Care of Mice and Rats

Yes. But you need to consider a few things before you decide on how much to give...age, weight, amount of exercise (very important...this is a high calorie food), and the weather is another factor...hot weather and too much alfalfa can cause your pony to colic.

(see related question)

Talk to your vet to make sure you are giving the right amount.

Alfalfa is great when you need to get a horse to gain weight. It is like McDonald's to them: they love it and it is fattening.

If your pony is one to eat a LOT, make sure it has plenty of "grass hay"...this is a much less fatty food, and is easier to digest on a regular basis. It is also better in the summer time than alfalfa, especially when it gets really hot.

just remember mice are small creatures so they dont need that much water

if you have a bottle for your mouse then maybe fill it up about a quarter of the bottle (depending on how big it is i would recomend you fill it up a quarter if the bottle is medium size) but if you have a water bowl for your mouse then fill it up just under half the bowl also put a piece of plastic / wood that is safe for your pet such as a toy, in the bowl just in case the mouse falls in the bowl and it could drown :( MAKE SURE ALL MATERIALS USED IN THE CAGE ARE SAFE FOR MICE!!

i hope i helped :)

(currently owns a cute little boy mousey called Buttons :D) xx

Domestic ferrets have many forms of verbal communication. A soft clucking noise, referred to as "dooking",when playing or an expression of excitement. They will 'screech' as a sign of terror, pain, or anger. They will 'bark' if they are very excited. Finally, a ferret will 'hiss' if it is annoyed or very angry at another ferret or animal. Bottle brush tail - their tail will be up and hair bristled out - either excited or scared. The "weasel war dance" or "dance of joy" - the ferret will hop up and down and side to side in playing. The vocal sounds of a ferret are various

* The most common is a "Dook" (a clucking or chattering noise), usually when made when playing and is happy or excited, some ferrets or more vocal than others

* Screaming - a reaction to extreme pain or fear. In some cases, it may be anger as well. Investigate what caused your ferret to scream immediately - he may be injured

* Barking - when frightened or excited * Hissing - is a warning - depending on what they are doing - either upset, annoyed or agitated, in conflict, or fear to another ferret, animal or human. Some ferrets hiss regularly, it's just their way of talking * Squeaking, screeching - when playing, when jumping on another ferret, in some cases the ferret making the sound is upset with the other ferret. * Whining or Whimpering - when in discomfort, pain, or frightened, this is not a normal noise, and you need to investigate if heard. Continued whimpering in pain, or noises while going to the bathroom, take to the veterinarian immediately, as this could indicate a blockage. When they are happy or excited they may "dook", a soft clucking noise, commonly referred to as dooking

It is possible to not have veterinary expenses associated with owning a mouse. Mice tend to not live very long, and are not exposed to diseases from other rodents while they are pets. To the best of my knowledge there aren't any commercially available vaccines approved for use in pet rodents.

However, a yearly vet check would probably still be a good idea.

six to seven weeks.

A female mouse can get pregnant every five days. If you're looking to get your mouse pregnant, leave a male mouse with her for about two weeks, and weigh her. If she has gained a considerable amount of weight, then it means she is pregnant. So basically, mice will breed every five days, usually at night, although sometimes they might do it during the day.

A Rat, it has the same mouse tail, basically same everything, but mice are smaller, and rats are bigger, and male rats tend to be bigger than female rats.

mice can die from the cold because mine did. There was food for them to eat water to drink there cage was big enough and was clean and they could breathe through it and they were fine until it was a cold, cold day......

Determining the age of a hamster can be easy, as long as you have store-bought it. Think back to the day you bought your hamster, and add that time to 4-6 weeks and that will give you a rough prediction to how old your hamster is.

I think rats are definitely the friendliest rodent! I have had lots of them and they were all friendly. Rats are very sociable with people and other rats. they love to play and be petted. They can live up to 4 years and can become really tame. They are very active so you need to keep them in a safe, secure environment because female rats are very fast and would possibly escape. Once your rat is tame you can have lots of fun, adventures with him/her so I would recommend them to anyone.


If your not a rat fan, then you could also try one or two guinea pigs. They cost slightly more than rats because they require a lot of space and exercise. I have only had one guinea pig called Fluffy and he was a great friend of mine! Guinea pigs rarely bite and squeal so you can handle and cuddle them safely. If you want two guinea pigs you should make sure they have a lot of space in their hutch and that they are the same sex unless you want them to have babies. ( if you want them to have babies, you will need an extra hutch or cage for the dad so the mum and her babies can relax and not get stressed).
Male guinea pigs can hurt baby guinea pigs, even if they are his so make sure he is separated from them!

Yes. They prefer dim light or no light mostly because they are nocturnal. I had mice at one point and they never liked light. I have a rat now and he doesn't like light either! Hope that helped!

mice' eyes open at aprox. two weeks. they need to be able to nurse for at least a month before separated from their mothers.

If you need help with this question, please visit the site below. It has two great links on how to care for wild baby mice all the way into their adulthood or just until you can set them free in the wild once more. http://www.mouseranch.com/FYI/orphans.shtml ~ h2obaby716

Yes. Mice can die from shock.

Typically, yes. The father has been known to eat the children. I don't think the mother will, but that's also a possibility. Just try to keep them away from the father when they're born, maybe wait until they open their eyes and get fur.

Usually at about two weeks baby mice will start to eat a few solid foods, things that are easy to digest. But they still drink milk from their mother for another week or two. Three weeks is the earliest that you can separate a mother from her babies, but it's better to wait another week or two if possible.

Baby rats open their eyes depending on their rate of growth, most open their eyes between 13-15 days some as early as 9 day some as late as 18 days,More commonly in my expirence the darker babies open their eyes sooner then the lighter colored babys

on average they tend to hold their bottle at 8 months mine was 6 months but it all depends on how well they co ordinate using hand and mouth.

1. no. they do the exact opposite. if you have a hamster, then rats, mice and other rodents will know that a rodent lives here so they will stay away. I don't know why though.

no. no.no.no.no.no.no. if you do, the tail will come off.

All animal types have a different number of chromosomes not just mammal, birds, and fish.

i find that mice do better if the mother has help( nanny) caring for her young. so basically the pregnant mom should NOT have to build the nest on her own so purchase another female mouse( the nanny) to help care for the babies. make sure the nanny and mom to be get along. and thats about all you do but heres what the mice will do nanny will make a nest. mom will have the babies. mom will feed the babies milk. nanny and mom will retrieve run away babies by grabbing them by loose skin 'even if the babies squeak DO NOT interfere. mom and nanny will groom the babies. the babies will grow up. now heres the disturbing part any BOY babies remaining in moms cage through adulthood will ( given the opportunity will MATE with mom, nanny and every sister they have! i breed mice so all the listed information are my observations!

Usually four.

Take it to the vet immediately. It could have serious medical/intestinal problems and possibly die.