# My new mouse!



## xStatic (Dec 16, 2012)

I am so excited to have a cute mouse friend again! 

I've had mice in the past but they were girls and this is my first time having a boy mouse. He is a "fancy" mouse and is quite a bit larger than either of my girls ever got.

Well today I stopped in petsmart to get some things... and I found myself looking at the rats and mice of course xD I saw this cute little white and gray mouse running a million miles an hour on his wheel and I already had a spare wire hamster cage at home that I never actually got around to adding any animals to... AND he was on sale for $5 so I grabbed him and took him home with me xD

He's friendly and inquisitive but pretty skittish right now. I forgot how stinky mouse pee can be so I'll have to get use to that again -_- by comparison rat pee smells like nothing. 

I've never bought an "adult" mouse before so I've never had to deal with a skittish mouse and I'm not sure what to do as far as getting him use to me. Should I try mouse "immersion" in my bathroom in a similar way to how you bond with rats? Are mice even smart enough to benefit from that?

Can mice and rats share diseases and should I quarantine the mouse before I move his cage into my bedroom? Can I keep mice and rats in the same room together or will the scents of the other species bother them?

And finally.... any name suggestions for the little bugger?


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

He is seriously adorable!! For a moment i thought he was a very very young rat! 

How about Simon? I dunno why that name popped in my head when I saw him but I figured I'd throw it out there!


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## xStatic (Dec 16, 2012)

Thanks! :3 He does look a bit rat-like which is probably one of the reasons I like him so much. I think his face looks like a tiny rattie face if you look at it from the right angle. 

I ended up coaxing him onto my hand and I held him for probably an hour on my hand and against my chest. He climbed my shoulders and groomed my hair so I think he is a lot calmer than I initially thought. He was probably just scared from his trip in the car and being dumped into his new cage. 

At first he didn't know what to think of all the little tubes in his new cage but now he's got the hang of them and is climbing all over the place! 

The wheel in his cage is obnoxiously loud for some reason and I tried switching it out with a silent spinner but I think it's broken because he does not weigh enough to get the silent spinner turning so until I get it figured out I guess everyone will have to get use to this loud wheel going almost 24/7. 

I actually really like Simon for a name!  I'll have to give it a few days before I settle on one, but that is definitely in the running now!


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## ksaxton (Apr 20, 2014)

He's adorable! My petsmart/petco only carries some of the plainer varieties of mice. I have a black, an agouti, a BEW, a blue satin, and a plain blue. Your male sounds sweet, my buck Ollie is not so much  His pee smell was so strong I had to switch him to a bin cage because it was stinking up the entire room 


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## ksaxton (Apr 20, 2014)

Oh and as far as my own experience goes, yes mice and rats can live together in the same room. I keep mine that way and neither seems bothered by the scent. Just be careful that they never interact or the rats might kill the mice. I also sanitize my hands when going between the mice and the rats just to be safe 


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## Amradel (Apr 13, 2014)

OOOH what a little cutey! Eeee! No name idea's though sorry... I'm not the best at thinking up names...


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## LeStan82 (Dec 31, 2013)

He's cute! Wow, I guess I've never seen a mouse. They look like baby rats.


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## xStatic (Dec 16, 2012)

Thanks everyone  and thank you ksaxton for your advice! 

I am still giving it another day or so before I decide on a name. I had him in one of my rats' bonding pouches for a while yesterday and he did really well. He's still weary of my hands but he likes to climb all over me.


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## BlackAce (Apr 18, 2013)

I have an empty hamster cage that I'm looking to fill and was considering getting two female mice, as it's the only gender local pet stores in my area ever seem to have. Not very familiar with them though. How would you say they are as pets as compared to hamsters or gerbils? Are they skittish, or can you take them out to play once they're used to you?


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## xStatic (Dec 16, 2012)

BlackAce said:


> I have an empty hamster cage that I'm looking to fill and was considering getting two female mice, as it's the only gender local pet stores in my area ever seem to have. Not very familiar with them though. How would you say they are as pets as compared to hamsters or gerbils? Are they skittish, or can you take them out to play once they're used to you?


Most people prefer females so that's actually a good thing! Also male mice tend to stink a bit and will scent mark. Getting two females is a good idea 

They are definitely more friendly than most hamsters. I have never had gerbils before but I have been bit by a gerbil once! Mice are more active and explorative than syrian hamsters but not as jumpy and quick to bite as dwarf hamsters. If fact I have never really been bitten by a mouse. Mice are not as high energy as gerbils and they don't need a very large cage as long as it is equipped with a good solid running wheel and some toys. All mice have different personalities but I would say the majority of female mice will come out and play with you as long as you take time to get them use to you. They are not as interactive or intelligent as rats and will not usually show very much affection towards their owners, but they will enjoy being out of the cage and exploring and of course eating lots of treats! 

You are best off getting the youngest mice you can find. If you can find two young females from the same litter that's even better. The younger they are when you get them the faster they will warm up to you.


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## BlackAce (Apr 18, 2013)

Thanks for the information! Yeah I really like this cage because it's actually really roomy for a hamster cage, and the bar spacing is great. I almost wonder if three girl mice would fit in it, but I'd have to look into that. I used it for my two boy rats the first couple weeks I had them when they were really young and small. I'm throwing around the idea of either mice or gerbils to put in it now because I haven't had either before and want a new experience. But you make mice sound really fun! And your boy is such a cutie. You might have swayed me lol


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## xStatic (Dec 16, 2012)

BlackAce said:


> Thanks for the information! Yeah I really like this cage because it's actually really roomy for a hamster cage, and the bar spacing is great. I almost wonder if three girl mice would fit in it, but I'd have to look into that. I used it for my two boy rats the first couple weeks I had them when they were really young and small. I'm throwing around the idea of either mice or gerbils to put in it now because I haven't had either before and want a new experience. But you make mice sound really fun! And your boy is such a cutie. You might have swayed me lol


Mice spend most of their time either sleeping or running on a wheel, so they generally don't need very large cages. If you can measure your cage there are a lot of mice cage calculators out there. Most decent sized cages will hold 3 female mice. It's nice having a barred cage too because then they have the option to climb around if they want to. Also, adding a second wheel would be helpful and then you wouldn't have to worrying about 1 mouse always monopolizing the wheel haha

Like I said I haven't had gerbils before but I have heard really good things about them. They also absolutely need a wheel but it needs to be a lot bigger than a mouse wheel and they require a lot bigger cages than mice. If your cage is big enough for gerbils it will for sure be big enough for 3 female mice. I can't remember if gerbils need to have one of those saucer wheels instead of a normal wheel, but I might be mixing them up with some other type of animals. I know for sure though that gerbils usually can't be kept in plastic cages as they will quickly chew their way out. They also don't do great with plastic toys and cage accessories because they chew those up as well. 

Good luck filling your cage with some new friends!


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