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Anonymous
hey /an/,
i'm thinking about getting my first pet mouse. i've done a little research online and was wondering if anyone here could offer some inside advice.
thks!
>> Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
>>85889

Make sure you get an optical one like>>85905
>> Anonymous
...fuckers
>> Anonymous
LoL
>> Anonymous
>>85905
...D:
>> Anonymous
I had a mouse for about a year.

First off, in most pet stores you have white mice[really cheap] and fancy mice[moderately priced, but still not expensive]. Get a fancy mouse. White mice are generally inbred to be used as food, so they are more at risk for illness and genetic conditions.

Have a decent amount of space for your mouse, and keep it clean. It gets dirty REALLY fast.

The more you handle a mouse, the more docile it gets. Ours used to sit on my roommate's shoulder while she was on the computer. One thing to look out for: prepare to get pooped and peed on. A lot.

That being said, they really are sweet, if you get one with a good temperament. Try to hold and play with the mouse before you consider taking it home. Any reputable pet store will let you do this.

Good luck!
>> Anonymous
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my advice: if you want a pet you don't have to play with every day get a few mice. or maybe two. they're social animals keeping them solitary is cruel. you don't have to do anything differently for two that you'd do for one.
that said, pet store mice are all generally inbred and die easily due to illness. so it might not live for very long but if you're hellbent on getting mice, then go for it.

i've got two rats and i love them but they're messy and you need to clean pretty often. i dunno about mice but rats are intelligent engines of destruction and mayhem. mice are generally easier to handle i think.
>> Anonymous
Get a rat. They are larger and easier to handle, as well having an easier temperment. You're more likely to get a vicious mouse than a vicious rat.
>> Bitter Anon !!WJLRQ1cwCyZ
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>>86032
Firstly, they are the same thing. 'white' mice come from the SAME LITTER as 'fancy' mice. There is no difference besides colouring (. A pink eyed white mouse/rat simply has too many genetic pointers for colour or markings, so the body displays none. they are not albino!)

I've little experience with mice, but rats can be litter trained, and usually it takes only a few days, and they do it themseleves. properly handled rodents will learn when they should potty, and that cuddling on someone's neck is not that time. Though rats will pee on you if they get comfortable and fall asleep, it's marking you as their territory. Kinda like 'i'm so happy here, this is the best spot ever, mine!'
>> Anonymous
Am I the only one who worries about diseases causd by rats & mice?
>> Anonymous
>>86053
Yes. Yes you are.
Also, I second the motion to get a rat in lieu of a mouse. I've had both mice and rats over the years and rats have much better personalities than mice. I wouldn't recommend getting them from a pet store, because like mice they tend to be inbred and over bred and will end up with all kinds of problems. I just lost a pet store rat this past summer to lymphoma, and this was after she'd already had a mammary tumor removed. There are plenty of good, inexpensive rat breeders in the world and they are much more careful about the way they treat and breed their rats.
>> Anonymous
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>>86064
OP here. thx for all the info. i think rats are cute but i live in a really small space and worry that i wouldn't have a place for me to put them. so, it sounds like buying a mouse or rat from the pet store is a bad idea. in that case, where does one find a rodent breeder? and how will i know they're legit? i mean, can't anyone buy a couple mice from the pet store, let them go buck wild and then sell the babies under the pretense that they're a "breeder?"

let me know! thx again! i've been reading tons of stuff but it's always nice to hear some first hand experience.

pic related - future mouse-keeper - me :)
>> Anonymous
OP again - and the other reason i was leaning more towards mouse was because i wanted to get 2-3 of them.
>> Anonymous
>>86100
google, "rat breeders in -insert state here-".

also.
JESUS CHRIST ITS A LION
>> Anonymous
You should get two rats of the same gender. You'll need a bigger cage, but it won't cost that much more. I'd also definitely recommend an actual cage rather than an aquarium or something like that, because a cage will be better ventilated, and will also allow them to climb around.
>> Anonymous
if you are getting rats, note that females are more active, tend to get bitchy and some other stuff i forgot about.
males are more laid back, but smell a bit more.
i suggest getting males.
>> Anonymous
Males are also less likely to get cancer. But they are still essentially cancer-making machines.
>> Anonymous
>>86100
id hit it
>> Anonymous
what is the difference between teh amount of space that would be needed for two mice and the amount needed for two rats?
>> Anonymous
I love the smell of clean mice.
>> Bitter Anon !!WJLRQ1cwCyZ
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Rats require about a square yard of room as adults for two, with another yard per extra rat. Mice, I believe it is closer to a square foot for two, then another foot per extra. The reason being that a pair of rodents will bond, while with three there needs to be a place for one to get away from the others.

