Thinking about breeding? Think again.
Many people breed mice irresponsibly and for the wrong reasons. I breed to improve mice- their colours, size, fur, and personalities to create lovely, friendly pet mice. I breed responsibly and I have a deep understanding of their genetics and special needs.
Did you know that a pregnant mouse needs extra care? Do you know how to properly determine the sex of mice, as well as their babies? Have you done your research, and discovered how quickly two mice can become over one hundred mice? How are you going to house all those babies? Do you know males have to be housed alone 9 times out of 10? Did you know that the gestation period of a mouse is only 21 days and that they can become pregnant again immediately after giving birth? Babies need to be handled correctly and frequently. Lack of handling will create untamed mice and that is against what I am working toward.
Mice have any number of babies in a litter. Usually these range between one to twenty four! The babies need to be sexed correctly and separated at the correct time to avoid any unwanted pregnancies. Mice reproduce at a phenomenal rate. You need to be prepared if you do not take things seriously. To get the message across, here is an article from the book 'Mice as Pets'
'... Assume an average litter of eight. Assume (for sake of argument) that these eight are four pairs. Assume that mice produce young 60 days after birth and every 60 days thereafter. Actually, they can do even BETTER than that.
Start with a newborn pair; 60 days later - four pairs plus parents or five pairs total which produce - 60 days later- 20 pairs plus five pairs of parents or 25 pairs total which produce -60 days later- 100 pairs plus 25 pairs of parents or 125 pairs total which produce- 60 days later- 500 pairs plus 125 pairs of parents or 625 total which produce -60 days later- 2500 pairs plus 625 pairs of parents or 3125 pairs total which produce -60 days later- 12500 pairs plus 3125 OR A TOTAL FOR THE YEAR (conservative estimate) OF 15625 PAIRS OF 31250 INDIVIDUAL MICE.
Six months more at this rate and the number reaches nearly four million. Four million mice stretched nose to tail (say 7 inches per mouse) works out to about 450 statue miles. All these figures are conservative. If you really try you can do even better..."
Please, if you plan on breeding, dont just do it to show your kids the miracle of life. Please dont do it to get kicks out of feeding your reptile live food. The mouse deserves better than that. Just because theyre smaller than cats or dogs, doesnt mean they have any less significance and shouldnt be cared for just as carefully. A mouse is an animal too, and any form of cruelty shall not be tolerated |
