Old Mice, Mites, and Breeding

Question
Hello! I have three questions.
(1) I have an old mouse, Patches, who is reaching 2 years of age. She is very frail and thin and I have to make sure she is drinking enough water and eating right. Is there any way i can make her more comfortable in her final days? I don;t want to put her to sleep because I did that with my former mouse, Carmel, who had a terrible untreatable respiratory infection.
(2) I own another mouse, Miracle, who I noticed was scratching her ears often. I bought a spray for her and it didn't help, and instead her itching spread. The vet recently confirmed that she has mites (as I suspected) and she is treated once every ten days. Any way I can get her to stop scratching so she won;t bleed and make her more comfortable? Tips on how to clean her cage so the mites don't stick around?
(3) I have owned mice for +3 years along with my neighbor friend, and we have noticed that pet store mice are not bred for health. We know a lot about caring for mice and we have started learning about genetics and breeding. We plan to (hopefully) breed show quality healthy mice.
Tips for first time breeders?  
Also, I am only a teen ;) But there are no mouse breeders in my ENTIRE STATE and my friend and I want to sell the baby mice at shows. We know that mice have lot's of babies per liter and we need to find homes for each baby.

Any help is greatly appreciated!!

Answer
Hi Sarah,

(1) Supplementing her diet with a little extra protein might help make what she does eat a little more energy-giving, so you could try throwing in a little bit of dry cat food with her normal diet.  Outside of that, making sure that her cage has enough bedding to keep warm in, and that she gets plenty of playtime with you, is just about all you can do.  I'd avoid any big, sudden changes or stresses, but beyond that, I'm sure she just loves spending time with you.  :)

(2) Does Miracle live with anybody else?  Sometimes having cage mates helps control the mites by having someone to groom and be groomed by.  Also, you can try freezing your bedding for at least 24 hours to kill any that may be coming in that way.  As far as cleaning the cage, just use hot, soapy water on every bit of it and all toys and be sure to rinse well.  If you want to go an extra step you can use 1:10 bleach solution in water, but you really have to make sure you get all traces of bleach off before filling it with new bedding, as both the chemical and the fumes it gives off can affect the mice.

(3) Wow, this is a REALLY big question!  First, I suggest joining a few of the most frequented mouse forums, as the people are always helpful and most of the questions you could ask (or didn't even know to ask!) have been answered right there.  Try:
http://mouselovers.com/
http://www.fancymicebreeders.com/phpBB3/

Then, there's about a million sites I could refer you to for information as well, but here are just a couple:
http://fancymice.info/
http://www.hiiret.fi/eng/
http://afrma.org/

My first suggestion is that you determine exactly why you're breeding, what you're breeding, and where the mice will wind up.  Show mice don't usually leave the show mice game - most show mouse breeders prefer their mice stay show mice, as well as their offspring.  Breeding pet mice is equally satisfactory, but isn't likely to win you many awards in shows (it's worth it to note, though, that there are pet classes in shows!).  Basically:
    Are you breeding to improve the health of the mice in your area?  To join in the shows?  To breed better pets?  All are different, though they can absolutely overlap, and require different approaches.
    What sort of mice do you want to breed?  If you're breeding pets, you may worry quite a bit less about big ears, big size, head shape, tail set, and anything but temperament, health, and color.  If your'e breeding for show, however, long term health and pet quality may take a back seat to type characteristics (though they really shouldn't).

If I had only two things I could say to a first time breeder, it would be - first, don't get in over your head.  One variety can quickly mean ten or more cages, easily, especially if you're squeamish about euthanasia (nothing wrong with that, but it will mean more mice on hand and less time for you to spend on them, so don't take on too many types at once).  Second, learn EVERYTHING you can.  Then more.  There is a wealth of information available for free online and you can never know enough of it - the more you study it, the better off you and your mice will be and the better of a breeder you will become.  I think this site has taught me more than anything else that you're never an expert - there's always more to learn about mice.

Lastly, I bet you'll find you're wrong about there being no mouse breeders in your state once you start participating in those forums.  Chances are, we're just hiding under rocks.  :)

Let me know if you have any more questions, and I'll be glad to help out!
-Tam