Another thing to be aware of when considering cages, is that anywhere you can put your thumb, a rat can surely follow, and a mouse would have no problem. Unless your rats are huge, don't even bother with ferret cages. Hamster cages are often too small (and stay the fuck away from the habitrails) for rats, though I think they are okay for mice.

Don't get pine bedding. Use shredded paper or Carefresh/Paperfresh bedding. I bring home shredded papers from work, and give them old socks and cereal boxes to play in. They are extremely cheap to keep as pets. Food should consist mainly of lab blocks (NOT the rat/mouse mixes. Those little green pellets are alfalfa, which has no nutritional value and the rodents don't even like it). I actually have blocks available all the time to my rats, and go through about a 1lb bag in a month. I also give them a mix of bird seed, dog food, and cat food, for a little variety. Course they get scraps of whatever I'm eating too.

Pic is of my old, homemade cage. it cost about 20 bucks (10 for the tub at the bottom, 5 for the wire, 5 for a ton of cable ties), and lasted for like three years before it started getting fuxored. Don't try and keep the cage tidy, because they WILL mess it up.
>> AnonymousCat !!6TJwahn8wU3
>>86032

Yeah, have a very well ventilated area to keep your mice in, the stink can muster easily.

I have had feeder white mice before, it is true they are prone to genetic problems (I once decide to get a female and let them mate, 13 kids, 4 survived long enough). So it's not a good idea to mate any really.

My mice could easily jump up 10 inches and chewed their way out of a 10 gal aquarium with a mesh top, so look for something better. Perhaps a hamster habitat. Metal exercise wheels are really noisy btw, and will keep you up at night.

Other than that they are very easy to care for and are pretty docile, don't have the high natural instinct to run off at every sound and movement. Put a towel over your shoulder if you let them rest there, they will poop and pee on you.


They LOEV RiceaRoni, rice, anything grains, cheeses, vegetables. Be sure to get the right mice food for them, treats and some sort of a wooden object they can gnaw at otherwise their teeth grow too big.


I've had pet mice, now have two wild mice as pets (and nope never had any health problems lol these are clean)
>> Anonymous
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Hi /an/, OP here again. I went to the petstore thinking I'd just get everything for a mouse set-up w/o the mice but then I saw some mice tucked away in a corner that were free because they'd been slightly injured in a box. I felt so sorry for them that I brought them home. I figure, if worse comes to worse, they just got rescued from a terrible fate involving reptiles and now they get to live the good life for a while if the pet store fuxored them up so bad that they don't have too long to live. So, now I'm the proud mommy of 3 little mice. I've been watching them constantly since last night and nothing seems to be wrong with them. They're all really active and curious about the new living space. Anyway, I know you guys said to get Fancy Mice but I'm pretty sure these girls are just feeder mice (white, pink eyes). I just felt so bad for these girls that I couldn't help it.
>> Anonymous
>>86188
Cool! What are some of their fave fruit and veggie treats? I read somewhere to avoid corn. Is there anything else I SHOULDN'T feed them?
>> Anonymous
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>>86451

Sunflower seeds are very fatty, only give to them occasionally

FEEDING
Mice are omnivorous in captivity. It is usual to feed two meals a day. Their diet should consist of a pet shop bought mouse food mix, raw fruit and vegetables (carrot, swede, celery, apple and green vegetables in moderation), hay, and, occasionally, boiled egg, ham, cheese. A salt and mineral block should also be available.
Drinking water is best provided in drip feed containers.


My mice love apples, carrot, salad, any type of rice, spaghetti, any pasta, some cheddar cheese, muffins, sweet peas OH THEY LOVE SWEET PEAS
>> AnonymousCat !!6TJwahn8wU3
>>86463

I probably should get a salt and mineral block. My wild mice drink huge amounts of water at a time. The third time I caught Hopper and put him back in his cage he went straight to the water dish and actually sat there for 3 minutes.
>> Anonymous
>>86449
This is something that should be avoided. Yeah, yeah, poor mice. But what about all the other mice, or the mice that will just replace those mice?

By buying a sick or injured animal, the petstore will just continue to mistreat their animals(and since its apparent that the petstore did not help those mice, which is required, that counts as mistreatment) they will just do the same to other hurt animals.
>> Anonymous
>>86463
>cheese
I'd suggest staying away from cheese. They may want it, but if they get much, it's pretty bad for them.
>> Anonymous
>>86498

They were FREE, nimrod. Free mice and less suffering in the world, what the hell is wrong with that?
>> Anonymous
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>>86508
>Free mice and less suffering in the world, what the hell is wrong with that?

Not the person you're responding too, but because in turn there is MORE suffering in the world. You can get a pure bred dog from a puppy mill, or you can pay $300 more for a pure bred that someone that actually gives a shit about the dogs had.

