Everything to do with starting a colony

[kevindeeley12]

Hi, before I get a cornsnake there is some stuff I need to know about getting a colony going :

is it worth it for just 1 snake?
What are the best species of mice to start of with?
How many males:females would I need to get going?
Can you tell when mice are pregnant?
How long does it take for mice to have their babies?
How many babies come from each females (ex. 4,5,6 or something)?
How big of a breeding enclosure would I need? Would a 10 gallon do the job?
Do the mice need a specific temperature?
What's the best bedding for mice ( I see people use wood chips?)
Do mice keep well in a freezer ( Dead of course, awaiting the next meal)?

Thanks a lot

 

[medusacoils]

Hi, before I get a cornsnake there is some stuff I need to know about getting a colony going :

is it worth it for just 1 snake?

Not Really. If you start of with a baby, your snake will eat approx 1 a week and slowly move up from there. An adult female can produce a large amount of pinkies a year. Figure one litter every 5-8 weeks, if your lucky. Where you are only planning on one snake, it may be more equitable for you to buy your feeders, rather than raise them.

What are the best species of mice to start of with?

Standard white or fancy mice

How many males:females would I need to get going?

You can have a ratio of no more than 1:5. That is 1 male to 5 females. I don't think you will need that many, though.

Can you tell when mice are pregnant?

They will get a "swallowed golf ball" look to them.

How long does it take for mice to have their babies?

The females will carry their litters for I believe, 24-28 days. The females will get pregnant again, pretty quickly after giving birth.

How many babies come from each females (ex. 4,5,6 or something)?

Can be anywhere from 1-20 babies.

How big of a breeding enclosure would I need? Would a 10 gallon do the job?

A ten gallon will only suffice for a small colony. Maybe a 1:2 or 1:3 at most. You will need a larger enclosure for more mice. If your tank is too tight, they may fight over nesting space.

Do the mice need a specific temperature?

Not really, they breed better with more lighting and average temps.

What's the best bedding for mice ( I see people use wood chips?)

Stay away from pine and ceder shavings. You can use Aspen, Carefresh, Kaykob or even shredded news paper.

Do mice keep well in a freezer ( Dead of course, awaiting the next meal)?

It depends how you package them. loose in a baggie, they will freezer burn in a month. So pack them tight.

Thanks a lot

Hope I helped,

Wayne

 

[Chip]

As the the family members say on Family Feud, "Good answer, good answer!" Of course, they say that after a really bad answer too, but that was a good answer. Kudos for taking the time to break up the quotes and stuff.


(I did use pine shavings w/o problems on zillions of mice, but I agree)

 

[kevindeeley12]

K awesome information guys, really glad you could answer me back. It was just a thinking kind of thing, I would probably be spending more money on getting the colony going then I would just going to PetSmart ( where i work so i get a discount ) and buying them. Later in life, I will definately consider this information and maybe get a small colony goin. thanks

 

[Chip]

Even at retail, you shouldn't pay more than 80 cents for a pinkie, a buck for a fuzzy. That's $40, maybe 50 bucks his whole first year. I wouldn't clean many mouse cages for that kind of money. Not to mention killing off, feeding, watering, and everything that can and eventually will go wrong in a box full of rodents.

 

[kevindeeley12]

I Have a bearded dragon, he easily eats 40$ worth of crickets a month. so, 40-80$ even is a break for me, but I see what you are saying

 

[Chip]

Did you just say $40 in crickets a MONTH??? I have a dozen dragons (and more various geckos) at any given time and spend about that -those dollars are in retail! How much is a cricket in your neck of the woods?

 

[kevindeeley12]

I know what you are thinking, You beardies must be big on the veggies though, my guy isn't. He doesn't like veggies very much, and won't really touch them. I know a lot about beardies and I have been trying to make him love veggies, but it has been tough. U are supposed to not feed them anything besides veggies until they eat ( even if they dont eat for like 3 days ) but I just haven't had the guts to do that to him yet.

 

[carnivorouszoo]

Hi, before I get a cornsnake there is some stuff I need to know about getting a colony going :

is it worth it for just 1 snake?
What are the best species of mice to start of with?
How many males:females would I need to get going?
Can you tell when mice are pregnant?
How long does it take for mice to have their babies?
How many babies come from each females (ex. 4,5,6 or something)?
How big of a breeding enclosure would I need? Would a 10 gallon do the job?
Do the mice need a specific temperature?
What's the best bedding for mice ( I see people use wood chips?)
Do mice keep well in a freezer ( Dead of course, awaiting the next meal)?

