anyone keep/kept pet mice?

BlurOfSerenity

BlurOfSerenity

New Member
i have wanted a pet mouse for a long time now. today i really, really, really started wanting one a super-lot.


i've been looking for info online, and they seem pretty easy.

i'm just wondering if anyone has experience and/or helpful suggestions, tips./tricks or links or whatever.
 
if you get one, he's cute, and sweet, and if you handle him from the start, not likely to bite. I would take a rat over a mouse...they're easily cage trainable and more companion like.

BUT.

if you have your one mouse, and get another one cause he's lonely, in a month you will have 50, and that really really sucks.

Cedar woodchips smell the nicest, but also have toxins in them, and are dustier. I suggest pine.
 
the other thing is...they don't live all that long...and it is easy to get very attached to them with their little gnawy teeth and twitchy noses and bright eyes...so there's that too - you have to be ready for that. :eh:
 
My Logitech mouse lasted about 3 years. It's still usable, but the bottons require several hard pushes to register a "click" sometimes. I went ahead and replaced it with a Microsoft. I wish I could have a mouse like the Logitech but with the Microsoft's battery life, at a cheap price.
 
I would take a rat over a mouse...
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:eek6: Really???




Have owned many a Hamster in my day ,but never mice/rats ,but I'll assume they're very similar upkeep wise.One thing to remember is they are nocturnal and even though it might not bother you the sound of chewing/running in their wheel may bother others in the household.Other than that upkeep is pretty simple ,but as Les says they don't live long and develop tumors readily {sidenote :this explains why "everything" promotes cancer in lab mice /rats :rolleyes: }




Note :if I find a mouse in the house I catch it and remove back to the wilds of the neighbours yard alive,on the other hand there is a reason nobody makes a "Live Trap" for Rats.
 
I had a pet rat when I was 17-20. His name was Sid. He was cage trained...would go in there to do his 'business', eat and sleep, and the rest of the time was free to roam the apt. I never took him out really except in the backyard (i.e. wasn't one of those freaky rat people) but he was a very nice pet for what he was. I'd watch tv and he'd sit beside me and eat a snack, he'd give little noselicks. He was a sweetie, never bit anyone.

*sigh*
 
this thread is being useful so far!

it appears i should get two females because they are social and two males unless they're brothers is a bad idea...

i'll have to write up a price list, haha
 
ash r said:
this thread is being useful so far!

it appears i should get two females because they are social and two males unless they're brothers is a bad idea...
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Hey not fair. Males are social just in a different less cost efficient manner. :D

Manhater...
 
I've only ever had rats. With rats anyway, males were the more "social"; females tended to a bit more aloof. All my male rats had more "personality". Diet-wise, I fed them pretty much anything, but meat. Pretty easy to take care of - clean the cage daily, change the food & water twice daily. Don't mix sexes, they breed like rabbits.... tho' the babies sure were cute! (used to breed 'em). I'm not sure about mice, but with rats, their teeth never stop growing... hafta give 'em hard stuff to gnaw on to keep the teeth in check.
 
ash r said:
i told my parents that i wanted mice... they both said no!!!!!!!! :(
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Well Duh!! Personally, I'd go budgie. They live longer, and are much more sociable. And they also can be cage trained. Mine used to tuck itself into my collar, under my beard and sleep there.
 
Professur said:
Well Duh!! Personally, I'd go budgie. They live longer, and are much more sociable. And they also can be cage trained. Mine used to tuck itself into my collar, under my beard and sleep there.
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Yours was a vampire-budgie mix. :D

I've kept mice, rats, hamsters and gerbils. Most parents won't object to hamsters 'cause they're cuter :D

Mice and rats have similar needs. Water, food, bedding materials (TP or kleenex works well), grounding (pine of cedar chips), and love. Something for them to chew on is a good thing too!! Toilet-paper rolls, chunks of wood or dried corn-cobs..with the kernals on them.

Mice need an excercise wheel because you'll be keeping them in the cage for longer periods of time. If you take them out, you can't let them go...they won't come back.
Rats tend to come and go without any issues, and if you stop them from nesting elsewhere in your house, they'll come back to the nest when it's time for bed. To keep them a one-nest kinda rat...make sure the cage is clean. Change the water and food daily...the occasional treat....home sweet home! :D

Neither will bite you unless surprised... poking them while they sleep is a good way to surprise them. Think of how you feel in the mornings and want to bite whoever woke YOU up and you'll know why THEY bite :D

Fairly cheap to maintain...and keep happy. Don't mix the genders, don't pile more males than you have space for. Each requires about 1 cubic foot of space. Want two males? 2 cubic foot cage! Don't buy plastic cages...they're cheaper...but rats, hamsters and mice chew! LOTS!

Ooh...all rodents will choose their own toilet area...usually one corner of the cage. Don't put food, water or bedding near there...for obvious reasons.

When cleaning the cage bottom...DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES USE AJAX!!! or any other toxic materials... use baking soda as the abrasive and hot water. You WILL kill you pet otherwise...guaranteed!

Have fun..and post pics!
 
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