General Mouse Care Questions
There's a lot of conflicting information out there about mouse care, and what the minimums or ideals are or should be. I worked in professional mouse care in a laboratory setting for 12 years, so my care knowledge doesn't come from thin air, or what I "feel" is right through anthropomorphization of mice- it leans toward practical care, with an eye toward science rather than whimsy. Mice are animals, worthy of being provided appropriate care, and worthy of being treated like creatures they are (mice), and not what we wish they were or think they should be (rats, hamsters, children, "If it were me, I would want-" etc). Mice are small prey animals with high social and low space needs, and specific nutritional requirements.
Below are some of the questions I often get asked about my mice, and about mice in general.
Below are some of the questions I often get asked about my mice, and about mice in general.
Q: What are the little metal earrings some of your mice have?
Good question! It's an ear ID tag, which helps me to identify mice and differentiate between similar-looking breeders. Each tag is stamped with an ID #, which correlates to records on my end. Sometimes these are simple paper records attached to the cage with the mouse's birthdate, litter info, and any immediate notes, sometimes it's an electronic record with more detailed info. The tags don't hurt the mice and a properly applied tag is unlikely to cause any hearing or medical problems or tear out of an ear. In fact, they can sometimes be seen cleaning it just like they would any other part of their body! Only our retired or prospective breeders come with ear tags, and they can be easily removed upon request- but removal will leave a hole in the ear that may more easily tear than if the tag is left in, as they can catch nails/toes on the hole easier than the tag.
Q: How many mice should I get?
We always recommend having at least 2 mice. Mice are communal, social animals and require more and different socialization than a human can provide. Their sleep schedule is completely different than ours, with sleep/wake cycles being only a couple hours long, including overnight, and they need the opportunity to socialize on their level during waking hours. Humans simply cannot replicate the social interactions another mouse would provide. This is a hard line for us- we do not adopt out mice if they will be solo-housed pets, because we don't believe it's ethical to long-term solo-house mice. So, we recommend always keeping at least 2, preferably three (in the event one passes, the remaining two still have a social buddy) or more, up to whatever your housing allows for.
Q: What should I feed my mouse?
A: We recommend feeding a block chow, as these are nutritionally complete mixes that have been blended to prevent picky mice from skewing their diet. Seed diets are NOT appropriate for pet mice. Block diets from Mazuri, Kalmbach, Kent, and Oxbow are typically good quality. Mazuri and Oxbow sell in smaller packages as well as larger.
Q: Water bottle or water bowl?
Bottle, always. Bowls are sometimes touted as "more natural" but in reality, they're a breeding grounds for bacteria. Soiled bedding gets kicked in, mice can eliminate waste over the edge, the water itself is open to the air in general and can be spilled into the bedding, leaving the mice without water, and bigger bowls are a drowning hazard or even a chill hazard if they fall in and get wet. Bottles are cleaner, the water is enclosed, and they're generally safer. The only real "danger" of water bottles is a poor quality one leaking, or the sipper being waterlocked (cannot exchange water and air) and the latter is easily avoided by watching for air bubbles after turning the water bottle over when first giving it. We prefer using glass water bottles, as they're chew proof and can be run through the dishwasher. Kaytee makes a chew proof bottle that will last much longer than plastic ones. We recommend getting a wine bottle cleaning brush to clean with.
Q: What type of housing should I use?
A: Unlike rats, mice can be kept in aquarium setups, but many folks choose to make their own out of storage totes and 1/4 or 1/8 inch hardware cloth. The scientific minimum housing density is 1 mouse per 50sq/in of floor space, but many folks at home prefer to use 100sq/in per mouse for pet mice (so, about the size of a 10g aquarium for 2 mice). "Floor space" also includes any horizontal surface they can walk on, so any hides or ledges or hanging surfaces like hammocks increase the amount of floor space in a cage. With an appropriate number of hides and other enrichment providing extra floor space, a trio can easily be kept in a 10g aquarium, and 6-8 mice can be kept in a 20g long. The bigger the space, the more mice should be kept in the colony (without overcrowding on housing density), so that the mice do not stress over the lack of community.