Thanks a lot

I only have one but am getting 3 more next week (am I glad I started a colony of mice or what?). At one snake I think it is worth it for me but then I have a place to take any excess that I produce. I'd start with plain ole fancy mice to get used to having rodents. For one snake 1:1 or 1:2 would probably more than cover you. Some females bloat up before having the babies others never show. Mice have their first litter about 26 or so days after mating, they mate immediately after birthing but implant of embrios is delayed a week for the existing litter to grow a bit more. At least that is how it should work out, some times the delay doesn't happen depends on a few things. The average litter is 5 to 8, biggest I have heard of was 15. If you only have 1:1 or 1:2 a ten is perfect. Keep them below 80 degrees F, they'll die in high temps but don't let them get under 50 F as they get sick in too cold and stop having babies because the cold will kill the babies. I use a combo of shredded paper and aspen for bedding. Well, I am using regular ziplock bags right now but am looking to get a vacuum sealer made by Ziplock. They sell at walmart for about $4 for the starter kit and the box of bags is like um . . .I want to say $5 or $6 for 15? From what I understand they can be re-vacuumed each time you open them and reused.

I hope I have helped!

 

[kevindeeley12]

yes you have, thanks a lot

 

[Buzzard]

I have 10 breeding colonies and all the advice here is great. I would price all the supplies for a colony and see if it would pay off. For one colony just figure in about 10 mins a day(It really doesn't take that much time to feed and water but I always tend to tinker and check the mice) but cleaning day will take 20 mins or so. Make sure you have the time. If so, go for it. I find it fun, It is a great side effect of having reptiles. I invested in lab style cages for my mice. For me it is easy to maintain and if I go somewhere for the weekend. I can overstock the food bins and make sure the bottles are full and I have no issues. They also have a good locking system and are fine for 1:5.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

 

[kevindeeley12]

I think if I got a snake ( I have an extra 10 gallon ) I would either breed a small bunch of mice in it ( like 1:2/1:3 ) or else feed the snake in the 10 gallon. Not sure yet though.

 

[kevindeeley12]

So, for a summer project, me and my friend devan ( owner of a big savannah monitor, a water dragon and a frilled dragon) are gonna try and start a colony or 2. His monitor will be the main one eating them, but still, i think it would be fun to do. I DID buy a cornsnake from my friend, he's 4 1/2 feet long, strong and healthy, he came in an exo-terra cage with the openable top and 2 doors on the front which is 18X18X18, but I upgraded him into a 33 gallon (36X12X18) got it for 20$ instead of 90$ so why not. But the point is that I have 1 extra 10 gallon, that extra exo-terra one now, and also my friend has a 10 gallon. So, we could have 3 going on at one time. I would take ur advice and do like 1:2 or 1:1 even in the 10 gallons, but what would u think for the 18X18X18 cage? id say probable 1:3? any ideas/opinions?

 

[Floof]

I'd say save the exo-terra for something else. Mice love to chew on plastic, and the little vents in the front (between the bottom piece of glass and the doors) would be all too easy for a determined bunch of mice to get through. Besides, you can put another snake in that exo-terra...

Oh yeah, good job upgrading the snake--an 18x18x18 is a seriously tight fit for an adult corn snake!

 

[Buzzard]

I agree with floof here... the plastic would hold for a while but would be a source for chewing. If you have a 10 gallon tank a 1:4 ratio would be fine. It will make for extra cleaning but will produce more often. It is amazing the difference between a 1:3 and a 1:4, as far as the amount of babies you get.

 

[kevindeeley12]

The mice will not be able to reach any plastic on the exo terra tank. The only plastic i can see is the plastic for the 2 openable doors in the front, which is about 3 1/2 inches off the ground. Do you think they could reach it if they were not on a ton of bedding? Even though it may not be the best idea, I'm still curious as to what you guys think the ratio could be in that tank. Opinions?

 

[kevindeeley12]

Oh yes, how long does it take mice to grow? You know, from a pinkie to an adult? If you would like you could tell me how long it takes to get each stage, im kind of just interested in pinky-adult though. Thanks

 

[ericswan_1]

hello,
im new to the forum. I have 2norm. balls, a milk, and the newest is a reverse okatee. i have been breeding mice for about

 

[ericswan_1]

sorry hit the wrong button on my phone.

i have been breeding for about 4 or 5 months now. i use clear plastic totes i think like the 24 quart or so size, from W-Mart. i have my colonys set up 1:4 in those small containers and have excelent results. i have only lost 2 mice for unknown reasons, my water bottles are mounted on the outside so i dont have urine all over them. i clean them twice a week. on average each doe has 8-9 pups at one time, they are in pinky stage for about 5-6 days and start growing peach fuzz then. they are in the fuzzy stage for about another week there they are hoppers and going into weinlings about a week after that. i seperate my pups from the mother doe at about the 25-28 day mark
(depending on observing them nurse). i have 11 breeding tanks of 5 mice in each and am working on it about every other day for about 45 minutes. and on the 2 cleaning days for about 2 hours. sorry if ive run on to long. hopfully ive done some good here and not bored everyone.

Eric