Two kittens filled one home with live mice, a columnist recalls
A household was overrun after two young cats began carrying live wood mice into the house, according to a personal column published by The Guardian.
Key points
- A columnist for The Guardian describes two kittens that hunted wood mice outdoors and released them indoors
- The cats were named Mimi and Ruben and were acquired during lockdown
- Mice used the cupboard under the sink and a drip tray behind the fridge
- One mouse bit the writer, who needed a tetanus booster
- The writer says the family no longer lives near woods
A columnist writing for The Guardian has described how two pet kittens filled a family home with live mice. The account, published on 3 November 2026, is a personal reflection rather than a news report. It nonetheless sets out a sequence of events that the writer says left the household struggling to keep up.
The writer lived in an older house beside woods full of rodents. The home had been free of mice until the family adopted two tabby kittens, named Mimi and Ruben, during lockdown. Once the kittens had developed their coordination, they began to hunt. They did not target birds. Instead they focused on wood mice, which the writer believes were scarce indoors, so the cats caught them outside.
Mice released indoors
According to the column, the cats carried their captured prey back into the house and let them go. Many of the animals were still alive. The writer suggests the cats may have believed the mice would make entertaining pets.
Signs of a catch were easy to spot. The cats would sit near gaps under cupboard doors or along loose skirting boards, making a sound the writer describes as odd. The family then moved furniture, crawled across the floor and tried to trap the animals using upturned plastic food containers.
Caught mice were taken to the woods and released. The cats were shut indoors during these outings so they could not see where the mice went. Some mice still slipped into the structure of the house and could not be removed.
Smells, a bite and a hidden trough
The writer reports that the cupboard under the kitchen sink began to smell of mouse droppings and urine. The family used humane traps baited with peanut butter to catch the remaining animals. One mouse was repeatedly returned to the house after release. When the writer held it on kitchen paper in an effort to form a bond, it bit a finger, and the writer needed a tetanus booster.
Later, a faint smell resembling rotten eggs grew stronger. Behind the refrigerator, the writer found a tray that collects water dripping from the appliance so that it can evaporate. Mice had used the tray as a toilet. Because the tray could not be detached, the writer soaked up the liquid with rolls of kitchen paper before scrubbing it clean.
Why the account matters
The column is a light, personal story and does not include figures, official data or expert advice. It does, however, show how pets that hunt outdoors can change conditions inside a home, and how pest problems can become difficult to manage once animals are established in the walls or under appliances. The writer says the family no longer lives next to woods.
Frequently asked questions
What did the cats in the column do?
According to the column, the two kittens hunted wood mice outdoors and carried them back into the house, where they were released. The writer says the cats also guarded gaps where mice were hiding.
How did the family try to remove the mice?
The family moved furniture, used upturned food containers as traps and released caught mice in nearby woods. They also used humane traps baited with peanut butter for the remaining animals.
Was anyone hurt in the story?
The writer says a mouse bit a finger while being held, and the writer needed a tetanus booster. The column does not describe any other injuries.
Sources
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