Doctors are trying to save a young girl's finger after she was bitten in her sleep during the mouse plague in Queensland's North Burnett region.
Ariella Cox, seven, was having a sleepover at a friend's house in Gayndah three weeks ago when she woke to a mouse nibbling on her right index finger, which led to a severe infection.
Her mother, Shannon Riddle, said local hospitals were unable to treat Ariella and she was airlifted to the Queensland Children's Hospital at the weekend.
"She was sent to Bundaberg Hospital and because of how bad the infection is then because it was in her bones, they sent us down to Brisbane," Ms Riddle said.
She said it had been a painful and terrifying ordeal for her daughter as she went in and out of surgery.
"She's scared of losing her finger … she's scared of the whole thing," Ms Riddle said.
"[The doctors are] doing everything they can to save her finger.
"Not sure how long we're going to be here — it could be a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on how the finger goes."
Ms Riddle is warning other parents against allowing children to sleep on mattresses on the floor while mice are active.
She said many people were baiting rodents in their homes.
"When they lay bait, just be very careful, especially if it's inside your house — and please don't put your children on the floor," Ms Riddle said.
Population declining
The North Burnett's mouse population reached plague proportions last month around the time Ariella was bitten, but numbers seem to be declining.
Gayndah veterinarian Nathan Hitchcock said weather conditions were taking a toll on the rodents.
"In Gayndah itself the numbers have dropped significantly," he said.
"We were killing 70 mice a day at the vet surgery and I haven't had more than one or two in the past week.
"We had some wet weather a few weeks ago … I think it drowned some of the burrows and killed a generation of young mice.
"They die of exposure when they get too cold."
Dr Hitchcock said he continued to receive calls almost daily about dogs eating rat bait and urged people to take better care in administering the poison.
"They should be able to be secured in a container that a dog can't get the baits out of and can't chew open," he said.
"Throwing them in the shed and relying on the dog not to touch them doesn't work.
"You can't go throwing them under washing machines either, because the mice will drag them out."