Bigger is NOT always better in the case of tiny, easily-stressed prey animals. If you choose a larger enclosure, you will need to prepare to eliminate the large open spaces by filling the enclosure with clutter- hides, chews, wheels, hammocks, climbing structures, etc. The less open space, the better. If you can afford (both with money and with time) to fill a large space, then go for it! You're going above and beyond to provide it, but unlike what some pretentious keepers would have you believe, a huge amount of space isn't actually necessary. Enclosing the huge amount of space with clutter, however, is.
Q: What type of bedding do you recommend?
Most beddings used for small rodents are going to be fine- kiln dried pine, aspen, paper pellets, shredded/pulped paper beddings like Kaytee or Carefresh, ground cob... it all works. The only thing I would avoid is cedar bedding or any softwood that hasn't been kiln-fired. There's good and bad things about any bedding- the "best" bedding is the one that is safe for the mice, and works for you. A lot of folks advise deep bedding so the mice can dig- I highly disagree. Deep bedding traps moisture and increases the chance of bacteria or ammonia building up to harmful levels. Keep your bedding thin enough it can dry out (around 1 inch or less), and consider offering a dig box with 6+ inches of bedding to address their desire to dig.
Q: What type of enrichment should I offer?
A: Mice actually have a huge range of enrichment devices. They do a lot of chewing in order to keep their teeth in good shape, so any wood or safe plant product (like bamboo or woven grasses) or any kind of plain cardboard (food boxes, toilet paper/paper towel/wrapping paper tubes, drink trays from fast food, etc) they will enjoy destroying- bonus, these are often easy to discard and/or compost once soiled. New hides to explore, new stuff to climb, new material for nests- all are good enrichment for mice. They also rely heavily on their sense of smell, so novel natural scents like fresh/dried herbs can stimulate their little minds. I would avoid all essential oils, however, or anything artificially scented- mice do have sensitive respiratory systems, so harsh chemicals can harm them. They do like to dig, so offering them a dig box with deeper substrate (potentially with treats hidden in it!) is a great enrichment opportunity. Be aware that permeable items (wood, cardboard, plant material) and chewable items (plastic) may hold bacteria and need to be replaced if they become difficult to clean.
Q: How often should I clean, and what should I use?
A: Sometimes, less is more. Excessive cleaning can cause mice to start stress-marking their territory, resulting in more and stinkier urine, which often leads people to clean more, which leads to more urinating, which- well, you get the picture. Mice are actually fairly clean creatures, and if they're offered a good "outhouse" type hide, or a good "potty" bedding in a corner, they will often do their business (mostly) in one (or a select few in a larger cage) location(s). We find the "Kaytee Crittertrail Outhouse" actually really does serve as an outhouse for many cages. Provided you clean this often (daily or every other day or so), the rest of your cage will likely stay relatively cleaner, and require less major cleaning. We recommend doing a spot clean (remove bedding/waste from wherever their "potty corner" is or replacing SOME of the most soiled bedding) once a week, and a complete clean (remove all bedding, wash all equipment) once a month. You can use vinegar or 10% bleach solution to sanitize anything or remove anything stuck, but largely just water will be fine. Thoroughly dry everything before putting it back in.
Q: Everything? Won't that stress them out?
A: Nope! While mice do rely heavily on their sense of scent, changing a cage entirely shouldn't send them into shock or cause them to have a breakdown or anything. It's honestly not any different than when folks take their mice or rats out to a play pen/bin to experience a bunch of new stuff, except at the end, they get to pick a place to settle down and stay. When we do our complete changes, we sprinkle some small pellet treats around the cage, and typically observe the mice excitedly digging through all the new bedding in search of them, sometimes even "popcorning" in their excitement. While they do have to redo whatever scent marking and hierarchy-through-scent they've established, this usually takes less than 24 hours (usually less than 6 in our experience, they're so excited about the treats that by the time they've found them all, the cage smells like everyone again), and is a form of eustress (good stress). Mice that never have to learn to handle "new" social situations can become difficult to introduce to actual new mice down the road.
Q: Speaking of new mice, how should I introduce my new mouse to my old mice?
