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ASF hoppers and pinks together?! what to do

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dakota11

New member
I have a 30 gal set up with 3 f and 1m asf they have a bunch of hoppers and just popped a bunch of pups. now when I clean the cage I have a hide on both ends so when I clean one side they go to the other end and vice versa. Hoppers were born between Sept 30 to oct3 and now new ones were born yesterday just when I was going to remove hoppers to their own tank With living in Northern Ontario I had to move the tank from the shed to the heated garage yesterday and realized this new addition to the group. Now the dilemma, all stay in one place and bunch on top of eachother inside a hollow log do not have any intention to move like they did before during cleaning. Unless I take the nest apart I wont be able to get the hoppers out and Im thinking that the way they pile up the pinks may not be able to feed? I have someone coming to pick up the hoppers around the 15th so I don't know if I should just leave things the way they are roughly there are 12 or more hoppers and I have no clue how many pinks. I cant afford to loose the hoppers though and Im concerned that the adults will cull is this a concern? Its my first time breeding and I really didn't think they would reproduce so quickly although Im glad they did if all goes well I just wish they would have waited a couple days lol. btw One hopper was dead the day before the females birthed but could have been related to a sudden temperature drop which caused me to lose a bunch of breeder mice.
Any suggestions? Do I leave them in or pull them? I was going to try and cull a couple pinks for my snakes but cant even get to them this log is one of those edible petstore ones and it is solid all around. the last litter was born in a hide that was hollow at the bottom so I could just get the adults away and lift the hide up to get to the pups.
 
dakota11 said:
I have a 30 gal set up with 3 f and 1m asf they have a bunch of hoppers and just popped a bunch of pups. now when I clean the cage I have a hide on both ends so when I clean one side they go to the other end and vice versa. Hoppers were born between Sept 30 to oct3 and now new ones were born yesterday just when I was going to remove hoppers to their own tank With living in Northern Ontario I had to move the tank from the shed to the heated garage yesterday and realized this new addition to the group. Now the dilemma, all stay in one place and bunch on top of eachother inside a hollow log do not have any intention to move like they did before during cleaning. Unless I take the nest apart I wont be able to get the hoppers out and Im thinking that the way they pile up the pinks may not be able to feed? I have someone coming to pick up the hoppers around the 15th so I don't know if I should just leave things the way they are roughly there are 12 or more hoppers and I have no clue how many pinks. I cant afford to loose the hoppers though and Im concerned that the adults will cull is this a concern? Its my first time breeding and I really didn't think they would reproduce so quickly although Im glad they did if all goes well I just wish they would have waited a couple days lol. btw One hopper was dead the day before the females birthed but could have been related to a sudden temperature drop which caused me to lose a bunch of breeder mice.
Any suggestions? Do I leave them in or pull them? I was going to try and cull a couple pinks for my snakes but cant even get to them this log is one of those edible petstore ones and it is solid all around. the last litter was born in a hide that was hollow at the bottom so I could just get the adults away and lift the hide up to get to the pups.
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I would just put the hoppers in their own tank. Is your concern being bitten because the adults are not moving like they usually do? I knoiw they can be nippy. If you are worried wear some gloves. I don't know if they cull or not but since the first batch of babies is ready to wean I do think it would be good to remove them so adults can focus on raising the next bunch.
I don't know what you mean by picking the nest apart, since the ASF I have here didnt really make a nest. They just kind of dug a pit in the bedding.
 
They are in a log type nest and the only way to get them out is to move it which the pinks are also in I would basically have to turn it upright to get them out Its hard to explain but do you know what I mean?
 
You say the hoppers were born Sept 30th to Oct 3rd? Then they are not hoppers yet and are too young to be weaned, as they are only a few days old.

I have had no problems so far with 3 females, all in the same tank, delivering at weekly-ish intervals and all the babies being in the same nest box, all the females take turns nursing the babies and they've been growing well, although not as quickly as I've heard mice do.
 
No they are over a month old

Susielea said:
You say the hoppers were born Sept 30th to Oct 3rd? Then they are not hoppers yet and are too young to be weaned, as they are only a few days old.

