Baby Wild Mice

[FiveBlindMice]

Hi everybody. I'm new and kinda got thrown into mice five days ago. We were moving wood to burn and we found a nest of baby mice. I managed to save five before our dog got to them. I am feeding them with an eyedropper. They seem to be doing great and run up my hand once they find it their box. I have a couple of questions.
First I was wondering if anyone could help me with their age. When I found them five days ago they were basically furred. they have their eyes shut still. However they walk around quite well and are starting to run.
Second. I am planning to keep them as pets but do not want them to have babies. so, how do I sex them and when do I need to seperate them.
Third. When will they start eating solid food and what should I feed them then?
Thanks for all your help in advance.

Jacquelynn

I can't figure out how to put a picture in, can someone help me?

[shannaash]

Well, I can let you know the guidelines for domestic mice, but I am not sure if the developmental stages are different in wild mice.

Babies get their coats fully in by 10 days of age, though it starts to come in a few days after birth. Their eyes usually open between 12 and 15 days of age. So, if you have fur but no eyes yet I would estimate them to be around 2 weeks of age.

It is usually not the best idea to keep wild mice as pets, since they can prove to be very hard to tame and are little escape artists. Wild mice are quicker than domestics, jump higher, and have a higher natural fear of humans. They are usually not afraid to jump from your hands, and are very hard to catch once they are down.

Once they get to be about 3 weeks of age, you will see what I mean. They can be very tricky to keep as pets, and their hopper stage (between 2-3 weeks of age) is much worse than that in domestics - they are extremely hard to handle at that age.

I think it is great that you saved them, but if you do decide to keep them it will be an uphill battle.

I would actually suggest keeping them until they are weaned (between 3 and 4 weeks of age) and releasing them back into the wild. They should still have their natural instincts to survive in the wild, since that is where they were meant to live.

[Leahv1]

Don't let them back into the wild. They won't know how to find food or water. Sense you are hand raising them they will be fine with handling. Mice, wild or domestic, go threw this stage where it is called the "flea" stage, where they hope around like fleas. Wild mice might be alittle harder to catch at times, but they will settle down.
As for sexing you can usually starty sexing them at the age yours sound to be. The females will have nipples. The males won't.
Here is a picture of a female:
http://137.222.110.150/calnet/sexing.../mousesex3.jpg

Here is a picture of a male:
http://137.222.110.150/calnet/sexing...usesexing1.jpg

Yours sound to be about 12 days old. They should open there eyes in a few days.

As for the pictures. You load them to your computer then upload them to a photo hosting place. I use: http://www.photobucket.com/

Then once you go to "post new thread" or "Advance Post" there will be this frame with a mountain picture in it. And you click on that.

I'm probably explaining that all wrong.
Also what kind of tank/cage are you keeping them in? How big? You will also want to get them a couple wheels.
Leah

[Fathipposrule]

Keep them until their eyes open and and are about 3 to 4 weeks old. Once they are that old quite feeding them out of an eye dropper, babies wean very early and can start eating solids by this age.

You really do need to release them back in the wild where they were meant to be. Of course they will be able to find food and water, it is instinct.

[Leahv1]

They will be fine if they keep them. The mother teaches them where to find food, water, and how to avoid certain things. If you didn't notice they also say they have a dog that would of killed them if they didn't find them first.
Why shouldn't they keep the babies? They have raised them, and there like the mother to them.
You know most wild mice don't even make it to a year? Plus wild mice live longer, and less likely to get tumors or cancers.
Leah

[Deermouse]

Originally Posted by Fathipposrule

You really do need to release them back in the wild where they were meant to be. Of course they will be able to find food and water, it is instinct.

While it's true that they can be reintroduced into the wild, it isn't true that you need to release them. Most wild life is protected and it's illegal to keep them as pets. Very few of these laws (if any) apply to mice. If they are in your house or on your property, you can kill them with traps or poison. Some places even encourage this. There is no reason they can't be kept as pets unless they are an endangered species.

Originally Posted by Leahv1

They will be fine if they keep them. The mother teaches them where to find food, water, and how to avoid certain things. If you didn't notice they also say they have a dog that would of killed them if they didn't find them first.

Wild mice learn quickly. The only thing they really need is time and a way to adjust. That means providing shelter and food until they can work out their own arrangements in a few days (away from the house and dog). About the only mice that I can think of that really learn from their parents are grasshopper mice. They are taught to hunt. The hunt and eat many insects including scorpions. They babies need to be taught how to do this.

Originally Posted by Leahv1

You know most wild mice don't even make it to a year? Plus wild mice live longer, and less likely to get tumors or cancers.

I know what you mean, but it sounds strange that wild mice live longer than domestics, but less than a year. It's true that most wild mice don't survive the first year. Many of them kill themselves through drowning or other means, but that is the life of a wild mouse and you can't save them all. In captivity they are likely to live up to 5 years. As for tumors, I'm not sure about wild house mice. White footed mice rarely get tumors. I suspect that wild house mice are less subject to tumors than domestic mice due to natural selection. In the wild only the strongest, smartest, fastest and healthest survive long enough to reproduce. I currently have 5 deer mice that are 4-1/2 years old and all healthy. Their wild caught mom lived 5 years (as near as I can guess).

As for sexing them, if they are some species of white footed mice, sexing is different than for house mice (and not as easy). If that's the case, you really need to sex by ano-genital distance (the distance between the anus and the genitals). With white footed mice (deer mice etc.) this distance is not very great, but in females it's closer than males. Maybe 1 mm in females and 3 mm in males. See the pictures on the first 4 links of this page http://www.spiritdancers.org/rilla/mousesex.htm.

This is my recommended diet: http://mouseranch.com/FYI/diet.html. To wean them I would put some oatmeal soaked in formula in their cage a few days after they open their eyes. You could also put regular dry food in too. They will wean themselves and eventually stop taking formula (probably). They will open their eyes at about 2 weeks old and by 3 to 4 weeks old they should be fully weaned. I'm not sure what you are feeding them now, but cow's milk isn't that good for them. puppy or kitten replacement milk, soy or rice milk or soy based human formula is much better.

I suspect that the babies are white footed mice. These are dark on top and have white bellies and feet. Wild house mice are usually almost all brown. They may have a small amount of white on their bellies, but their feet are almost always dark.

good luck,

paul