help with mice please

[billybobbs]

Hello, I am picking up two little mice on tuesday. They are both little white red eyed females only 8 weeks old I saw an ad for them on pre loved (free to a good home).
I have always kept hamsters so I know my way around a cage but I havn't had a pet mouse for years!!!

I don't know any real background yet, they might be from an unwanted litter or something. I'm not too sure I just would really love to take them home and look after them.

So...first off I need to work out if they both actually are female ( I do not want to take home a pregnat mouse)
Once Ive worked that one out and they're home and settled I need to know the basics...what food, are they like hamsters and are likley to fall out and fight.
Any special dietry do's and don'ts.

To be honest any info greatly appreciated :mad:

[Lil Miss]

with mice you are better feeding a rat food, most mice foods on the market are actually no good for mice, mice are also alergic to peanuts (and most mice mixs contain them!!)

cage wise, you need very very narrow bar spacing (9mm or less)

female mice are very unlikely to fall out

[billybobbs]

I didn't know they were allergic to peanuts! well I shall pop an get some rat food soon.
I'm putting my order in for my hammies soon on ratration, so i'll have a look on there for a suitable mix for them.

[fluffymunchkins]

This site has some really good info on mice :)
All About Mice (http://www.allaboutmice.co.uk/info/)

Best of luck x

[Liz'sHammies]

By my experiance, female mice usually stay together for life. They rarely seem to fight, and seem to love life together.

[billybobbs]

This site has some really good info on mice :)
All About Mice (http://www.allaboutmice.co.uk/info/)

Best of luck x

Thankyou, the website is really helpful. I've just had a quick look at it.

Also just spoke to the lady i'm getting the mice off, she bought the mice for her daughter who turned out to be a bit freaked out by the tails. She already has a syrian so is going out to buy her a little dwarf hammie.

I'm getting all excited now....need to think of mice names.
Thanks for the advice and help guys!

[racinghamster]

Hi. The Allaboutmice forum linked to above is now closed and only has the information page now. The forum which took over from Allaboutmice is now:

Mice Are Nice - Home (http://www.micearenice.co.uk)

I`m a member on there and have kept mice for over ten years, although I don`t have any at the moment. You will find all the up to date information you need on here as it is a pet mouse forum and not tailored to breeders so much, so you will be very welcome on there. :)

To address your immediate concerns though, if these mice are both female and live together already, they will be fine. The problem most of us have is finding more companion females incase one passes away to keep the remaining mouse company. So if your plan is to keep more mice in the future, you can introduce young females to your existing females at a later date. But sourcing new mice isn`t always easy and the forum linked to is a good place to ask.

Mouse food is mainly made up from a rat mix and added to with things like millets, millet spray, buckwheat, hemp seed, that sort of thing. Hamster mix is too high in protein for mice, which is why rat mixes are better.

If the mice turn out to be males, there is a chance they could fall out as they get older and need seperating because males are not the easiest to keep together, even if they are brothers. But if they are spot cleaned and don`t have too many disturbances to their cage, they usually don`t bicker as much. They also smell worse than females.

If you go to Micearenice, you will get more info over there. Don`t be put off either by the `under construction` Home page. This hasn`t changed because the lady who runs the forum recently had a baby, so she isn`t on the forum to make the changes she wanted to at he moment, but the forum is very active, so don`t worry. :)

Just be warned that mice are addictive! Once you own a few, you might just want more....

[billybobbs]

Thats brilliant, thankyou racinghamster. I can't wait to go and get them. I'm in the middle of setting their cage up now so nearly ready for my new arrivals.

[Trixafena2]

Everyone has pretty much said what I need to say,

I have two fancy females who have lived together since day one, and they only had "issues" once..

Over the wheel, they both wanted to run on it but they couldn't.
I bought another wheel and the fighting stopped..LOL they've been fine ever since. Otherwise they sleep cuddled up on each other, groom each other, and play together all the time. They have quite the personalities..

not sure if it was mentioned, but i noticed sometimes when they're "in heat" they will mount eachother..

http://i49.tinypic.com/2wgc941.jpg

(excuse the ducttape on the wheel.. the one I bought recently broke and it's the only one I had on hand.. xP)

[billybobbs]

Do mice need certain wheels? I have a few wheels lyin around at home but im thinking with their tails?

[gellerbing]

i havent had mice in years but i did get them the same kind a hamster would use to ensure their tail doesnt get caught

[fluffymunchkins]

Wheels must be solid for mice as otherwise they could injure their tails.
Silent spinners (6.5") are good :) x

[racinghamster]

Yes, the 6.5" silent spinners are the best for mice. Just remember to screw off the yellow parts when washing the wheel as water will rust the screw inside. The mounting Trixafena mentioned is a dominance thing with females and does happen from time to time. A dominant female can also `barber` the other, where she will overgroom her and cause a shaved effect and baldness patches on the other mouse. This is just behavioural but not anything to worry over. Barbering doesn`t usually happen but it can do sometimes.

Keeping more than two is a good idea because if one passes away, you will be left with a lone female and since female mice love company, it`s a good idea to try and find a good breeder, or source mice in your location incase you need to find a couple of friends for a lone mouse. :)