I have had no problems so far with 3 females, all in the same tank, delivering at weekly-ish intervals and all the babies being in the same nest box, all the females take turns nursing the babies and they've been growing well, although not as quickly as I've heard mice do.
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opse ya a couple days old would be a bit to early to wean wouldn't it?! I meant august 30 3 females 3 days of pupping the first batch were born the new ones were born yesterday. I did manage to remove 14 of the hoppers 2 hid from me but it was very interesting the adults were very protective first time they have shown aggression and I was able to handle the first batch understandable though I mean they do have newborns right next to where I was.
As you men tuned about all three of yours having babies in same nest box that's what mine have done my concern was that 3 females 1 male 16 hoppers and newborns in a 30 gal tank would be a disaster waiting to happen. When do you pull the hoppers and how soon do yours have babies again? For future reference I am not going to let this happen again. Do you not leave the male in with the females? Mine actually has helped in cleaning the nest and babies. HOw do you go about pulling the hoppers without ticking off the adults? or is it possible?
 
dakota11 said:
opse ya a couple days old would be a bit to early to wean wouldn't it?! I meant august 30 3 females 3 days of pupping the first batch were born the new ones were born yesterday. I did manage to remove 14 of the hoppers 2 hid from me but it was very interesting the adults were very protective first time they have shown aggression and I was able to handle the first batch understandable though I mean they do have newborns right next to where I was.
As you men tuned about all three of yours having babies in same nest box that's what mine have done my concern was that 3 females 1 male 16 hoppers and newborns in a 30 gal tank would be a disaster waiting to happen. When do you pull the hoppers and how soon do yours have babies again? For future reference I am not going to let this happen again. Do you not leave the male in with the females? Mine actually has helped in cleaning the nest and babies. HOw do you go about pulling the hoppers without ticking off the adults? or is it possible?
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Oh ok, it was the dates that were confusing me :)

I've got the same, 1 male and 3 females in a 36" x 15" glass tank, not sure what that would be in gallons, I've given them a large ice cream type container for a nest box (about 2 to 3 litre size, with a hole cut in the side for entry/exit and some air holes around the top, it gets humid in there otherwise) and my girls have been delivering their next litters about 23 to 26 days after the previous one, I'm onto the third round of litters now. I don't remove the male, as I've been told it can change the structure of the colony and it can take time to re-establish breeding, I've kept him in there and he too helps with the babies etc.

I've been waiting to pull the weaners until I've seen them out, eating and drinking on their own for a couple of nights or so, I then distract the adults with some treats, I've been using mealworms or waxworms, they absolutely love them and I've read they are a good source of added protein. While the adults are distracted, I remove the lid of the nest box, pull the weaners and set them up in their own tank :)
 
eeek meal worms

meal worms eeeekkkkk not sure if I can handle that one but I may give it a try what about earth worms lol just kidding next time. Well they all seem to be doing alright. so I guess our set up is very similar. How do you find the odor? All mice and asf were in the shed now all are in my grooming salon what a stink even with cleaning constantly. I will be continuing with the asf but have to either stop or cut way down on the mice for the winter.
 
I just leave them all together, you might want to get a different nest though. Those plastic igloos are good, plenty of room and easy to get into. I move the nest then pick each adult up by the base of the tail and kinda toss them into the nest so I can work with the babies.
I've never been bit by my ASF, even the really wild ones just jump away.
 
waldo said:
I just leave them all together, you might want to get a different nest though. Those plastic igloos are good, plenty of room and easy to get into. I move the nest then pick each adult up by the base of the tail and kinda toss them into the nest so I can work with the babies.
I've never been bit by my ASF, even the really wild ones just jump away.
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Crazy tarantula lady lol my brother had one. Yes I have a few of those igloos I think once this new batch is done Ill switch to that. this is the second set of babies and I notice 2 of the females are steeling eachothers one has the nest inside the log and the other is on the outside. strange this just started today. How do you all find the odor? I have to stop breeding the mice for the winter cause I dont think my dog grooming customers would appreciate the odor and I am hopeing that the main scent coming from them all is the mice! So far I dont find them to have much smell but as I mentuned they were in the shed and had to move them to my shop which is heated
 
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