# Spiny Mice (Maine)



## MyrtlesMom (Oct 7, 2014)

I know they aren't rats and if I'm not supposed to be posting this please let me know. They're very cute and friendly as far as mice go. One of the girls spent an entire day riding on my shoulder. We rescued them from a petstore that was housing nine of them in a tiny hamster cage and they were so cramped they were eating each other I even originally only counted eight because they were so piled on top of each other. They were only fifty cents each and we couldn't leave them. The petstore told us they were all girls. Well woopsie daisy, they're not and now we have three pudgy and very likely pregnant girls on a 45 day count (yes, they can be pregnant 45 days. Oy! haha) and a fourth who's already had three little babies.

For right now we have two boys available that I'd like to see rehomed together. They're colony animals and it can be very difficult to introduce a single spiny to a new group or other lone spiny, especially boys. There will be more as soon as the babies are all born and ready to go. In fact the current babies will be ready in 18 days  I dont know what gender they are yet, but can now reliably sex them when they are older. Comparing our one certain momma to a boy made it super obvious who was what. Pictures soon!

And now a little information:
Keep in mind that spiny mice need a lot more space compared to regular mice (we're talking at the very least ten gallons of tank per mouse) and love vertical climbing, but any wire cages should be 1/4 inch by 1/4 inch or less to be safe. I've even seen someone take pieces of glass and siliconing them to the sides of a tank to make levels in an aqurium  You might be able to get away with 1/2 in by 1/2 inch for big boys, but I put one of the girls in a cage with 1/2 inch barring to test and she nearly slipped through in under ten minutes, so I don't reccomend it. They can be litter trained, don't smell as much as other mice or rats, and live an average of four years, though I've heard of them living up to eight! 

They eat generally what rats eat, but need a bit more protein, less fat, and as little sweet as possible as they are susceptible to diabetes and obesity. I can tell you the one we had before would get very fat if he got too many treats. They love insects and these ones will munch away in the mealworms bin (I used to have reptiles until my ex accidentally killed them by forgetting to turn on their lights in the winter and still have my bin of mealies). They would love meal worms or crickets as a treat. And finally, spiny mice have veeeeerrrry sensitive tails. They do like wheels but one without a middle bar is an absolute must. Many of the ones we have, have kinked tails because the stupid pet store gave them a wheel with a center bar.


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## CleverRat (Mar 9, 2014)

They sound like very neat little pets! Unfortunately, I don't live by Maine.  I have never heard of that kind of mice and I haven't seen any in pet stores. Could you get any pictures? (Especially of the baby's ) Anyways, good luck re homing them!


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## Kitterpuss (May 9, 2014)

I was reading about this species only a few days ago. They are of scientific interest due to their unique ability to regrow skin, cartilage and hair super fast without scar tissue, and shed skin to escape predators. Quite amazing wee creatures! http://www.cbsnews.com/news/african-spiny-mouse-may-hold-key-to-scar-free-skin-regeneration/


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## MyrtlesMom (Oct 7, 2014)

They are amazing. One of the boys my mum is keeping literally had his tail ripped off and his throat torn out during their time at the petstore. We were really worried about him, but he's doing just fine now and it's barely a week since we got them. She named him Hedgie.

And pictures! These are two of the boys we have and mum just said she wants to keep two boys, two girls (separate of course), so we have three boys available.


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## Kitterpuss (May 9, 2014)

Oh they are beautiful!


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## Lita (Jul 10, 2014)

Wow how cute! Never even heard of these before. I'm a bit to far but best of luck homing them! Those babies are just to cute


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## MyrtlesMom (Oct 7, 2014)

The three babies are growing fast. Two boys one girl


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