Getting mice!

Thu Oct 13, 2005 10:56 pm

I am getting some meeces! Yay! I'm getting two or three females and Dylan (the guy whose coming to AK with me) is getting a male. They'll be housed seperately of course. We had mice before (a black female with a tan belly and a pew male. They never had babies though. ) and still have some of the stuff. Here is what we have:

these are the cages I have. (I'm thinking about getting a rubbermaid one though.):
two crittertrail cages
10 gallon aquarium with mesh locking lid

and the stuff left over:

ceramic food bowls
lots of little dangly bird toys

and what we are getting:

wheels
water bottles
hidey houses

Now I have some questions:
Would a rubbermaid bin cage be better than the crittertrail or 10 gallon tank?
Which type wheel is better, solid or mesh? the solid wheel we had before got icky fast.
I had planned on feeding them mazuri lab blocks as the staple along with the mix my rats get (without the dog food). Is this okay? Do they need more or less fresh fruit and veggies?

I know mice love to climb too, so I was thinking about getting wooden bird ladders and attatching them to the sides of the cage. Should I coat them with non-toxic waterproof paint first?

Thu Oct 13, 2005 11:10 pm

Hey, wait a second. You were worried about the rats travelling with you, now you're getting mice? My mice have all travelled worse than my rats. My mice HATE travelling.

_________________
Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous

Thu Oct 13, 2005 11:27 pm

They won't be traveling with us. We aren't getting thrm until we get to Alaska. But we wanted to have all the stuff before we leave.

Fri Oct 14, 2005 3:46 am

Ohhhhhhhhh sorry! My mistake. Please accept my apologies.

_________________
Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous

Fri Oct 14, 2005 3:53 am

It's okay. I should have put that in the origional post.

_________________
Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Fri Oct 14, 2005 4:12 am

If you've still got rats, you will need to quaratine the mice seperately.

_________________

Shadow Brook Rodentry

Bridge Ratties: Samson, Wraith, Aiko, Kasper - I <3 you & miss you.

Fri Oct 14, 2005 6:50 am

I won't have the rats when I get the mice. The rats are being rehomed before we go to alaska. We aren't taking any animals with us.

_________________
Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Fri Oct 14, 2005 6:55 pm

The rubbermaid would be easier to clean, but combining the crittertrails and the tank with tubes would be more interesting. As for wheels, I prefer the mesh wheels for the reason you stated. And when I had both wire and solid in the same cage, the mice also seemed to prefer them. There are nice small mesh grid models now that don't have the same injury risk as the old barred models. Some of the cheap plastic mesh models are also pretty good. Although they use bars, the spacing is very close and seem safe. My mice seem to prefer the biggest hamster sized wheels over the smaller sizes.

Fri Oct 14, 2005 8:19 pm

I think that combining the critter habitats would be harder on you, better for the mice. Mr. Green

I agree with Wade about the wheels, though my mice do use a plastic-runged wheel since that's what they grew up on (all I could get at the time) and if I changed it now, I think he'd freak (only one mouse uses the wheel anymore).

_________________
Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous

Fri Oct 14, 2005 9:40 pm

I'm getting this wheel:
link
Is it okay? Do I need to get each girl her own wheel?
Oh, has anyone used these? We had one for the mice before and they seemed to prefer it over thier wooden house and thi plastic igloo.
link

Are Mazuri blocks okay?
What bedding is best? Aspen or YN?

Sat Oct 15, 2005 5:04 pm

I personally like YN better than Aspen, but your mice may like aspen better (it is softer)

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Rosie

* * *

I miss you Tut, Goldy, and Raoul Angel rat

Sat Oct 15, 2005 5:38 pm

Yes, YN is fine for rats, but my mice have always hated it. They really like to burrow and dig, so they do prefer something softer.

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--Brittany

"He who breaks a thing to find out what it is, has left the path of wisdom."

Sat Oct 15, 2005 5:41 pm

What about carefresh? That might be good for burrowing. It is pretty dusty though.

_________________
Rosie

* * *

I miss you Tut, Goldy, and Raoul Angel rat

Sat Oct 15, 2005 6:53 pm

That wheel, esp the larger 8" model, is perfect. Two mice can run on it at the same time.
I prefer shredded aspen (pelleted aspens is OK, too, but not as soft) over the YN. Just looks and feels nicer.
The crab shack looks cozy and I can see why they'd like it. It might be hard to clean if they pee on top, but is cheap enough to replace regularly.
The Mazuri is OK as part of a diet, along with a good seed mix and fresh foods, but since so many lab blocks are intended for lab animals who often don't see a natural lifespan, I don't think they are the best staple food item.