks are over, he sounds like a typical Chinesey in that respect.
Great photo of the gerbil enjoying an early birthday present.
Cali sounds so sweet, she’s definitely trying to tell you something!
 
Friday

Not too much to write about today. I finished all my work for the week and I cleaned out Magic the mouse. This involved washing his hammocks and ropes by hand and hanging them out to dry. Sometimes I wonder what the neighbours make of this. I was putting old hamster bedding in the outside bin the other day, and next door's cat did seem very interested in that!

Mice seem to infuse everything in their cage with a mousy smell, which with the wooden things, doesn't quite go away even after washing! This smell is somewhat similar to the male dwarf hamster smell but not quite the same.

I had to wake Magic up to clean him out:

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Here is Leo looking photogenic:

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I had Combo the Syrian out this evening. He's very cuddly and I think he has a friendly face too.

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I like to grow chillis most years. Some years they've done really well. They've been a bit slow to germinate this year, but I finally have some signs of life!

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Gosh, washing Magic's items sound like hard work! How exciting to see some progress with your chilli plants. I guess this means you like spicy food. :)

You have the cutest boarders. The care you give them is just wonderful. You treat them like your own. Lovely to see Leo has forgiven you for cleaning his cage.
 
You sound to really have a houseful at the moment! That really is a lovely photo of Leo - yes he is looking very photogenic! He looks alert and curious and happy.

I have heard about male mouse smell - it's their urine as well isn't it?! It can be tricky. It makes you wonder if hammocks are right for them if they have this kind of thing - but then wood items are hard to clean as well. I suppose long term you'd swap the hammocks out and washing them in between.

I did laugh when you said you wondered what the neighbours think! I had a vision of you hanging mini hammocks on the line and it making people curious :-) Combo looks gorgeous. I wish I had a boarding place like you near me. I just rely on a petsitter but the hamsters don't get out of cage time all week. Mind you they tend to hide away until I come back.

Impressed with the chillis! I'm not good at growing things in pots.
 
The mouse smell is a combination of urine and just a general odour intrinsic to them (which is mostly the male mice, female mice don't seem to have this intrinsic odour). You can keep on top of the urine smell to some extent with cleaning but the intrinsic mouse smell will always stick around wherever a male mouse is. A rescue near me recommends using lots of cardboard with mice since it can be thrown away and replaced whenever it gets too smelly.

I actually like growing chillis much more than eating them, as I find the plants pretty. I eat them sometimes but I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan of spicy food! Sometimes I give them away.
 
I've heard that about cardboard as well. :)
 
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