Strange male feamle interaction

Question
Hi.  I have a manx male mouse and a normal female mouse.  They are both young and I put them in the same cage hoping they might mate one day.  However, the male seems to bullying the female, lashing out at her, coming at her with his claw,chasing her and making her squeak loudly.  She doesn't seem to have any scratches, but this behaviour is concerning me as it happens about 4 times a day.  Is this normal?

Answer
Dear Jocelyn,
thank you for your question.
Mice must be introduced slowly to each other or they will fight. You need to separate them again. Introduce them in the bathtub or somewhere else where they both haven't been before. If they get along there, put them in a kritter keeper or small cage without a house, just food, water, bedding and some hay to hide in. If they get along there, they can move into their noral cage after a day. The cage must be cleaned with hot water and vinegar to get rid of the smell and must be just as empty as the small cage. If they continue to get along, you can give them toys and furniture, one item per day.

But I don't recommend keeing them together as a pair, you may end up with far more mice than you ever wanted. One single litter can consist of as many as 12 babies, sometimes even more. You just need to make one mistake in separating male and female babies and you'll get a litter from each of the female babies and their mother as well. Male mice cannot be kept together after they are a few weeks old (there are exceptions, but those are very rare).

If you really want to breed them, you need to wait until the female is at least 12, better 16 weeks old. There should be a pause of at least three months between litters and the female shouldn't have to produce more than three litters in her life. She should have company, at least one other female mouse. The male can be kept with a neutered male mouse (if you can find one or a vet who will neuter) or with White-Footed mice, but not with other male mice.
I also recommend contacting a good breeder or a mouse club, at least a good mouse forum. Breeding doesn't just mean putting male and female together, you need to know about genetics, disease, behaviour ect.
www.rmca.org has an excellent forum and good articles on breeding.
I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer
If you really want to breed them, you should wait until the female is at least