View Full Version : How to keep clean??
Hello, curious about keeping cages clean when there are always new born mice? I have been told to leave them alone and have no problems with that, but there always seem to be a new litter and I can't ever clean the cage? Any ideas?
Thanks Mark
reptilesalonica
11-04-03, 08:30 PM
I have the same problem bro :(...
Some use nests and they remove the nest and the rest of the colony in another cage, but nests didn't worked for me...
They need to be replaced every 1-2 months (more cost).
Furthermore, the mother stressed more easily when you have to check the nest.
~Greg~
Unless it is a fresh litter, like hours old, I just go ahead and clean the cage. I haven't had any problems yet.
Pay no mind to the babies. You can handle them as early as day one with no problems. Just pick up the liter and put it in a seperate container with the parents, or you can put them in a seperate container if you don't want them to get trampled (I call it the pinky tray....lol......I use a shoebox lid and put them in there). Clean out the enclosure as usual and put the pinkies and rest of the colony back in, feed and water and you're all set. I've been doing this with rats and mice for going on 9 years with no problems.
reptilesalonica
11-04-03, 11:48 PM
pick up the liter and put it in a seperate container with the parents
Yes but all my groups are 1.4 to 1.6. How can i find the parents among them? :confused:
~Greg~
My colonies are 1.6, the parents know who they are an that's all that is important. I think maybe I was misunderstood, I should have said "entire colony" instead of parents ;)
I have a habit of calling all of them moms and dads...lol :p
Linds,
I think the mice look at it that way too! Mine always end up in one or two big piles with all the females taking care of them. I even have one brown female in with a white colony that has never had a litter of babies ( had her for 5 months now) but she sure takes care of everyone elses babies! I even think she produces milk, but she's never been pregnant. Is that possible? My boyfriend keeps asking why I don't use her as a feeder because "All she is doing is eating food and taking up space" I told him she's the Nanny and to leave her alone! LOL! I'm kind of fond of her, can you tell?
tai_pan1
11-05-03, 01:40 PM
I agree with Linds, just move em out, clean the cage and put em back. Works for me. I've only lost one litter doing this, and the mother was a first time mother. I think she probably killed the pinks when she was moving them around, and got overly rough. This was the only litter out of hundreds.
JMO
I just move them all out, the whole colony, then put them back onto new bedding.
Another suggestion is if you use all the same cages, at all times have one of the same cage, empty. You remove the family from the dirty cage, place into the clean empty cage. then clean that families cage, and move to the next dirty cage. This way there is no waiting in a temporary home. Just a fast move and done.
Marisa
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