toys for mice

Question
I have 5 mice and I would like some ideas for toys. If you have any ideas for
good toys, houses, or just any advice.
thanx
helen

Answer
Dear Helen,
thank you for your question.
Mice enjoy things to gnaw, hide in and to climb on. You can offer them cardboard boxes, egg ontainers and toilet paper rolls as well as woodden ladders (for birds) and hemp or cotton ropes to balance on. Scatter the food in the bedding, put it in a wad of crumpled paper and hide their fresh food or bead it on a piece of string so that they have to search for their food. Tufts of grass or whole dandelion/chickweed plants can be eaten and investigated. If you don't have access to an untreated lawn, you can grow your own from the grains/seeds in the mouse food. Branches, twigs and leaves from hazel, apple, pear, willow, poplar, alder, currant, beech, birch or maple are great climbing and chewing toys (make sure the trees are not sprayed with insecticides).

For a chewable mouse house, cover a balloon with several layers of moist toilet paper and allow it to dry. Punch a hole in the balloon cut some openings into the dried toilet paper, shake out the balloon pieces and you have a house that can be chewed and turned into nesting material. Here's a picture of a showbox labyrinth:
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/minilabyrinth.jpg
Non-toxic wood glue can be used for this. This climbing toy is made form toilet paper rolls and wood:
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/Treppe01.jpg

Glazed flower pots or coffee pots and untreated/unvarnished baskets made from willow or eelweed make nice hiding places.
I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer