I tried to read through all that. I'm sorry, I'm tired and can't. Not to mention that I'm on my way to a funeral in about a half hour.
Ohhh.
It's okay. A lot of crap has been happening to everyone, it seems.
Christine and I, have been breeding, raising, showing, selling, freezing, holding, poking, etc rodents for about 18-19 years now. Since we were in our mid teens. I'm dumbfounded about how much effort is being put into a small colony of 1.2. That's amazing!
I'm not saying your doing anything wrong. So don't get upset with me. I'm just saying that all that effort isn't needed.
If I were you, I would kybosh the cat food. It does have good protein in it, but alot of other "stuff" that may not be so good. Try sticking to a good protein diet of nuts, fruits and seed with the occasional food scrap.
Also, how much light are these guys getting? Some times if they aren't getting enough natural light, that affects what is going on. Another thing that could be happening is female dominance. When they are still pecking out the order, one female may eat the babies of another. Then there is that whole absorbing the litter before they are born thing. That usually happens if there is a vitamin or nutrient deficiency.
Then there is the possibility that the females could be having false pregnancies or the male is infertile. That stuff just happens.
Honestly, because of the relative inexpense of mice and how quickly they mature, I think your just better off starting over. Get yourself several young mice. Another 1.2 trio and see how things go. I bet you have better luck the second time around.
Wayne
I have nothing better to do, really. And the fact that nearly 3 months has passed with nothing happening... xD
I've been meaning to pick up a bird seed or squirrel seed mix. I've been reading some documents I was emailed, and I feel the does should have some more fat in their diet.
And I've found that mice seem to love steamed vegetables, primarily broccoli.
I don't believe they're getting any sunlight. They're near a window, but except for the morning and evening, no light gets through the window and past the cracks in the blinds.
They get plenty of rodent food and vegetables (more than cat food; I'm mostly using that as extra protein/fat), so I don't think it's a vitamin or nutrient deficiency.
What about both? Could mating with an infertile male cause females to go into a false pregnancy?
Tomorrow, I'm hoping to get two new groups of mice, since the tub drawer I have has three 'shelves'. I'm thinking about doing groups of 1.3 instead.
I bought a few mice from PetCo and the manager told me flat out he wouldn't sell me a live mouse if it were for snake food. I told him I was getting it for a pet... and I was. It was just going to be used to breed mice as snake food.
The health guarantee was great though. When we got our boy rat from PetCo (pet only) we signed that paper. He did get sick and they covered the vet bill and his medicine. Never been sick since!
Shenzi, better luck with your mice colony!
Nice. All I'm aware of that Petco does is the 15 day warranty. I didn't get that with the buck, unless it's on the receipt. Weird. Plus, it's been a long time since I bought a pet there. XD
Thank you. I never thought it'd be this hard to get started. xD
I think it must be an "individual" thing, instead of a store thing. The Petco I visit, they are all about their reptiles. They have a good collection of snakes for sale, too. They even sell frozen rodents.
Wayne
Here, it depends on the employee. Both PetCo and Petsmart sell brand name frozen mice.
Find a local rodent breeder and buy a small coloney from them.. You should be able to quite a few mice for $7 from a rodent breeder...
Do you know of a few websites I could use to try and find a breeder? There's no gerbil breeders in this state, and the only ASF supplier is way down in Las Vegas. Nevada has nothing. :laugh:
