One day, international relations student Max was called in to work to solve an unpleasant situation. His colleagues had caught a mouse in a glue trap, and none of them wanted to deal with the struggling animal. ‘They put the responsibility on me.’  

He was reluctant to take it on, considering he always thought of himself as an animal lover. ‘Mice just look so cute with their little hands and big eyes’, says Max. ‘In all honesty, I just want to keep them as a pet.’ 

But he also knew there is a risk of them bringing in diseases. And so he gave it a little snack while he stood there, broom in hand. Then he ‘made it as quick and painless as possible’.

To most people, that is the way to go. When you find a mouse in your house, you get rid of it as quickly as possible. ‘It’s scary knowing you might open yourself up to a risk of disease’, explains business student Anne. She also fears judgment from others. ‘What if I have guests over and it comes out from somewhere?’

European languages and culture student Ioana covered her house in traps when she discovered a mice infestation after waking up at night from loud scurrying sounds in the walls. ‘This isn’t Ratatouille. I don’t want them to control my life. You have to make a very clear distinction on what is a pet and what is vermin.’ 

Old beliefs

But is the distinction really that clear-cut? After all, we also keep mice as pets and they are useful to us as test subjects. 

An infestation of rats or mice reflected that you didn’t have your shit together

History PhD Sven Gins studies the way humans have related to animals since the Middle Ages. He knows that much of our feelings and beliefs towards mice and their bigger relatives, rats, are actually centuries old.

Mice, he says, still play a significant role in the human-animal divide – the idea that humans are superior and distinct from other species. This divide is a major factor in our fear and disgust of mice. ‘Up to the 17th century, it was believed that mice and rats are literally born from filth’, he says. ‘People believed they spontaneously generated out of the dirt that we have in our homes. So bluntly put,  an infestation of rats or mice reflected that you didn’t have your shit together as a person.’

Trials

Sometimes, this even led to trials against the rodents. These trials – with church lawyers for both sides – were supposed to clarify whether mice were a punishment from God, in which case people deserved them, or if they were there because of malicious intent. ‘People wanted to confirm that they weren’t to blame, and it was the rats and mice who were responsible for their difficulties.’ 

Cases have been recorded that seem absurd to us now. For example, one lawyer representing the animals during trial managed to convince the court to drop the case, because his clients were not able to defend themselves due to the roaming cats. ‘He said, we need to postpone. It’s just not safe for my client to attend the trial.’

Mice and rats were also blamed for various disasters, most notably the Black Death, which caused millions of deaths all over Europe and completely disrupted society. ‘We know now that was not completely true’, Gins says. Instead, research suggests that humans were the main carriers of the disease through lice and fleas. Still, the idea lingers on and is sometimes still taught in schools as fact.

Pet mouse

But even though the medieval fear of mice is still very much alive, there have been changes in the relationship between mice and men. These days, many people even keep them as pets, like AI student Ilinca.

It is never pleasant to kill another living thing

A friend of hers had a pet python which was fed with frozen mice. When one of the animals – which the friend ordered online – arrived alive, Ilinca decided to give it a home. ‘I always say he’s the luckiest mouse.’  She named him Bobitzo Bobert and he quickly won the hearts of her friends. ‘People just fall for him instantly, and my roommates are in love with him.’  

Bobitzo has taught Ilinca how similar to us mice can be, she says. ‘It’s so fascinating to see him interact with things. Sometimes he rearranges the object I give him with no clear goal at all. I think it’s just because he likes having them in his home. It’s like he is decorating.’

Test subjects

Meanwhile, mice are also viewed as useful test subjects to help humans battle diseases. Biomedical engineering student Patricija uses them to research the efficacy of a new medication to slow some of the processes involved in aging, for example. ‘Mice share a lot of genetic and physiological traits with us’, she explains.

These studies are a necessary step before the research can move on to clinical trials and eventually save lives, but she does sometimes grapple with the ethics of her work. ‘I am vegan, so there is this moral struggle sometimes. But I mostly only work with the organs. That way it is easier to detach from the living animal and to see the necessity.’

Like all creatures, mice simply have a right to exist

Animal studies aren’t approved easily, Patricija stresses, and she puts her trust in that system. ‘It is a very deliberate and complicated process and if a researcher can avoid using mice, they will. I think it only ever proceeds when it is absolutely necessary.’

She did once voluntarily attend the termination of the test subjects to gain a full view of what she was doing. ‘I expected a murder scene’, she says, ‘but I was mostly surprised by how bloodless it all was. They raised the CO²  level in the box. One moment they were standing, and the next they were falling unconscious.’ 

Still, Patricija thinks people would rather not engage with mice in this way. ‘It is never pleasant to kill another living thing.’

Peaceful co-existence

What we need to do, says researcher of nature-human relations Angelica Caiza Villegas, is consider more forms of existing alongside various species of animals. And this is not just about endangered species all around the world, it’s also about mice in the city. 

They are just animals like us, after all, doing their thing, like us. ‘If they can get into your house, they can find food, they have shelter. They feel safe. Of course they’re going to stay and start a family there.’

She hopes for a peaceful co-existence. ‘Mice can be pets, they are smart, they have rich emotional lives, and they are used for medical trials. All this makes them more than just pests’, she says. ‘But more than that, like all creatures, they simply have a right to exist. If you clean your house and the mouse isn’t coming specifically into your room, there’s no risk of disease. You can make a space for other organisms to live without putting yourself in danger.’

Gins agrees with her fully. ‘If we as historians don’t deal with the urgent questions surrounding biodiversity or the loss of planetary life, then, soon enough, it will be too late to do so.’ 

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