Mice / Cold Temps ?

[Stephen29]

I would like to know how COLD can mice be , and still breed and be healthy ? During this spring and early summer, I had them in a 10 x10 plastic storage building that had several side vents. Well that worked fine until it got too hot, and I had to move them under the house. I have a crawl space under neath , and basically had to "crouch" while working the animals.
Tough on the back to say the least !!

So, now that it's getting cooler I want to move them back to the outside building. I live in Spartanburg, SC. Avg winter time temps I would say are 45 -55 degrees F for the day. Night time 25 - 35 degrees F. Thats a rough guess, but I believe that would be pretty close though.

I've always heard mice do better in cooler temps , but didn't know HOW COLD. Any help would be appreciated.

ps: the building is out in FULL SUN, good for the winter, BAD for the SUMMER.

Thanks, Stephen

 

[batwrangler]

I would like to know how COLD can mice be , and still breed and be healthy ? During this spring and early summer, I had them in a 10 x10 plastic storage building that had several side vents. Well that worked fine until it got too hot, and I had to move them under the house. I have a crawl space under neath , and basically had to "crouch" while working the animals.
Tough on the back to say the least !!

So, now that it's getting cooler I want to move them back to the outside building. I live in Spartanburg, SC. Avg winter time temps I would say are 45 -55 degrees F for the day. Night time 25 - 35 degrees F. Thats a rough guess, but I believe that would be pretty close though.

I've always heard mice do better in cooler temps , but didn't know HOW COLD. Any help would be appreciated.

ps: the building is out in FULL SUN, good for the winter, BAD for the SUMMER.

Thanks, Stephen

In temps as cold as your winter night temps, you'll have to give them lots of insullating bedding (hay, aspen, paper), keep several adults in each cage, offer more food, and change the water once or twice a day so that it isn't always frozen. I wouldn't expect babies during the winter in those conditions.

Mice and rats tend to heat stroke when it's very hot, so you probably want to keep them between 60 and 80 F with c 70 being ideal.

 

[batwrangler]

Mice and rats tend to heat stroke when it's very hot, so you probably want to keep them between 60 and 80 F with c 70 being ideal.

Ah, the GUIDE FOR THE CARE AND USE OF LABORATORY ANIMALS gives 64-79 as the required temp range for rodents. See http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/labrats/chaps.html#phys .

 

[Flagg]

They'd probably be fine as low as 65 or so, maybe even down to 60, but below that and they won't produce and may not survive.