hi i need some advice

Question
hello,
my name is Beth and i have unexpectidly
have baby mice from my older mouse jem
and we dont really have much experiance in baby training
so i just need to ask how old do baby mice need to be before you
handle them and why is it important to make sure you dont touch the babies before there old enough and have fur and everything?

Answer
Hi Beth,

Congratulations on your litter, even if it was unexpected!  Since you don't have much experience in young mice, I would recommend waiting until they are at least 10 days old and fully furred.  First remove the mother into a separate cage or container once she has left her pups alone, then rub your hands in the bedding so that your hands smell kind of like mom, then you can carefully lift up the pups and hold them for a while.  At around 2 to 3 weeks, they may start hopping (bouncing right out of your hands!), so you must be careful during this stage, and it's okay if you leave them alone until they grow out of it - it's better than losing or injuring them.  They will wean at about 4 weeks old, and that's when you should separate the mice from their mom (unless they aren't eating solid foods yet, but they should be), and the males from the females.  They can be socialized at any age older than this if you would prefer waiting until they wean, but the sooner you start, the more comfortable they will be with being picked up and handled.

Every mother mouse is different.  Some mothers will actually eat their babies if there are too many sounds or disturbances, whereas some may trust you enough to pick their babies up before they even have fur.  Since mom identifies her pups as hers by smell, touching them will leave your scent on them.  This is why, to be on the safe side, it's recommended that you don't touch the babies when they are very young - it might stress mom out too much and she might eat or reject them.

Good luck with your new mice!
-Tam