YIKES! I think Minnie is preggers! UPDATE 02/12

[victoria]

My hubby found Minnie running around his classroom last week (likely released by a student as part of a year end prank) and he brought her home. After a couple of days, she's started to get more comfortable with us, especially since she's realized that we are ofter the source of treats.

Two days ago I was watching her in the cage and I had a bit of a scare - she looked like she had a lump in her abdomen. I was relieved when picked her up and realized she was just a little bloated. I thought maybe she had just eaten a big meal or it was part of normal mouse development. In the last couple of days though, her belly has only gotten bigger and now we're worried she might be pregnant. We have no idea how old she is (we think she is young because she is still quite tiny) or how far along she is or what we're going to do with the little ones if she is pregnant.

She lives in a small mouse cage I have that I used to use as a carrier for my rats and we were planning to transfer her into a much larger hamster cage that I purchased for her, once I was done modifying it to make it mouse proof and safe for her little feet but if she's pregnant I'm not sure the cage would be very safe for her. Nor do I think it would be a good idea to introduce her to cagemates if she is preggers.

What should I do? Is there even a point in taking her to the vet? More importantly, if she does have babies, does anyone want meece?

 

[Godmother]

Better contact smallvic, or one of the other members who knows about meece. Good luck!

 

[henry's_mum]

was she impregnated by a domestic mouse, or wild mouse?
was she a classroom pet? how did she get into the classroom?

I don't know much about mice, nor do I live close to you to offer any real help...
Like godmother said, perhaps contact lilangel (I thinks hse's got mice) or smallvic....

 

[Bamboo]

how did she get into the classroom?

I believe it was released into the classroom as a prank...Unfortunately I know absolutely nothing about taking care of mice, especially not pregnant ones. All I can do is wish you luck. :thumbup:

 

[henry's_mum]

how did she get into the classroom?

I believe it was released into the classroom as a prank...

I didn't know if she was a pet for the class that they just let out or not, that's what I was asking...

 

[Maple]

Mice can reproduce between 4-6 weeks of age and come into heat every 4 to 5 days. Their gestation is usually 19-21 days. Litter size is normally 7-12 pups but can be as high as 20. They are weaned by 21 days but should be kept with mom until they are 3.5 weeks. Make sure the male pups are separated by 4 weeks and not 1 day longer. Don’t get her any cage mates, she will have her family, just provide some toilet paper or kleenex so she can build a nest. You will know for sure she is pregnant a couple days before birth, her belly will be huge. Once the babies are born, don’t clean the cage for the first 14 days. That’s basically it.
Good luck

 

[victoria]

Lyndsy - She's a domestic mouse that was released in the classroom as a prank, probably the night before she was found. (No pets at my husbands school.) The school my husband teaches at has a long tradition of year end pranks - last year there were chickens released in the rotunda and a couple of years ago there was another mouse released. We think she may have been impregnated the night before my husband found her by a wild mouse in the school. Or maybe she was already pregnant when the kids bought her at a pet store. We don't know who released her so we have no way of knowing.

Maple - Thanks a lot! We're trying to get our hands on a small fish tank to keep them in... I don't want any escapes! I'll keep an eye on her and try to keep her cage/tank spotless until she gives birth so it doesn't get too gross after the pups arrive.

I really hope she doesn't have a huge litter... I suspect I'll have a tough time finding homes for any mice *sigh* Hopefully my vet will be able to help.

 

[victoria]

I just thought of something - if I keep them in a fish tank, how do I put a water bottle in for her to drink out of?

 

[xxchelle]

There are some water bottles that hang on the sides of tanks, and there are some that can be attached to suction cups! Just check some pet stores in the area.

 

[mercurydust]

They make holsters that hang on the inside of the tank to set a water bottle in, most pet stores sell them.

 

[Pink]

Tanks make good mouse cages. Two mice can fit in a ten gallon, but its best to have something larger such as a twenty long. Four girls can live in there. Male mice generally need to be kept alone, as they fight, but sometimes they can be kept with siblings. 10 gallon tanks work great for them. Good luck with your new little mouse family! I don't know how long mouse gestation is, but if you count back after the babies are born it would give you a better idea if she was impregnated before or during her release.

Pink

 

[Maple]

Male mice generally need to be kept alone, as they fight

This is so true, you will read that some male mice can live together but personally I have NEVER seen it. They seem to be fine until approximately 8 weeks and then "murder" is on the mind. You can try but I agree with Pink and would separate all the males.

 

[mercurydust]

Male mice, if they are siblings and grow up together, can get along. Not saying this is true 100% of the time...but my boys never had any serious fights.

They even shared the wheel.

 

[Maple]

Awesome but sadly not the norm. After they have lived their life span, let me know if they were able to cohabitate to the end. I have yet to see success and would be thrilled to see yours as my first. When I volunteered at the OSPCA I pulled dead male bodies out of cages all the time and a mouse breeder I contacted in the states told me the success rate is less than 2% (for males only).
Sorry I just read the "never had" part, do you still have them? I love mousies, they're just sooooooo cute :heart:

 

[mercurydust]

Hawkeye and Radar lived together their entire lives, almost a year. Saddly, a little over a week ago I lost my Radar. His death was not from a fight, he had been sick for a while. The poor little guy passed in his sleep. :sad3:

 

[victoria]

Just checked on Minnie before taking all of my other monkeys to the vet and we have babies!!! I had tried to take her out to play/clean the cage 5 hours ago but she really didn't want to come out/go in the ball so I was planning to clean it this morning when we noticed she was no longer so chubby. I took this pic, it's not great but I'll take more later:

 

[Slapdash]

Woo Hoo! :joy: Congrats, how many?

 

[victoria]

Not sure. At least 8, but there may be more at the bottom of the pile. She's pretty protective at the moment, so I am going to give her some space to be a mom.

We went to the vet this morning with all of the other pets (3 rats and 2 rabbits), only to find out that the rat who I thought wasn't sick but brought along for a check up for the hell of it has a slight pneumonia and everybody else is fine, despite being congested and sneezing for a couple of weeks. She did warn me that first time moms are often not the best at nursing and not to be surprised if the litter doesn't make it. So far though, she seems to be nursing and doting over her little ones - they're squeaking away as I type.

 

[Slapdash]

Hope the rattie feels better and minnies babies all make it

 

[SQ]

She did warn me that first time moms are often not the best at nursing and not to be surprised if the litter doesn't make it. So far though, she seems to be nursing and doting over her little ones - they're squeaking away as I type.

I don't know where she is getting her info but that certainly isn't true.

As I am sure you know, mom needs a good quality lab block, access to water, daily vegs and extra protien.
Suggest baby cereal mixed with soy infant formula, ensure or water 2 or 3 times a day.
Also bits of boiled egg, etc.

You may want to check for milk bellies just to make sure all babies are getting enough milk.
There are quite a few threads on this forum following new moms and their litters.
Lilspaz68 has posted a few.
You may find them interesting to read.
all the best.