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beginner help...
- Thread starter abaro22
- Start date
Baba-Lou
Snakeism Evangelist!
Please tell me you don't have the 2 males in the same cage? What size cage are they in. What are you feeding them? What are their lighting hours? And what exactly are you wanting help with? You've left the question open. Theres no real question there anyways on what you want help on.
OK, well I can try, I haven't been breeding my mice long. However once again I researched it fully when I took it on.
first, as has been said, DO NOT put two males in the same breeder cage. The recommended mix is anywhere from 1 to 4 (Ive seen 5) females and 1 male per cage, tub etc. My research suggests that 1:3 male to female is usually the most productive. The tank size really depends on how many babies your particular breed of mouse will deliver. I have my colony in a ten gallon aquarium and its larger than the professionals I spoke with say is needed. However, my litter sizes are quite small, still haven't figured that one out! (5-7 max)
Feed, its easiest to just by mouse blocks, you can buy online Lab Blocks. Its efficient and fairly cost effective if you buy in quantity. I personally researched it and got a recipe to make my own, I am not vouching for its success because I only recently started mine on it, (in fact I intend to alter it in my next batch). However, I did get it from a mouse lovers site.
If you plan to raise them to supply others, I suggest building / buying a rack system and running several colonies at once. Then you need to have a way of euthanizing and freezing unless you intend to sell live. (local only) The most commonly accepted method is to put them down with CO2 gas, and then freeze them. This is what I use, my hoppers go down inside of 10 seconds, they just fall asleep. I leave em in the box for a couple minutes to be sure none will wake while in the freezing process as I don't have the facilities to flash freeze. There are other methods, but I don't have the skill to feel safe using them. (Most notably a method that essentially breaks the neck killing instantly.)
That's it in a nutshell, ask some more specific questions and I will dig around for the answers if I don't have em. Its how i stay on top of it for myself.
first, as has been said, DO NOT put two males in the same breeder cage. The recommended mix is anywhere from 1 to 4 (Ive seen 5) females and 1 male per cage, tub etc. My research suggests that 1:3 male to female is usually the most productive. The tank size really depends on how many babies your particular breed of mouse will deliver. I have my colony in a ten gallon aquarium and its larger than the professionals I spoke with say is needed. However, my litter sizes are quite small, still haven't figured that one out! (5-7 max)
Feed, its easiest to just by mouse blocks, you can buy online Lab Blocks. Its efficient and fairly cost effective if you buy in quantity. I personally researched it and got a recipe to make my own, I am not vouching for its success because I only recently started mine on it, (in fact I intend to alter it in my next batch). However, I did get it from a mouse lovers site.
If you plan to raise them to supply others, I suggest building / buying a rack system and running several colonies at once. Then you need to have a way of euthanizing and freezing unless you intend to sell live. (local only) The most commonly accepted method is to put them down with CO2 gas, and then freeze them. This is what I use, my hoppers go down inside of 10 seconds, they just fall asleep. I leave em in the box for a couple minutes to be sure none will wake while in the freezing process as I don't have the facilities to flash freeze. There are other methods, but I don't have the skill to feel safe using them. (Most notably a method that essentially breaks the neck killing instantly.)
That's it in a nutshell, ask some more specific questions and I will dig around for the answers if I don't have em. Its how i stay on top of it for myself.
abaro22
eXiled
no i have 3 10 gallons rite now...2 which have a male and a female in and the other with the pregneant female. I think another one is pregneant also because she is acting the same way as the actual pregneant female. I talked to a friend of mine who says one female can nurse all the pinkies if i want which i probably will. The mice i have can have up to 13 a litter..I'm feeding them Hamster food which comes with sunflower seeds, and a buncha other goodies. they dont have any lighting they jus use the ones the come of of my 8 snake cages... And im just wondering what i can be a better breeder with, and if i wanted to be a supplier for a small pet store what would i need to know and how can i make it happen?
Penman6668
Dr. Jan Itor
I asked a similar question a while back.
Here is the link:
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33206
Here is the link:
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33206
Baba-Lou
Snakeism Evangelist!
Thank god owen doesn't come in here. He'd get a royal bashing from me. Well abaro22. its nice to hear you got the males seperated. But I would find having in a 10 gal a 1.2 maybe a 1.3 to work no problem. You don't HAVE to seperate the females when their pregnant. If anything that'll cause huge problems when you reintroduce them. Their not like rats who are social and take in very easily.
But the idea of only 1 female nursing all the pinks. Well I find that harsh to that one female. I would say keep2 females and a male in a tank and just let them breed. If you take away the pinks from the birth mom at day 1 and then move them to the nursing mom. The birth mom will never get used to eat and sooner or later eat all the pinks be fore you can take them. If you know what I mean.
As for the food. look at the bag and check the protien levels. Thats all I look at when looking for my mouse and rat food. I know they have mouse and rat food. but the food mixture I'm using works.
But the idea of only 1 female nursing all the pinks. Well I find that harsh to that one female. I would say keep2 females and a male in a tank and just let them breed. If you take away the pinks from the birth mom at day 1 and then move them to the nursing mom. The birth mom will never get used to eat and sooner or later eat all the pinks be fore you can take them. If you know what I mean.
As for the food. look at the bag and check the protien levels. Thats all I look at when looking for my mouse and rat food. I know they have mouse and rat food. but the food mixture I'm using works.
abaro22
eXiled
baba.. can i jus wait a couple of days and then put the pinkies with the nursing mother...because everytime i go to put a female with the pregneant one she chases them away and attacks them....and i am gettin 2 more females for each tank so i will have a 1.3 which im sure is really gd...and i heard from someone that the females will eat the males sumtimes if there in the same tank when there pregneant or when she has her babies...is this true?
Baba-Lou
Snakeism Evangelist!
I wouldn't take few day old pinks and put them with a new mother because they smell like the other mother and might eat them. And as for females fighting, their establishing dominance. And no Females usually don't have problems with males in the tank when the females are with young. if anything the male will help the females keeping them warm and what not.abaro22 said: