Mice

[CallaLily]

Hhmmm, tapatalk cuts off my view if the post gets too long. Sorry for the double post. Forgot to say above that the foraging walls aren't new (I'm sure you can see where they've done their own housework on it). Two are from the set up I had before this last one and the other is from this past setup but moved to a different side. Once they get too chewed or dirty, I do toss them.





This is just a bad pic of the new girls' 10 gallon quarantine. I've kept it simple for now but I'll do more for them soon. The tank is sideways which does make viewing more difficult but I am out of space! My husband says he thinks I'm playing a game of How Much Can I Cram Into The House. (though this is more related to the baby items I've been picking up)
Please ignore all the scratches in my glass tanks.

[YYWW]

Wow!!! Those lucky mice! Your tank reminds me of an indoor playground jungle gym that i take my daughter to LOL
Do mice need a certain amount of space like hermit crabs do? Or are they just happy wherever, and then you take them out and play every now and then?


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[CallaLily]

There are definitely space requirements. In a 10 gallon aquarium, you can comfortably fit 3 females or one single male could live there quite happily. In my 29 gallon, I believe I can keep up to 5 female mice. More room can be ok but can lead to taming issues. Once they're doing well you can try them out in larger tanks and see how they do. It's also good to crowd tanks up with a lot of hides and toys, they don't really do well with wide open spaces. Taking them out to play daily, around the same time is what's recommended especially if you're still working on taming. I don't manage every day but I'm trying. Boys will need more attention than girls just because you're all they have, the girls have each other. In fact, boys tend to be more loving towards their humans for the same reason (so I'm told). For the girls you'll always be second best to their little group.

Thank you.

[CallaLily]

Just wanted to share a few pics of Twix and Hashbrown from today's tub time. I tried for more pics of Cheeseburger and Bacon during their turn but they're just so fast I end up just catching white streaks or empty shots!

Twix:


Hashbrown:


Together:

And maybe Bacon? It's so hard to tell...

[Ellysara]

Aww So cute! Maybe someday I will have mice.

[CrabChowder]

I had blue Merle mice for a short time, and would looooove to get them again one day!!

[wodesorel]

I've never seen a brindle mouse before. She is gorgeous!!! They all are.

[CallaLily]

Thank you! There was another girl similar to Hashbrown at the store but with less markings. I'm not sure if that one would have qualified as brindle though. My husband said there was also a gorgeous cream colored male up for adoption but I didn't allow myself to look. He probably would have came home with me and I would have been searching for another place to cram a tank into. There's always my oldest son's room....or the bathroom, right?

[CallaLily]

Bit of an update (if anyone's still interested ).

First here's a pic of the tank from the beginning of this month:

I've since changed it because I tried introducing the two duos this past Sunday (once introduced in the play area, they need to be put into a clean tank so no one feels a certain item is just theirs). But this was my sort of Halloween theme with the popsicle stick pirate ship I mentioned above.

So, Twix (funnily enough the smallest of the four) had to be separated from the other girls because she was bullying a lot and drawing blood from the other girls during her attacks. She especially was mean to Cheeseburger, the largest of the four. Go figure. I'll try reintroducing again this Sunday. In the meantime Twix has been in the 10 gallon alone, in a sort of timeout. Cheeseburger, Bacon, and Hashbrown are getting along well in the 29 gallon.

Taming is going so much better! Cheeseburger is now sometimes willingly climbing into my hand and wanting to climb up my arms and shoulders. Twix too recently started willingly hopping into my hand some but still tries to get down again quickly. I can scoop Bacon and Hashbrown but both are still a bit afraid. Bacon still trembles like crazy and Hashbrown will hide from me. It's all worth the time and effort though!

Wish me luck for reintroductions in a few days.

[wodesorel]

Good luck!

I LOVE that tank!!! Using cardboard for the sides to support things is so cool!

[TheLilMommaB]

Omg that is the best mouse tank ever!!! What do you use to attach stuff to the cardboard?

Stay at home mommy to 4 kids (Ana 11, Joseph 9, Alizabeth 6, and Christian 2) 8 cats, 5 hermits, 4 little molly fish, 3 ferrets, 2 parrakets, 2 Oscars, 1 red eared slider, 1 cockatiel, 1 goldfish and 1 bone headed pittbull.

[megmaholm]

I love their setup! So creative. I better not show it to my 2 rats or they'll wonder why lowly mice have a cooler habitat than them. :roll:

[CallaLily]

Thanks! The mice really love their foraging walls and learn the paths really quickly.

TheLilMommaB, I use a hot glue gun to attach all the tubes and stuff to the cardboard. Then I secure the cardboard walls to the sides of the tank with velcro. I can't take credit for any of these ideas. They've all come from over on The Fun Mouse Forum and from one "fancier" over there in particular who does YouTube videos and has an amazing mouse house. I think I linked her before?

Edit: I guess not. Here's one of her mouse videos. http://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PL-Oc_e ... lhFXVAhY-Q

[Crabinski]

Good luck with the re-intros this weekend, Calla. After a fractious intro between my trio and duo in late August, followed by a week-long cohabitation during which one of the duo girls, Tara, was ostracized by the trio, I ended up moving them back into their original 10g tanks . As the tanks are next to each other, separated by only a few inches, the girls are aware of one another and are, hopefully, getting used to one another's scents. I'm hoping for an eventual happy quintet in the 20L but have been reluctant to reintroduce them as the trio's alpha, Anya, hasn't mellowed one bit and still bullies her sisters on a daily basis.

By the way, this is MesaMouse from TFM, wearing a different shell for this forum .

[CallaLily]

By the way, this is MesaMouse from TFM, wearing a different shell for this forum .

Hi! Welcome to the HCA!
I hope you're able to get your girls back together again too. It really surprised with Twix. She's so small and shy! My 10 is next door too so hopefully that does help. I think the only plus to having to put Twix in timeout was she's coming along in taming a bit faster than I expected. I hope Anya settles down some for you!