I find that the $6.00 Sterilite tubs--the ones with no inside contours--are excellent breeder boxes. I do some woodworking so it's no problem for me to make screen-covered frames for the tops. I drill a hole to pass the stem of the water bottle through, and make a harness by linking nylon cable ties together, to hold the bottle outside the tub. Feeders are heavy-guage galvanized screen bent into free-standing boxes which rest in the middle of the floor of the tub. By cutting the sides of the feeders a lot longer than the end result box, I can fold the excess into wide legs to support the feeder and give the mice a place to nest under it. I fill the feeder with rodent block--most feed stores will be able to order rodent breeder block. The results are better than one gets with cheaper foods like dog food. The mice get occasional vitamin B supplement in their water, and also mealworms about twice a week. Few people know that rodents prey heavily on insects, and mice love mealworms and crushed crickets. Since I raise my own mealworms and crickets, those are also vitamin-balanced supplements. (Feeder insects, BTW, are reared on a diet of Layena Game Bird Crumbles for laying hens, ground to dust in a blender or food processor--very well-balanced diet--remember, insects do not replace cells once they mature, so in order to sequester nutrients, they must ingest them as they grow through several stages at least, preferably life.)

Mice are kept on a 14-hours on, 10-hours off light cycle and breed best at 70 degrees F. Down to about 60 degrees, no heat is needed if they have a small enclosure they can line with facial tissue strips and huddle together for warmth, but they may not breed if too cold.

By the time I finish with a rodent breeder box large enough for one male and five female mice (I house one male and three females, but five females could fit in a pinch), I have spent less than $20 including feeder and bottle, and nary a nibble at the walls. One word of caution: I'm not sure I'm confident enough to try the same breeder box on adult rats--those things can gnaw through a battleship.

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