curious about owning a mouse? - Paw Talk

kala83 · #1 07-26-2007, 05:58 PM

I've never owned a mouse before at all...and to be honest would just be a little afraid too for right now. Not really cuz I don't like them or that they scare me more so because we had a problem with wild mice getting into the house about a year ago and sadly the problem was so large that we had to put up mouse poison...just because there was far to many for us to catch individually and even if we could I highly doubt it would do any good. So I think I would be kind of nervous to have it out around the house very much.. Just cuz I don't know how mouse friendly the house would be.
But I have thought of the idea of getting a single mouse for quite a while now. I've never owned a rodent and would enjoy the experience, also the thought of that most rodents are not to expensive to keep up with and take care of is not a bad one either...but like I said since I am un experienced in this field I might be totally wrong about that.
If I was to do this it probably would not be any time soon, just cuz I need to re-vamp a lot of stuff around my house and other things. Before I even consider getting any kind of new animal, I might wait for a few years until after I graduate from College and then after I move in with my BF in KS look into getting a Mouse.
If its ok I would really just like a basic over view of the animal as a pet! Giving me info on what kind of cage you need to store it in, what others kinds of things you need like bedding etc...
As well as if anyone wants to share personal stories about their pets I would love to hear them

as well as why you like mice for pets and what some of the pros to owning them are.
Any info along these lines would be great info...and hopefully some time in the near future I'll be getting a little fuzz ball of my own!

Vanilla_Rat · #2 07-26-2007, 07:54 PM

Mice make wonderful little pets.They are friendly and interactive little guys.

However I reccommend TWO.Get a pair of females.They are very social animals and need to be in pairs or groups to really thrive.They also do not smell like males do.So I say get two.That is when your ready.I would wait until you have the wild mouse population a little under control.

DO NOT USE pine or cedar shavings.These are toxic.Safe ones are aspen,hemp,Carefresh or Yesterdays News.I use aspen and sometimes mix it with YN.

Mice are not really a cuddly pet.Some LOVE to be fussed over by their owners,while others hate it.I currently have three and two of them enjoy me handling them and one dislikes it,but tolerates it.I have owned several mice over the yrs and have noticed that some are really affectionate,while others like to keep to themselves.If you want a really smart,cuddly,affectionate animal that will bond with you,then get a rat.

Mice are not expensive to keep.

Any other questions?

Jess · #3 07-26-2007, 09:52 PM

I would like to get some mice eventually in my life and I was wondering, can they be kept in "colonys"? I wanted to put 5 or 6 Females together... I think a little colony would be cute.

I cant get them until I move out tho. My mom doesnt like mice/rats.

Vanilla_Rat · #4 07-26-2007, 09:54 PM

Oh yes! 5-6 female mice would be good.They are very social and like being in little groups.They are quite fun to watch when you have a group of them as well.

I just have the 3 now,but would like to add to my group.I used to have several mice together over the yrs.

Mousey · #5 07-27-2007, 12:30 AM

If you want to have a colony try to make sure the age groups aren't too far away because the younger ones may exaust the older ones and there needs to be an abundance of "territories" for them. Along with proper amount of space. I have like two colonies at the moment and they are fun to watch and play with.

Snark · #6 07-27-2007, 01:56 AM

I've never owned mice before, but have considered it and I myself would love a little colony some day, too.

As was said, they are social animals, and like all social animals, they will be happier with others. Males have a reputation for fighting with one another, so they can be kept alone. But females should not be by themselves (although they can fight too).

Also, when deciding between males and females, remember that males to smell more while females much less, but males are much slower and calmer than females and a better choice if you want to cuddle it often. While not all males and females fit these descriptions, it's generally true.

For cages, just keep in mind that they can escape, so always ensure where ever they are living, there are not cracks or small openings. Commercial hamster cages work well, both the simpler ones and the newer colourful ones with plenty of tubing accessories. Tanks can also be used, but because of poor ventilation, would have to be cleaned out more often.

For food, you can get commercial mouse lab blocks (pellets) from pet stores. I don't know if there are any existing homemade mice mix recipes, but if there are, you can put together a mix yourself. Treats are always welcome. Cheerios, commercial pet yougurt drops, and fruits and veggies are great. A water bottle should be placed in the cage.

For enrichment, any cardboard or paper boxes/bags/tubes can provide chewable hiding places. Wood is also good for chewing on but can be difficult to clean. A wheel is a must. As a safety hazard, get one with no spaces between the bars as they might get their feet or tail caught. You can also include hammocks, pieces of cloth, and other metal or hard plastic containers or toys.Also remember that they do need to chew things regularly to trim their teeth.

Mice are intelligent, affectionate and can learn to enjoy being held. I find from my own experience, unless you hold them very often when young, they will get rather racey and even frustrating to hold and interact with. Hamsters are very similar to mice other than the fact they are slower by nature and a little easier to handle than mice. Rats on the other hand, will adore you for playing with them and are often compared with dogs, personality wise, rather than rodents.