Sure just me buying dogs from there won't make or break the place, but it sure as hell helps them perpetuating shitty treatment.
>> Anonymous
>>86510

Every dog I've ever had came from the animal shelter. To me there is essentially no difference between puppy mill and breeder, beyond possibly a couple of extra zeros in the price.

That being said, there is no such thing as a rat shelter. There might be breeders for fancy dumbo rats and whatnot, but that's not the same thing, not to mention highly uncommon. You want a rat, you go to the pet store, voila - rats. If a person goes to buy one, and is offered 2 extra (slightly damaged, whatever that means, and doomed for snakefood otherwise.) for free, and takes all three home, then they are removing some suffering in the world. That's all there is to it.
>> Bitter Anon !!WJLRQ1cwCyZ
>>86514

Wow, ususally I save the insults for the end of the post but, are you fucking retarded? You could just show the store that post and get a discount on a helmet and some knee and elbow pads.

>there is essentially no difference between puppy mill and breeder, beyond possibly a couple of extra zeros in the price.

Let us do some comparisons here.
Puppy mill:
Many dogs of different breeds
Fake/Worthless papers (the "CKC" is almost exclusively puppy mills, and dogs registered with them can't be shown 99% of the time)
Extremely cramped cages
Dogs bred as soon as they are able, with whatever other dog is available, leading to massive amounts of inbreeding
Almost no socialization
Poor nutrition/health (See: Deaf dalmations, for one example)
Excessively high prices (A poorly marked, destined-to-die-young dog costs the same 400 that a well marked one)
Cost usually does not include any vet services, often they don't have their first shots even

Breeder:
One or Two breeds
Reputable papers (AKC or UKC)
Known pedigree
Awareness of potential health issues (A breeder will tell you if your dog's ancestors had any health issues that are hereditary)
Usually good habitat (Many breeders have several acres and full kennels for their dogs, -

You know what? I'm not even going to finish. Please kill yourself. I feel like I've been trolled.

(Re rat rescue: there are dozens. Petfinder.com, most local pounds will take rodents, search 'your city rodent rescue' and you will find something)
>> AnonymousCat !!6TJwahn8wU3
>>86498

We should also kill off the physically handicapped too, good thinking! :3

It does nothing for society anyways to let mentally retarded and physically disabled to live and breed.

Feeder mice have only one purpose, to be killed and eaten by snakes. If I were looking for white mice to take care of and saw some for free, I'd certainly adopt them too. Those injured mice were likely caused by harassment from others? The pet store did right in not charging for them. The OP did right in adopting them and will provide good care.

get the fuck out
>> Anonymous
>>86581
Someone bought a pair of puppies for me, from a puppy mill.

They were:

1. Outbred.
2. Well-socialized.
3. Strong and healthy.
4. First run of shots.
5. No papers. Who gives a shit about papers?

I had them spayed, anyway, since I didn't want to breed them.
>> Anonymous
I've owned and raised mice for over 7 years.
As you can tell, I enjoy the little buggers.

Some of my personal advice would be..
If you intend to get only one mouse, you should get it plenty of things to play with. Like a wheel, a travel ball, or something like that.
If you don't want to spend a crapload of money on accessories, plenty of toys can be found around the house that are just as good. Such as toilet paper rolls, paper cups, even socks.
Make sure said playthings are not toxic, because mice like to chew.

And if you want to handle the mouse a lot, be prepared to condition it. Mice are often jittery and squirmy at first. Durring the time you're getting it used to being held, don't hold it over any heights, as it may jump out of your hands and either die, or run away.
It helps if you pick up and interact with several different mice in the pet store cage, to choose the one you like best. The clerk may get a little pissy but tell him/her to shut the fuck up. You're paying for it, you deserve to choose what you get.

Food is not necessarily something you need to fret over, since mice pretty much each everything. But my mice prefer "Rodent Mix" the best. It might differ from store to store, but the kind I get has sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, corn, coconut strips, peanuts, oats, grains, pellets, dried banana chips, dried apple slices, and several other things I can't recall in it.

Anyways.
All the other crap I could tell you can be found in pretty much any rodent book or website.
There's really not much to owning a mouse. It's all fairly obvious.
>> Anonymous
>>86826
Thanks for all the info. My new babies have been absolute sweethearts. None of them have tried to nip me when i pick them up and they've all been very cute and cuddly on my shoulder while I play on the computer.
>> Anonymous
why get a little retard? mice have no brains.
Rats are superior.
>> Anonymous
>>86826
Can mice really die from falls of a few feet? Wow. I had always assumed that small animals could survive that sort of thing because of their low mass, since I'd seen squirrels fall off my roof and keep on running.
>> AnonymousCat !!6TJwahn8wU3
>>87104

From a few feet if that surface is solid hard I'm sure they'll be injured