wild mice babies

Question
we have just found a wild mouse and 5 babies,we put her in a box with food etc. the mum and 2 babies are gone(we moved them without handling), but the other 3 are still in the box. they have fur and can move but their eyes are not open, do they still need their mum's milk??? (just in case she doesn't come back)

Answer
They need milk until the age of 3 weeks. They will have teeth, fur, and be moving about with open eyes. At this time you are probably dealing with newborns. What you need to do if the mother doesnt return is to feed them, keep them warm, and stimulate them to use the bathroom.

First lets talk warmth. Baby rats cannot go to the bathroom by themselves. They need stimulation in order to accomplish this. You will need to do this by rubbing their tummies and private areas. You should do this each time at feeding for urination and every third feeding for bowel movement. You can use a tissue to just lightly tickle the area without touching it for about 30 seconds until the baby urinates.

Second they need to be warm. You can use a heat light, just make sure it isn't too close to burn them, You also can use a heating pad on low with them on a blanket on top of the heating pad. Make sure to wrap them in a blanket or cloth to keep warm.

Last is feeding. You can use soy baby formula for this and you need an eye dropper or infant dropper(like found in infant Tylenol). You give them feeding every 2-3 hours. It is based on weight so you need a gram scale or if one isn't available you can go from normal birth weight and increase as need. A baby usually weighs 6 grams.  You can use this wonderful website that give amounts of formula for each feeding and even how to wean. They should be eating on their own at 3 weeks.

http://www.ratfanclub.org/orphans.html

I hope that this helps you and feel free ask any questions needed .