# Mice?



## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

what are the differences (entertainment, personality, diet etc) between keepin nice and keeping rats? I keep seeing these super adorable little guys at petco and it's just got my wheels a turnin ya know? This is more of a future reference thing than a soon sorta thing, just curious


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## raving_ratties (Sep 2, 2013)

Well, as a past mouse owner, I wouldn't recommend them to anybody. Rats are certainly the way I went after my first mouse. 

Unlike rats, they can be kept alone. While male rats can eventually get along with one another, male mice will fight to the death if put together. Something that bothered me most is the fact that mice don't bond with their owners. Rats will, one know, groom their humans and can learn the come when called, etc. Mice are nothing like that. 

Mice aren't as willing to eat everything. They most likely won't eat scraps off your plate, and are much more picky when it comes to veggies and fruits. My mouse never are any fruit, and nit-picked through his daily vegetables. 

And the last thing? Un-neutered males STINK. If you can, find a store or breeder that sells females. Males that are not fixed mark their cage vigorously. 
So unless you don't mind having to clean the cage up to 3 times a week, get a male. For some people, mice are the best pets ever. But they just aren't for me. Maybe you'll be different. Try it out! 


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## EJW323 (Jun 18, 2013)

I had mice before (males and then females), and I liked my males more. They were litter mates, and they got a long well. They were also a little more fond of me than the females I had. Unfortunately I had awful luck with mice, I had my boys for about half of a month, got girls, same amount of time. So although I really enjoyed having them while I did, they just weren't for me. 


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## Xerneas (Aug 6, 2013)

I had two female mice before. They sure are cute but I swear people have awful luck with them. They can bond with you, but it's harder to get there than with rats. I tried a lot of things with my mice and they really wanted nothing to do with me whatsoever. They don't bond with you the same way they do with rats.

Also, they have a strong odour. It wasn't even their pee that bothered me, it was their natural musky scent and it took a lot to keep it under control. I had females and I thought they stunk to the high heavens. I can't even imagine what males would be like.

After that experience I don't have any interest in mice anymore. Not for me. I'm sure that they CAN be friendly and tame but they're lacking something in comparison to how rats bond with you, IMO. But, it's always worth trying. You could end up with a great pet


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## Crezzard (Jul 20, 2013)

I think Pygmy mice are really cute but my rats give me all the enjoyment and affection I need! Xxx


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## winddance (Oct 6, 2013)

I think all mice are adorable! but I think I will stick to my rats and hams


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## Ruby&Lola (Apr 25, 2013)

I always think mice are soo adorable, but they're really mean. Or the one my grandma had back then. Evil thing bit me >:l


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## raving_ratties (Sep 2, 2013)

Mine bit me too. That was when I gave him away to my best friend who always loved Kismet. Now he's living with a great person who will treat him well.  


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

My boyfriend and I used to own mice at some point, and I can honestly say that I really like rats more than mice. We had several mice, but most of them did not enjoy human comfort. We had one who liked to be scratched on the side, but the rest were mostly skittish. We've owned both males and females, and I can honestly say that both smell really bad, especially the males. Our males were cage mates, but they never got along so we ended up having to separate them. I would not recommend them if you're looking for an animal to cuddle with and train. If you want something that you mostly just want to look at and pet or hold every so often then you could think about getting them. They are not the same as rats for sure though.


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## September (Jul 30, 2013)

I have a buck right now, he's fun to watch but he doesn't interact with me if he can help it. Rats for me from here on out, they don't run every time I try to pick them up, they welcome coming out of their cage, whereas JD runs away and hides. I've had him almost 6 months, I've had my rats for two weeks.


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## Daniel (Jun 24, 2013)

I've gone back and forth on mice. On the one hand, it's tough to get them to really socialize with you. I was pleased that my one male Dolfy would climb the door and accept treats. But beyond that, I have never gotten them to be social even though I've had a couple of them for awhile now.They also seem to die quicker for reasons unknown. In the last 4 months, I've had 3 now that died for unknown reasons (and one that escaped into the rafters, have not seen since), probably related to where I got them from (the feeder bin, which seems to be brutal on mice's health).

But I think of all the rodents/small animals, mice to be the most playful among themselves. Obviously I prefer rats, but mice seem to never tire out and have alot of energy, while my rat boys will be completely worn out after about an hour of play and will sleep for 10+ hours afterwards. Mice also don't seem to have the genetic problems that rats do with certain color patterns. You can find some cool patterns with mice that for rats would be guaranteed High White possible mega-colon carriers. 

I'm not sure I will keep them after my current bunch dies. I have one male (Swirl) and one probably pregnant female (Honey) left, and I keep debating this. I've said it in other mice threads - they are more like fish (that is, a pet to watch and enjoy) than an interactive pet.


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## Daize (Jun 8, 2013)

Egyptian Spiny Mice make excellent pets. They're social and friendly. They're extremely clean and have little to no odor. They can live up to 5 years.

If I was going to get a mouse. I would choose an Egyptian Spiny.


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## Korra (Dec 11, 2011)

Mine have never bitten me. I do mouse(along with rat) rescue. 
I love them to death and males are my favorite. 
I think they win the cute factor because they are smaller and come in more colors and varieties. They are also very fun to watch. My friend has a 20 gallon and 8 female mice and they are always running and playing. 
They are so low maintenance compared to rats that I have no idea why someone wouldnt get them just for the shear enjoyment of watching them. 
My two males each have a ten gallon to themselves and are so sweet and happy. They take food from me and walk into my hand. 
The key is getting them young. My sweetest were all raised by me in the rescue.


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## September (Jul 30, 2013)

Your mice are so cute! And you basically summed up what I was trying to say as far as the fun to watch part. I've thought of getting a trio of girls just to watch how they interact


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## Korra (Dec 11, 2011)

Thank you!
The short and sweet is, 
Mice are lower cost and lower maintenance than rats. They are not as fun or puppy-like but they are smaller and have smaller cuter environments.
Females are less interactive but more fun to watch. Males tend to like people more but also tend to be lazier. With my two males at least, as soon as they turned 5 or 6 months old there was almost no smell. Girls smell far worse to me. JD (the black tan) is even potty trained and lives on fleece.


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## September (Jul 30, 2013)

I thought the first mouse was a black tan, but that next to last pic looked fox, so I didn't wanna say anything lol.

I've had my JD for nearly 6 months, and he still doesn't like me. But he was fully grown when I got him, so that could have something to do with it. I just had a photoshoot of him yesterday, actually!







When I first got him



As you can see, not much change, except his fur getting shiny with the better food (I know most of it in the first three is flash, but his fur is noticeably shinier in person than when I first got him--It was very dull then.)


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## Korra (Dec 11, 2011)

Ahh I just saw your pics of him on Funmouse


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## Cordane (Oct 7, 2013)

Ok.. Now I want to join in and post pictures of my mice.. But alas, I don't want to bombared you guys with 20 or so different mice


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

Gosh mice are cute! But I think I'll hold off at least for now, I do enjoy interactive pets though :/


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## Batman (Sep 11, 2013)

Mice are pure evil o.o all they did was bite me and just stare.at me.

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## September (Jul 30, 2013)

Did they bite or did they test you? If they just scraped you with their teeth, then that's normal, it's just them trying to figure out what you are. If you bled, it was a bite. They normally don't bite, though, they're more run away pets than attack pets


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## Batman (Sep 11, 2013)

No they drew blood they were evil lol

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