Help! Mouse Feces in My Desk Drawer!

[diamond lil]

I opened my desk drawer at work to get a Belly Bar to munch on and it appears a mouse has got into the drawer and shredded my stash of Belly Bars and Girl Scout Cookies! And there are little turds all over! :irked: What should I do? Should I attempt to clean it? Are mouse feces harmful to pregnant women?

Thanks

[VeganCupcake]

I've had this happen to me at work. Yuck. I feel for you!

Especially if you live in the SW U.S., your mouse friend could be harboring hantavirus, which is a respiratory virus that can be pretty dangerous--but to everyone, not really just pregnant women. (It's not all that common, so I wouldn't panic, but it is something to be aware of.)

The key is to make sure the droppings are damp (with a spray bottle of water or cleaner or something) instead of dry when they are cleaned up, or the virus can become airborne.

I would ask the custodial staff to handle the cleanup--you don't have to do it.

And this is probably a well, duh, thing to say, but now that you know that there's a mouse in your work area, keep your snacks in mouse-proof containers so there isn't a temptation for your mouse to come back to you.

[diamond lil]

Thank you! We just moved into this building a few weeks ago, so I was unaware that there were still mice! I talked to the custodian, who basically told me to suck it up and clean it myself. I'm going to talk to my boss about it. That's just wrong. I have no gloves or cleaning sprays or anything.

[Sunshine4004]

You should NOT be responsible for cleaning that up even if you weren't pregnant. I hate rodents so I would be freaking out. I wouldn't even want my feet on the floor under my desk where a mouse might run over it :lol

[VeganCupcake]

Oh, yeah, call in the big guns and get some help! Especially if you don't have any decent supplies!

[paquerette]

I recommend the Lock & Lock type storage containers to mouse-proof snacks. You can get them in every size imaginable.

Also, after the cleanup is done, put a few drops of peppermint EO or extract in the corners of the desk drawers. This repels mice.

[Materfamilias]

DON'T clean it yourself!!!! Rodents can harbor diseases harmful to fetus:

http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/173_16809.asp