Mice as pets (introduction):Mice can be very good pets, if you want something that takes a fair bit of time to care for, but doesn't really need a lot of attention. Mice, as pets, are very amusing to just watch, because (if you have more than one) they play games together, and run on the wheel, or do acrobatic stunts with their tails. They aren't very smart when to compared to, lets say, rats. They can't be taught tricks, or they can't learn their names(I've tried that!) But most people think that they are cuter than rats, because of their size, and their features. For example, rats have scaly tails that often bleed, where as mice have scaly tail, but they have fine hairs on them, so they're smooth, and they don't bleed. Mice need to be maintained more than gerbils, because they don't live in dry countries, so they do smell (but not all the time!) There are many different types of mice, from shiny mice which have silken coats that glisten, to teddybear mice who are little fluff balls. But whichever type you choose, remember that they need a half an hour of attention everyday. Now that's not completely necessary, but if you want your mice to like humans, you need to be around it a least ten minutes every day. Compared to the amount of time you need to spend with dogs, this is not very much. Over all, throughout all my experience with mice, I think they make excellent pets.
Accomodation:Like most pets, mice like a large environment. You can keep them in a cage, or an aquarium. The problem with aquariums is that they trap in the smell, and the air can't circulate. So you might think that this is a great quality because then it doesn't make the room smell, but actually, this is dangerous for the mice' health. Because bacteria can build up in this warm, moist, and smelly environment, the mice can develop deseases much more easily. With cages, if you don't put something on the bottom of the cage floor, the mice can develop lumps, and if they chew on the bars (which they are almost guaranteed to do) it's not good for them. So it's really your choice, but the aquarium gives you a safer environment if you'll clean it often. The other problem is money. I reccomend an aquarium, but they are quite expensive compared with cages. So you could get a small aquarium, or a big cage. Your choice.
Food:Mice are omnivores, so they eat meat and plants. For their diet, you can prepare them fresh vegetables, fruit, and cheese, although with fresh things you have to take them out of the cage every day to prevent bacteria growth and desease. But you can also feed them nuts, seeds, and dried foods. The problem with that, is that you may be missing some very important minerals or vitamins, and your mice might start losing their hair, or they might grow thin with desease. To solve this problem, I have found that if you buy those Nutrition blocks, which look like big chunks of light brown hard stuff, it solves your problem. That's what worked for me. You can get them in small blocks, or large blocks. I reccomend that you give your mice a grape or two every now and then for a treat.
Bedding: For bedding, mice need something that they can make a nest out of. If you put newspaper at the bottom of their cage, you will find that they will shred that up for a nest. Also, if you put wood shavings at the bottom of your cage/aquarium, they will use this in their wooden house(which I will talk about in Cage Equipement And Toys). But what I reccomend, is a piece of material, which you can stuff in their house, because it will keep them warmer.
One Mouse Or Two?:It is really a matter of opinion whether you want to get one mouse or two. If you are planning on breeding mice, you should get a male and a female, but keep them in separate cages. Also, you should have a special cage in which they breed. If you just want a companian, but you want two, I suggest that you get two females, because males might fight (and sometimes to the death.) Also, if you want one mouse, you should get a female, because they won't urinate on your hands as much because males mark their territory by doing so.
Cage Equipement And Toys:For cage equipement, it is necessary to have a water bottle in your cage. I have bought many of those plastic bottles with suction cups, but I quickly discovered that my mice would either chew the suction cup so that the bottle would fall, or they'd chew the bottle itself. To solve this problem, you can attach the water bottle to the screen lid with wire, so it is suspended. But make sure that you get a glass water bottle! With cages, it's quite simple. You can just hook a glass bottle to the side of the cage. The mice also need a food dish. It can be almost anything, as long as it holds the food. As for toys, make sure that your mouse has something to chew on, such as wooden blocks (make sure that the wood is safe for them!)They also like tunnels, ramps, ropes, swings, and hiding places in which to play. The more variety of activities your mice can do, the lower the chance that they'll get bored when you're away. Make sure that you don't give them anything toxic, and it's best to have wooden or cardboard toys instead of plastic.
Cage Maintenance:If you have an aquarium, to keep down the rate of bacteria, you should clean it every day to every other day, although the longest it should go unclean is one week. With cages, the air can circulate much more, so you need to clean it every four to five days, although the maximum it can go without being cleaned it around two weeks. It really depends on whether you have one or more mice. So basically, with the cage, you can change it when it first is barely beginning to smell, but with the aquarium, I suggest that you follow our reccomended standards.
