I've kept hamster's for many years, and I'm now thinking a mouse might be interesting for a change. How do they compare to hamster's, regarding temperment and socialabiltiy? Is one ok on it's own( like hamster's) or do they need to be kept in pairs?
2007-02-26 04:19:41 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Mice are fine as pets... Most you can't bring out and play with them like a hamster but they do make those balls you put hamsters into for mice. If you look at our website, http://4einc.info and click on "our pets" you'll see a slide show of our mice and hamsters as well as info on them.
As for how to keep them, it depends on the mouse. From experience I can say we've had some that were able to live in pairs or more (females only...males will fight) but others that couldn't. We had a mother and 2 females together but we had to remove one of the females because they would fight so there was mom and one daughter together then the other alone until she had babies then she was with her 4 daughters.
We had one mouse who was really friendly who would come out and run all over my husband but none of the others would really come near us... they would run across our hands if we put them in the cage or bin (we have storage bins we use to keep them in when we clean the cages), but otherwise don't really care to be friendly. We've also had mice where we will warn people not to get close to the cage because it would bite.... reach through the bars and scratch you too....
Out of all our mice that we've had we have 3 left and they're all adorable and we love them as much as our hamsters. When they were babies we used to sit an watch them for hours playing and stuff...
It all depends on you and the mouse you get. They are prone to infection/disease more so than hamsters so just know that. Various things can happen and they will happen fast if they do...we had one mouse who we think ended up with cancer...one week the lump was not there the next it was, and the week after that it was about half the size of her.... it eventually killed her but we did all we could to make her comfortable. Our mice and hamsters are our kids....
Good luck and enjoy your mouse if you do get one, or more.... Oh, as a final note... we got a mouse when we first started to date that came from the pet shop pregnant... you won't know until about 3 days before she has them...that's when they start to show!! So make sure you think about every possibility before you get one and if you have any questions, contact either me or my husband via our site and we'd be more than happy to answer any questions you have as we've done extensive research on both hamsters and mice.
As for Jesus Lover... I don't know if I'd listen to that stuff about vitamin c and OJ... I've never read that anywhere or heard of it, but I know for hamsters citrus isn't good for them and generally what isn't good for a hamster isn't good for a mouse.
2007-02-26 05:55:05 · answer #1 · answered by jessicadiamond_4einc 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They make lovely little pets, cute and inquisitive. Rarely bite and are pretty easy to look after. You can keep them on their own or in groups ive always kept same sex pairs coz i feel a bit mean having them on their own. Watch out tho SOME mice can be a bit vicious toward a room mate :S
I like hamsters but find then sleep an awful lot and if you get one of 'those' hamsters it can be a bit tempermental.
If your into small animals i can definatley recommend rats! they are easy to keep and VERY intelligent and loving. Ive got two little boys and they are so much fun, you can train them to do tricks and they love nothing more than a cuddle, even curl up and fall asleep on my bed.
Good luck in finding a new pet! Mice are cute, but rats are AMAZIN;
2007-02-26 12:24:44 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all mice do not bite unless they are squeezed or frightened in some way. They are actually very friendly animals although, in my opinion, they aren't as fun and interesting as hampsters. Males are very territorial and may hurt each other but if you're getting females you can put as many together as you want. Also, the males urine smells stronger than the females so the cage would have to be cleaned more frequently. And if you're letting them run loose in a room remember to block off any openings in the doorways or vents. They can squeeze through practically anything!
2007-02-26 12:34:19 · answer #3 · answered by Mal123 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well we have had guinea pigs for like 14 years, and we love having them! plus we had 2 mice at one time, and they were very fun to watch! we got them a pen that was really for a hambster with the tunnel, wheel, and upper room space, and they seemed to enjoy the cozy cage quiet fine, i've never had a hamster but my friends have and they die alot quicker then a mouse, our's lived to be almost 2 years old! So yes, I would give it a try, and maybe even a guinea pig?? if so make sure u give them vitamin C tablets mixed with orange juice! and carefresh bedding instead of cedar chips, it's alot healither for them! Good luck =]
2007-02-26 12:28:24 · answer #4 · answered by Rae 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My daughter had both at one time or another - hamsters, then mice...I noticed the mice were less interesting than the hamsters and a bit more nervous acting. Needless to say the cat killed the mouse [decapitated it!] after breaking into its habit trail
2007-02-26 12:23:05 · answer #5 · answered by sage seeker 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have had pet mice and hamsters. The hamsters were nasty little creatures. They kept killing there babies and eating them. The mice were alot nicer to each other but they bit me alot. I finally got sick of them and switched to guinea pigs. they are great.
2007-02-26 12:29:02 · answer #6 · answered by sea_sher 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
we had several mice before all in the same cage as they are very happy. right now we just have 1 mouse all by herself and she fine with that too. They are very sweet little pets.
All though I shoud say that the ones you buy from the store are great but wild field mice are nervous jumpy biters and impossible to train even from newborn
2007-02-26 23:37:36 · answer #7 · answered by sarat0 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they are best kept in pairs. they can become depressed if kept alone and not getting alot of time with you. they make wonderful pets. some of mine even went out with me when i went for walks and other things. most will tend to be shy and maybe a bit nippy until they get used to you but when they open up they are quite social.
2007-02-26 14:45:25 · answer #8 · answered by MommyCaleb 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
we have mice.. they are great. only time anyone got bit is mhen they squeezed its tail too hard. i think rats are better. if gotten as babies. i didnt like the hamsters. mice do not like to be alone.
2007-02-26 12:29:35 · answer #9 · answered by twrider_29 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well, mice are able to be kept on there own but perfer compony
2007-02-26 12:29:05 · answer #10 · answered by charles e 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