Gary · #7 07-27-2007, 06:46 AM

Thats what i waz wondering!But im getting 2 females!Cant wait,im getting them before the next month!And,no offince,how could you like a rat?I mean,did you see their tails?They look infected!

Snark · #8 07-27-2007, 04:40 PM

Gary, rat tails might appear discoloured or dirty from their urine staining the skin. They are highly clean animals and groom every part of their body, but some rats don't bother to clean their tail. Bathing is needed if you want your rat to have a clean tail, but many people rarely bother to do this regularly since they aren't bothered by unclean tails. There are plenty of rats that have tails as clean as mice, and quite possibley, mice that have the same stained appearence as rats.

Vanilla_Rat · #9 07-27-2007, 11:00 PM

Snark is right.
Rats are VERY clean animals.And very smart,affectionate and lovable.They are like little dogs in personality.

kala83 · #10 07-28-2007, 09:27 PM

Thank you all so much for the wonderful advise!I probably will end up getting two femlaes as suggested. But I don't think I will be getting these guys any time soon, just since like Jess my mother is not to keen on little mice either. She seems to think they are cute but if they are out lose she tries to get to higher ground as soon as she can. And she has never been a big fan of rodent pets, so I think I will probably end up getting my two girls in about 2 or 3 years from now after I move in with my BF in Kansas.
lol he is probably going to flip out when I move up there, if things go the way I want them to..I will have Guena Pig, a Rabbit, and at least two Bettas as well as some Dwarf Puffers moving in with me. lol I did try to warn him that I was a Animal person, and he didn't seem to mind so hopefully having all that and some mice will not freak him out to awfuly much.
Oh I was wondering, those little see through plastic balls you see in pet stores sometimes, can mice play in those? when I get these guys I am almost going to be afraid to let them play outside of the cage for fear of losing them. So I though getting something like that were they could play all they wanted to in a contained area would be a good idea.

Skratikans · #11 07-29-2007, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snark


	Gary, rat tails might appear discoloured or dirty from their urine staining the skin. They are highly clean animals and groom every part of their body, but some rats don't bother to clean their tail. Bathing is needed if you want your rat to have a clean tail, but many people rarely bother to do this regularly since they aren't bothered by unclean tails. There are plenty of rats that have tails as clean as mice, and quite possibley, mice that have the same stained appearence as rats.

with regular cleaning you can eliminate that dirty tail appearance, i gently scrub mine and they dont have that tail appearance

kala83 · #12 09-12-2007, 10:43 PM

I just thought I would let everyone know that I just got one step closer to getting some new mice. My mother tipped me off that one of the local antique stores in town was going out of business and they had lots of used pet supplies. I picked up two critter traveling cases (the little plastic contains that have little tot lids on em to move animals around for a temporary home) and a pretty fair sized Plastic Hamster cage with supplies included..I think it would be perfect for two small mice..and I am going to look into getting two of em...in about a month. I will make sure to put up a picture of the cage...and show you guys.
If you have any advice for me as to just what I should do clean the cage out and prepare it for its occupants that would be great too!

Vanilla_Rat · #13 09-12-2007, 10:48 PM

Some advice - do NOT use pine or cedar.Thats very toxic and causes RI's.

Sharni · #14 09-12-2007, 11:29 PM

You can use pine...it just needs to be kiln dried to be safe (not that i'm entirely convinced that normal pine is as bad as they say either)

Anyway kiln dried it generally accepted by a lot of experienced mouse people as perfectly safe to use for rodents

pinkie1205 · #15 09-12-2007, 11:52 PM

It's true that kiln dried isn't that bad but really it can be hard to find. A lot of chin people use kiln dried pine.

My main problem with pine is the DUST. Just like carefresh and pretty much any bedding you are going to find in a petstore. Yesterday News is good stuff and its GREAT for keeping down smell. I personally use eco bedding, and my mice LOVE The stuff. They build little underground cities in that stuff

Anyway to the OP....you can clean the new cage in bleach but make sure it's like 1 part bleach to 10 parts water and rinse WELL. I wouldn't even use enough bleach that you can smell in the water. And I recommend a seed mix or some kind of homemade mix for mice. A lot of lab blocks don't have enough fat in them and mice need the seeds. I fed mine lab blocks for a few months and they pretty much withered away. They got so skinny I HAD to switch to a seed mix for them. Mice do need different diets then rats.

Also those little hamster balls are okay but get the medium sized one not the smallest ones. They have to have room to run at full stride and those small balls just can't let them do that. Same goes for wheels. Just if you let them run around in the balls (they really do love it) make sure they are supervised and only let them do it for a few minutes at a time. You don't want your little mousey to get overheated.