Woudl mice motehrs have intercours with their children?

njwilde · 02-19-2013, 04:43 AM

Hello guys,
sorry about the whacky headline with typos, I only realised that when I pressed "post"
I know this is a bit of a strange questions but last week i adopted three mice from our local pet shop, stressing that I wanted girls only and although the lad in the pet shop had a good look at them and told me they were females I am getting suspicious now. It seems that I have the mother with two children and I am worried that one of the "girls" may actually be a boy

I know it' difficult to tell with mice when they are very young but I have studied pictures of their private parts quite intensely and I am now not sure. As the little one I mean is the least tame I can't take her out and check and can only see it when she is climbing around the cage and she is very fast so it's difficult to tell. Any tips what I can do to get hold of them without stressing them? The mother is quite relaxed with me but the two small ones are more skittish. The other small one seems more likely to be a girl but I am also not a 100 per cent sure.

Would a mother actual have sex with their children though?

I hope someone can help as I am a bit distressed on the prospect of having thousands of mice babies?! A friend of mine said she would take the half of other gender in that case but if they are related ( as for the additional scary scenario if the siblings have sex)surely the babies are not healthy? I also hope it's not too late as I was told they were 4 weeks but the "mum" is definitely older and either way that would mean that they are ready to have children. I don't wnat to separate them for nothing though as I read that after a day of separation they won't recognise each other anymore

I had a pet mouse when I was younger before and I am a good hamster and guinea pig mum so I thought I ll rescue soem mice before they turn into snake food but now I feel really silly and have a bad conscious that I put the poor ones in this position

littlefeet · 02-19-2013, 05:40 AM

Catch the baby mouse in a jam jar and have a look underneath.
It is hard to tell males and females apart, but if you have a baby boy ( buck) it will mate with its mother, and its sister.
You can often smell if you have a male mouse as they do whiff, and if you have a male you can sometimes spot it chasing the females, sniffing genitals etc.
If possible catch both babies in the jar then you can compare their sex organs to see if they are different sexes.

littlefeet · 02-19-2013, 05:48 AM

You may find this website helpful
Sexing Mice with Pictures! ~ How to Tell a Female (girl) Mouse from a Male (boy) Mouse

njwilde · 02-19-2013, 06:07 AM

That's a great idea, thanks

And also thanks a lot for the website link that makes it a lot easier. I ll try this tonight when I get home and keep you posted on what I found out!

littlefeet · 02-19-2013, 06:10 AM

Fingers crossed they are all girls and you can relax and enjoy them

GhostsInSnow · 02-19-2013, 06:35 AM

Not to scare you or anything but mice don't care about being related, they don't understand, they mate with each other regardless of being mother/son, brother sister etc
You can separate males at 4 weeks and females can stay with the mother for a further 2 weeks but babies shouldn't really be rehomed before six weeks of age. Whether with their mum or not they shouldn't have let you have them at such a young age :/
It's not you fault though *hugs* If it helps, male mice don't have nipples and female mice do. You might not be able to see because of the fur but it is another way to tell

I have 3 females, I've nearly always had mice and they are such a joy to own

HollyHamster · 02-19-2013, 06:49 AM

Be aware that male mice need to be housed seperately eventually as they get territorial. Just something to think about if and when the time comes. They also have very strong smelling musk. Its downright eye watering.

happysaz133 · 02-19-2013, 07:31 AM

Yes, they really don't think of families as we do. Animals don't think twice about mating with their children. My last hamster Quinn was the result of a brother and sister mating, then one of those babies mated with the mother again, resulting in Quinn's litter. She was badly inbred though, she never was a healthy hamster.

Here's hoping your females stay female!

bizziedogs · 02-19-2013, 01:15 PM

also unlike humans mouse genetics are totally different so can breed with there sons and close relatives without any real danger, unless they keep doing this then there gene pool will be weakened, hope u find out if its a boy,...if it is keep an eye out for babies, the pet shop will have a duty to rehome the babies.....

Kissa · 02-19-2013, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bizziedogs

also unlike humans mouse genetics are totally different

Not really, genetics still work the same in mice and in humans. The problem with inbreeding is that close relatives often share the same bad recessive genes, which their offspring can inherit. However, if two siblings, of mice or humans, only have "good" genes, their offspring aren't going to be deformed.

Genetic diversity is a good thing for lots of reasons, but that doesn't make inbreeding bad by default. All captive Syrian hamsters are descended from one specimen and her pups, for example.