RatPalace.com - Pet Rat Care and Discussion

Mon Jan 23, 2006 9:11 am

I want to start breeding mice in about 6 months when we move and need advice. Here are my questions:

1.) I would like a breeder to be my mentor. I know a lot about mice (from my own research and the great people on here), but there are still things I don't know.

2.) The set-up I am going to have is a 40 gallon breeder critter tank with a screen top lid (it's glass but can't hold water) for the females and another for the babies once weaned. A ten gallon tank for the pregnant female and her litter. Each male will be kept in his own 10 gallon tank unless he gets along with other males. Then they will be kept together in the 40 gallon tank.

3.) I was planning on feeding them the same diet as my rats get which is Suebees and dog kibble. They would get fresh and dried fruits and veggies as well.

4.) Any babies that did not find a home would be kept. I would not take them to a pet store or anything like that.

And in answer to the RatPalace breeding faq (which I have been studying for some time)

1) [Mice] should be bred primarily to improve health and temperament. All other factors should be secondary.

All the mice(for breeding purposes) will come from breeders who can back thier health and temperments. I want to breed sweet,well adjusted babies.

2) You should be able to financially support your [mice] at all times.

I live with my girlfriend who pays all of the bill sand suppotrs us both. My check goes to the animals (rats, fish, and hamster). Even if I found myself jobless, she would cover them. If a female needed a c-section, we would be able(and willing) to fork over $300.

3) You should have access to a veterinary practice that is knowledgeable in rodent care.

The vet that treats my rats and hamster also sees mice. I have been using him for over a year and have found him to be excellent.

4) You should be able to devote significant time to the breeding process.

I spend at least an hour with the furries each morning before work and when I get home, they get free range time. I probably wouldn't free-range the mice (maybe in the bathtub) but they would still be handled.

5) You should be able to provide homes for every [mouse] that you breed.

Any mouse that cannot find a home will remain here with us.

6) You should have an excellent grasp of [mouse] genetics and understand why breeding a rat with an unknown history (including pet-store rats) is unwise.

I have been studying mouse genetics but still have a lot to learn (which is why I'm waiting a few months and looking for a mentor).

7) You should understand and be prepared for the medical issues that commonly affect [mice].

I'm still learning but have been studying for a few months.
8) You should have an in-depth knowledge of rat husbandry.

Still studying.
9) You should be sure that your breeding will not adversely affect other [mice] in your area.

It shouldn't. Any mouse that is bred will be from a breeder. If I question thier health, or find a problem in a line, those mice will not br bred from again. I'll also get my mentor's opinion before going through with any breeding.

So. Do I sound like I'm ready? I feel like I'm getting there. I want everyone to know that this is NOT a spur of the moment decision. I have kept mice in the past and loved them. I also feel that I have the means and the time to better the mice in my area.

Any advice? Anyone interested in mentoring me?

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Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Mon Jan 23, 2006 11:34 am

As I'm not a breeder, I can only give my opinion from an owner's point of view, and for that I would commend you for researching and doing the one thing that really does make a difference - looking for a mentor. I really hope that you can find someone to mentor you as this is really the best way of starting out - where abouts are you going to be located when you start breeding? If possible, you want to find a mentor that is relatively close to you - but in the end, even an online mentoring would be better than nothing. Perhaps someone might even offer to let you "foster" a litter so that you can experience the process of delivery and nursing under their guidance.

In the meantime, I'd say continue learning, continue researching the area and see if there are any other good breeders around you that you could get together with. See if there are any local mouse clubs or breeder groups.

My main real question is - why do you want to breed? What is it that makes you want to breed mice, as opposed to adopting from other breeders, rescues and so forth? What do you feel that you can bring to the mouse world to improve things all round for them? Have you an idea of where you would start or is this more a general consideration at the moment?