A: While there are lots of good methods out there, there are none that guarantee nothing will go wrong, because you're dealing with live animals that may do unpredictable things. We recommend quarantining your new mice for a brief period (especially if you picked them up at an expo or other location where other mice were), usually 2-4 weeks, and then doing a complete cage change, and then just adding the newcomer(s), with a scattering of treats. The mice will investigate one another the same way as they would on neutral ground (because a complete cage change basically makes the cage neutral ground), but without the added stress of having to relocate afterwards and do it again.
If you haven't found the answer to your question here, please feel free to contact us through our Facebook or e-mail at [email protected].
Good question! It's an ear ID tag, which helps me to identify mice and differentiate between similar-looking breeders. Each tag is stamped with an ID #, which correlates to records on my end. Sometimes these are simple paper records attached to the cage with the mouse's birthdate, litter info, and any immediate notes, sometimes it's an electronic record with more detailed info. The tags don't hurt the mice and a properly applied tag is unlikely to cause any hearing or medical problems or tear out of an ear. In fact, they can sometimes be seen cleaning it just like they would any other part of their body! Only our retired or prospective breeders come with ear tags, and they can be easily removed upon request- but removal will leave a hole in the ear that may more easily tear than if the tag is left in, as they can catch nails/toes on the hole easier than the tag.
Q: How many mice should I get?
We always recommend having at least 2 mice. Mice are communal, social animals and require more and different socialization than a human can provide. Their sleep schedule is completely different than ours, with sleep/wake cycles being only a couple hours long, including overnight, and they need the opportunity to socialize on their level during waking hours. Humans simply cannot replicate the social interactions another mouse would provide. This is a hard line for us- we do not adopt out mice if they will be solo-housed pets, because we don't believe it's ethical to long-term solo-house mice. So, we recommend always keeping at least 2, preferably three (in the event one passes, the remaining two still have a social buddy) or more, up to whatever your housing allows for.
Q: What should I feed my mouse?
A: We recommend feeding a block chow, as these are nutritionally complete mixes that have been blended to prevent picky mice from skewing their diet. Seed diets are NOT appropriate for pet mice. Block diets from Mazuri, Kalmbach, Kent, and Oxbow are typically good quality. Mazuri and Oxbow sell in smaller packages as well as larger.
Q: Water bottle or water bowl?
Bottle, always. Bowls are sometimes touted as "more natural" but in reality, they're a breeding grounds for bacteria. Soiled bedding gets kicked in, mice can eliminate waste over the edge, the water itself is open to the air in general and can be spilled into the bedding, leaving the mice without water, and bigger bowls are a drowning hazard or even a chill hazard if they fall in and get wet. Bottles are cleaner, the water is enclosed, and they're generally safer. The only real "danger" of water bottles is a poor quality one leaking, or the sipper being waterlocked (cannot exchange water and air) and the latter is easily avoided by watching for air bubbles after turning the water bottle over when first giving it. We prefer using glass water bottles, as they're chew proof and can be run through the dishwasher. Kaytee makes a chew proof bottle that will last much longer than plastic ones. We recommend getting a wine bottle cleaning brush to clean with.
Q: What type of housing should I use?
A: Unlike rats, mice can be kept in aquarium setups, but many folks choose to make their own out of storage totes and 1/4 or 1/8 inch hardware cloth. The scientific minimum housing density is 1 mouse per 50sq/in of floor space, but many folks at home prefer to use 100sq/in per mouse for pet mice (so, about the size of a 10g aquarium for 2 mice). "Floor space" also includes any horizontal surface they can walk on, so any hides or ledges or hanging surfaces like hammocks increase the amount of floor space in a cage. With an appropriate number of hides and other enrichment providing extra floor space, a trio can easily be kept in a 10g aquarium, and 6-8 mice can be kept in a 20g long. The bigger the space, the more mice should be kept in the colony (without overcrowding on housing density), so that the mice do not stress over the lack of community.
Bigger is NOT always better in the case of tiny, easily-stressed prey animals. If you choose a larger enclosure, you will need to prepare to eliminate the large open spaces by filling the enclosure with clutter- hides, chews, wheels, hammocks, climbing structures, etc. The less open space, the better. If you can afford (both with money and with time) to fill a large space, then go for it! You're going above and beyond to provide it, but unlike what some pretentious keepers would have you believe, a huge amount of space isn't actually necessary. Enclosing the huge amount of space with clutter, however, is.
