Cedar is toxic to mice due to the oils it excrets (ie the reason why it smells so nice). Pine does the same thing but not as problematic as cedar. Aspen is probably the best substrate to use for mice. There is CareFresh as well but I find it highly dusty, despite what the package says.



I line the bottom of 115L rubbermaid containers with newspaper than cover it with aspen shavings. The newspaper occuries the mice as they spend hours shredding it to make nests. Exercise wheels should be in with the mice, it keeps them from getting fat. However the solid or mesh bottom wheels are best as there is little to no chance of mice breaking legs if they slip off the bars while running on the wheel.



The rubbermaid contain I use is deep enough you don't need to put the lid on it at all. The mice can't climb up the smooth sides. So if you don't have anything in the house that might want to jump into your mice bin and chow down..don't both with the lid. If you do, just cut large holes in the lid and cover with aluminum screen or 1/4 inch wire mesh, taping it down with duct tape.



With no male left in your colony, how do you expect to breed your females later on? You could breed a son to the mother but this sort of inbreeding isn't recommended for long term. If your snake will eat frozen thawed mice, it is good to store them in the freezer (the mice, not the snake) this way should something happen, you have some food in the freezer for your snake.



A comment about male mice, they will always scent mark their territory no matter what you do. The more your clean the more he will scent mark to feel secure. A non aersol odour nuetralizer in the room could help with odours to some extent, just make sure it is safe for pets. I have also read somebody boiling cinnamen sticks and leaving a cup of the water in the room to help hide the odours. Another solution is a small wide bowl of regular vinegar placed near (but not in) the male's cage.

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