By Ruza Zivkusic
LUKE Scholes went to the pet store for a couple of goldfish and walked out with a pair of white mice.
And two years later the Sunshine man has a collection of 100 mice and three rats in his backyard shed.
The 26-year-old breeder said it’s proved to be a hobby difficult to give up.
Mr Scholes spends up to two hours every day feeding the small creatures, which he believes have personality.
Stuart Little, his favourite white mouse, is a funny fellow who enjoys a close encounter when eating out of his owner’s hand.
But trouble can come in the shape of Mr Scholes’ two cats, who tend to chase the mice – or vice versa.
“At one time a mouse chased the cat through the house before the cat ran outside and jumped the fence,” Mr Scholes said.
The part-time chef is not married and said he did not think girls would be very fond of knowing about his special hobby.
“I don’t think it’s a good pick-up line, although I’ve never tried it,” he said.
Mr Scholes is a member of the Australian Fancy Rat and Mouse Association, and will shortly be bathing his mice in preparation for a mice and rats competition in Sunshine.
Mr Scholes recently received a short phone call from Channel 9, asking him to allow one of his mice to be used in a TV program.
Last year he won a second prize at the Royal Melbourne Show with his mice and rats.
“It’s just a hobby to take care of them and sell them to people who want pet mice for their kids instead of getting them from the pet store,” Mr Scholes said.
The rat and mouse competition will be held at 11am on 29 July in the St John Ambulance headquarters, in Sunshine.