Q: What type of bedding do you recommend?
Most beddings used for small rodents are going to be fine- kiln dried pine, aspen, paper pellets, shredded/pulped paper beddings like Kaytee or Carefresh, ground cob... it all works. The only thing I would avoid is cedar bedding or any softwood that hasn't been kiln-fired. There's good and bad things about any bedding- the "best" bedding is the one that is safe for the mice, and works for you. A lot of folks advise deep bedding so the mice can dig- I highly disagree. Deep bedding traps moisture and increases the chance of bacteria or ammonia building up to harmful levels. Keep your bedding thin enough it can dry out (around 1 inch or less), and consider offering a dig box with 6+ inches of bedding to address their desire to dig.
Q: What type of enrichment should I offer?
A: Mice actually have a huge range of enrichment devices. They do a lot of chewing in order to keep their teeth in good shape, so any wood or safe plant product (like bamboo or woven grasses) or any kind of plain cardboard (food boxes, toilet paper/paper towel/wrapping paper tubes, drink trays from fast food, etc) they will enjoy destroying- bonus, these are often easy to discard and/or compost once soiled. New hides to explore, new stuff to climb, new material for nests- all are good enrichment for mice. They also rely heavily on their sense of smell, so novel natural scents like fresh/dried herbs can stimulate their little minds. I would avoid all essential oils, however, or anything artificially scented- mice do have sensitive respiratory systems, so harsh chemicals can harm them. They do like to dig, so offering them a dig box with deeper substrate (potentially with treats hidden in it!) is a great enrichment opportunity. Be aware that permeable items (wood, cardboard, plant material) and chewable items (plastic) may hold bacteria and need to be replaced if they become difficult to clean.
Q: How often should I clean, and what should I use?
A: Sometimes, less is more. Excessive cleaning can cause mice to start stress-marking their territory, resulting in more and stinkier urine, which often leads people to clean more, which leads to more urinating, which- well, you get the picture. Mice are actually fairly clean creatures, and if they're offered a good "outhouse" type hide, or a good "potty" bedding in a corner, they will often do their business (mostly) in one (or a select few in a larger cage) location(s). We find the "Kaytee Crittertrail Outhouse" actually really does serve as an outhouse for many cages. Provided you clean this often (daily or every other day or so), the rest of your cage will likely stay relatively cleaner, and require less major cleaning. We recommend doing a spot clean (remove bedding/waste from wherever their "potty corner" is or replacing SOME of the most soiled bedding) once a week, and a complete clean (remove all bedding, wash all equipment) once a month. You can use vinegar or 10% bleach solution to sanitize anything or remove anything stuck, but largely just water will be fine. Thoroughly dry everything before putting it back in.
Q: Everything? Won't that stress them out?
A: Nope! While mice do rely heavily on their sense of scent, changing a cage entirely shouldn't send them into shock or cause them to have a breakdown or anything. It's honestly not any different than when folks take their mice or rats out to a play pen/bin to experience a bunch of new stuff, except at the end, they get to pick a place to settle down and stay. When we do our complete changes, we sprinkle some small pellet treats around the cage, and typically observe the mice excitedly digging through all the new bedding in search of them, sometimes even "popcorning" in their excitement. While they do have to redo whatever scent marking and hierarchy-through-scent they've established, this usually takes less than 24 hours (usually less than 6 in our experience, they're so excited about the treats that by the time they've found them all, the cage smells like everyone again), and is a form of eustress (good stress). Mice that never have to learn to handle "new" social situations can become difficult to introduce to actual new mice down the road.
Q: Speaking of new mice, how should I introduce my new mouse to my old mice?
A: While there are lots of good methods out there, there are none that guarantee nothing will go wrong, because you're dealing with live animals that may do unpredictable things. We recommend quarantining your new mice for a brief period (especially if you picked them up at an expo or other location where other mice were), usually 2-4 weeks, and then doing a complete cage change, and then just adding the newcomer(s), with a scattering of treats. The mice will investigate one another the same way as they would on neutral ground (because a complete cage change basically makes the cage neutral ground), but without the added stress of having to relocate afterwards and do it again.
If you haven't found the answer to your question here, please feel free to contact us through our Facebook or e-mail at [email protected].