Question
The Babies
Hi Natasha,
I'm pleased to find someone with your expertise to write to. :)
My mouse raising career began in Nov. of 2010 when I caught a wild house mouse (Hoffman) at my college. He was a tiny thing but had hair...maybe a few weeks old. I took good care of him up until this past May. He was a baby and Cleveland winters are quite harsh so I didn't want to let him go until it was warm outside and he got a little bigger. During that time he grew into a good little boy and was a great addition to my life. However, he was very wild still; I couldn't hold him at all or open up the cage frequently because he was a jumper. I knew in my heart that he needed to be released. He'd be much happier outside because that's where he belonged. I tried to prepare him for release by incorporating found outdoor objects into his cage design and changed his food. Eventually I found a nice little area to let him go with a water source nearby and suitable shelters. I would want to live there if I was a mouse. :) He was eager to go and hopefully he's out somewhere roaming free and enjoying the outdoors.
Once Hoffman was gone I decided I loved having him so much that I needed to adopt more mice. :) I enjoyed him even without being able to hold him so having tame pet mice sounded ideal. Soon I adopted Swiss (the white one) and Pepperjack (the spotted one).
Swiss is a darling and very tame. However I've been afraid that he's had a cold for some time now. He sneezes about every 10 seconds. What really worries me is that once in awhile when he's sleeping he will wake up and sneeze. I don't think it's severe because I've watched some YouTube videos with mice sneezing and they did it nonstop. I don't want to take him to a vet because I don't feel that spending that much money is necessary for a mouse at this point. I DO care about them, but you understand. I saw that you recommended Tetracycline as a treatment. I plan to call a local vet to make sure that that's acceptable to give a mouse. I don't want to kill him after all. Is there anything else I can do? I try to disinfect his cage very regularly. I clean all his toys and completely wash his cage with pet-safe soap. I wouldn't want to have a consistent cold if I were him. :P
Jack is the wild one. He's much more timid and afraid to see me. He's also attacked Swiss several times when they were in a cage together originally so I had to remove him. He bit Swiss very hard on his back and injured him. Since then I treated Swiss' wound with a tiny bit of Neosporin which seemed to do the trick. He's much better now. Is there any way to tame Jack more? I should probably play with him more than I have but I'd rather not scare him. If he's happier in his cage then playing with Swiss will keep me satisfied. But I would like to be able to take him out once in awhile.
Lastly, (and thank you for your patience) what would you recommend that I feed the boys? Right now I'm feeding them a combination of two different pet store mixes. One has more seeds and the other has a lot more dog treat looking things. I've been watching the protein contents etc. They seem to like it alright (they ate it all in the beginning) however they do just pick out certain seeds (mostly the sunflower seeds). I give them bits of lettuce every other day or every third day and one yogurt treat every few days. I've looked online for the best types of food but nothing has really satisfied me or them. I'd like some sort of grain mixture if possible.
Thanks so much for bothering to read all of this! I appreciate your input.
AnswerDear Rebecca,
Welcome to the wonderful world of mice! I see you have caught a full-blown case of GGMM syndrome-- Gotta Get More Mice. It tends to be incurable: I've had it since I was 5....
You did the right thing with Hoffman. When people ask me if they should keep a baby wild mouse that's exactly what I tell them-- if the mouse keeps trying to escape and doesn't like being held, it needs to go back in the wild. Sounds like you found a great spot for him.
Swiss needs antibiotics asap. Mice can easily die from respiratory infections, and they can take a turn for the worse fast. On the other hand, antibiotics are almost always effective. Sneezing doesn't have to be constant to mean he is sick.
Tetracycline is quite safe for mice. I have never heard of a reaction to it. The only drawbacks are that it is quite weak, and that it isn't effective against a secondary infection. However, if you search the web you will probably find 200 answers from me, so if you want a second opinion you'll have to call a vet : )).
All mice carry a disease called Mycoplasma pulmonis, or "myco" for short, at a low level that doesn't make them sick. But if anything at all negative happens to lower their immune defense-- other illness or injury, loss of a companion, depression, stress, cold, draft, a dirty cage, shock, lack of food or water, to name some of the most common dangers-- the myco can flare up and they get sick. Then they usually need a course of antibiotics to get well, such as Tetracycline if you can't get to a vet, and usually Baytril if you can. Sometimes, because the inflamed myco makes them very vulnerable, they can get a secondary bacterial infection on top of the first. They usually need another antibiotic for this, and they usually get both at the same time. This is why I can't guarantee to cure a mouse with Tetracycline-- that, and because sometimes myco can be very stubborn and Tetracycline is a weaker drug than your vet will give you.
You probably already found a link to how to dose it, but I'l include one:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Mice-3824/2011/5/Respiratory-Infection-mice-1.htm
On the other hand, his problem might not be a respiratory infection at all, but an allergy. In the following post I explained how to test for allergies:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Mice-3824/2011/3/periodically-sneezing-mouse.htm
The problem with boy mice is that they fight. Although girl mice can-- and must-- be kept in pairs or groups, often boys will fight to the death, and usually have to each have their own cage. It's a pity pet shop owners don't tell this to people who choose two boys. So you will probably need to keep the two separated when they are alone. You can take them out and play with them on the same surface together. Their two cages must be very close because they do communicate in high pitched squeaks that we can't hear, and they do need that company.
I wrote about taming an adult mouse in the following post:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Mice-3824/2008/12/hand-training-mice-yellow.htm
I feed my mouse girls a seed mix meant for rats and mice (actually it's terrible for rats). It is true that they will get 100% of their nutritional needs filled every day from the chunks or pellets instead, but who'd want to eat that every day all their life? If eating good food as opposed to something awful every day for my life were going to take 15 years off my life, I'd choose the shorter and tastier life myself! And I have no evidence that it does make a difference. So they are going to pick out the sunflower seeds first. It's best not to feed them every day, but to leave the food in there until they are close to done with it, so if they eat all the sunflower seeds today, they will balance that with the seeds they eat tomorrow. Fresh vegetables are great; but yogies (yogurt drops) are not. Mice should never have sugar of any kind. Their bodies just aren't made for it; and since their immune systems are already so delicate, the immune-suppressant qualities of sugar pose too great of a risk. I'd get the more seed-looking mix. Take out any peanuts though; they aren't good for them.
I hope I have answered all of your questions. Your mice are extremely cute! It must have been very hard to give Hoffman up. What a beauty he was.
squeaks n giggles,
Natasha
<:3 )--~
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