As an example - and I don't breed and currently have no intention of breeding (I'm not sure I'd take the stress or anxiety!) - if I were to ask myself that question, then I know that if I chose to breed (rats in my case), it would be to increase the health and longevity of rats in general, but specifically I would want to work at improving myco resistance. I've had a lot of related rats that had severe myco related problems, and I would very much want to concentrate on producing rats that are (of course) generally very healthy and great temperaments, but that I want to specifically work on improving resistance to respiratory disease. In addition, black rats are very often neglected - they're sometimes regarded as being "common" or "boring" and not too many people concentrate on producing the most gorgeous dark black rats. While appearance would take a second place to health and temperament by a long shot, I would also want to work on producing a line of gorgeous black selfs and berkshires in particular. That would bring issues with it - it can be harder to find homes for black rats as a lot of people want pretty coloured rats instead - so I would need to ensure that I was prepared for that eventuality and plan for it. I would then want to find someone in the breeding world that I respected, who also produced rats of the colours and with the temperament, health and type that matched my desires when breeding, and then I would hope to approach that person with regards to mentoring and obtaining breeding animals.

If you were choosing to work on a particular marking/colouring/body type (as a secondary goal after health/temperament etc), then it's always worthwhile finding a mentor that is familiar with those particular flavours of mouse, and the associated potential problems that might accompany them. And it's definitely something to consider now, if you have a preference. Some types of rats are more popular than others, some are more complex in terms of breeding and genetics than othes, and some have associated health or behavioural problems in their lines or directly associated with their markings etc. I imagine the same would be the case for mice to a greater or lesser extent.

I hope that helps, and again, hopefully some of the mouse breeders will be able to give you more advice as well.

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Andy & The Rats

~ Darwin ~ Maisie ~ Ella ~ Zak ~

~ Finn ~ Malachi ~ Azrael ~ Newton ~ Charlie ~

Tue Jan 24, 2006 9:28 am

We will still be in Nashville,TN. I haven't been able to find any breeders in my area (or even my state!) so it looks like I'll have to use an online mentor. Of course I will be driving to pick up the mice I will be using in my breeding program, they will not come from pet stores.

There are no mouse breeders in my area and the only alternative is a pet store. I haven't even been able to find a rescue. The mice sold in most stores around here are sickly and bred for profit rather than health. I would like to offer an alternative. I'm not exactly sure where I want to start as far as colors go, but all the mice I've had have been prone to tumors and stroke. I'd like to breed mice who won't be.

Basically, I want to offer healthy mice with even temperments to people who are tired of sick nippy mice from pet stores.

_________________
Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Wed Jan 25, 2006 12:03 pm

Please make sure there are homes for the mice to go to before you breed them.

Have you tried contacting the shelters in your area to see what the situation is with mice being abandoned or brought in to shelters?

There was an article in the paper here last week, 200 mice & rats are being surrendered A WEEK. Please think carefully before you breed mice as alot of shelters will not admit how many come in as they are killed on arrival. Often the mice and rats do not even make it onto their statitics for surrenders that year.

Thu Jan 26, 2006 11:03 am

There are no mouse or rat breeders that I know of around here. I'm positive that I'd be able to find homes. I work in a pet store and people come in all the time asking if we sell fancy mice because they are looking for one this color and can't find any that have been socialized. Even if no one wanted any, we'd keep them and not breed any more unti lwe had the room. I love meece. Mr. Green

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Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Fri Jan 27, 2006 6:01 am

Well I am about 13 hours from you if you want to drive that far. Shaz

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Sat Jan 28, 2006 8:59 am

I didn't know you bred mice. I couldn't find them on your site...?

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Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:37 pm

Thats because they arent on my rescue site. I usualy keep my mice breeding very quiet, and usualy only two litters at a time when I have a waiting list. I breed chocolate broken marked satins, and 14 k gold and white broken marked satin long haired, ruby eyed and black eyed. If you go through the mouse forum you will find tons of pictures of my lines. Shaz

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Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:50 pm

Oh! Yes I've seen them before. They're very beautiful. I'm sending you a pm.

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Rats:
The boys:
Chester (PEW hairless), Kye (Black mismarked hooded), Scout (agouti), Reminder (Beige)

Tapioca(Beige hooded) RIP my big squishy boy...Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.