My little mouse Stuart became quite sick after he was bitten by a spider.
I love giving him stuff I collect from the wild. This makes his terrarium and his life much more fun and interresting, but there is always a danger that accidentally something dangerous gets in. Lice, mites and other parasites from wild mice are the greatest risk, but so are spiders, centipedes and other venomous creatures. It is therefore very important to freeze anything collected from outside for at least two days before you give it to your small animals. This will kill most pests and keep your mouse healthy as well as allow him to enjoy all that great stuff to investigate and play in. Just make sure you allow it to reach room temperature before you give it to your little one, you don’t want to give him a chill.
Stuart recovered fully from his bite 🙂
Another idea: Candace Clukey commented: ‘I just thought I could tell you that if you don’t want to wait (and some insects can survive freezing temps) that you can microwave things as well. You just have to make sure you add a soaking wet paper towel and a bowl of water ( or just put leaves in the water). I have hermit crabs and microwave the little breaches/ driftwood I put in their tank to avoid infestation. I usually wet everything down and keep an eye on it while microwaving for three minutes or so. I can guarantee no spider is surviving a microwave zap. If you ever want to put dirt/ sand in his tank, you can bake it on a cookie sheet at 350 for ten minutes or so. Hope this helps.’
Music by Elizabeth Mitchell – You are my Flower