Reptile & Amphibian Forums

AUSTIN

Okay so this is my first time owning mice... i have 4 and the only girl, as discovered a few hours ago, is as big as a balloon. She was hiding a lot and acting very unsociable so i left her alone and didn't bug her but now after now seeing her for a week she's doubled in size... i know she's pregnant and all that good stuff but what i don't know is how i should treat her. i don't know how long she's been pregnant so i don't know how close she is, but in my opinion real close. but can i still hold her and play with her, because if i was pregnant i'd want attention?!
another question, naturally she's already in her own cage now, i don' need any more litters for a while, but on another site i read that a mother mouse can have up to as many as 20 mice... if that is true, will i need to assist her in feeding them, she's my only female and 20 mice is a lot for one mouse.
another question, should i be nervous about her going into labor, cause i am... are there any complications or anything that could go wrong? i want these little babies and i'll carry her to work with me if necessary... oh and is travel bad for her... because i've seen just about everything else give birth except for mice, and i'd really hate to miss it.
whew i feel so nervous for her, i should be the one in labor!

If your other mice are females and everybody is getting along, you can leave them all together. If your pregnant mice is nervious, then having her alone with maybe one other female for company will be ok.

There is really no need for you to assist in feeding the pinkies. In fact trying to hand feed the babies will most likely stress out the female, maybe even causing her to eat all her babies. Mice are very good at nursing large litters and the few that don't do well, typically catch on later. It is also very very difficult to hand feed pinky mice. You will have to feed them pretty much ever half hour around the clock.

I would pretty much leave your mouse alone till she gives birth and about three to four days afterward. Then you can clean the cage and count the babies any pretty much oggle all over them. Then put teh babies back in the clean cage, with some of the old bedding with them (basicaly form a little nest again with teh old bedding, in roughly the same location in the cage the mother had them in), then put the mother back in and let her refamiliarize herself to her home.

It isn't very often for mice to have problems during labor, most likely you will wake up and hear a bunch for squeeky noises coming out of the cage as the babies nurse. You may see some bloody bedding but most often, the female mouse cleans this all up very well and you wouldn't even know she had babies, other than she will be alot slimmer and the squeaky nursing baby noises.
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PHLdyPayne