Reptile & Amphibian Forums

it seems like a number of places are claiming what seems to be perpetual "sold out" and "overwhelming demand" on rodents. what is the deal? has the hobby become that big? hey, I have mouths to feed!
daveb

Please let me be rude, as I am a rodent breeder. And this bugs me. Rodend breeders must keep their stock year-a-round, but reptile keepers cannot seem to think ahead. That is, they not only do not buy mice in the winter when stock is up, they do not even buy in the spring when stock is still up and they are using mice. They wait until fall to buy mice, when stock is down for two reasons. First everybody wants mice at once and two, summer is the lowest producing months. In fact, if a rodent breeder slips slightly, he can lose all summer production and he becomes a consumer too.

For instance, I have been producing mice to sell for four years or so. Every year around march or april, my freezers are full so I advertise. I am normally sold out within two weeks and do not have to advertise for the rest of the year.

I am a small breeder(3000 sellable mice a week) and I cannot imagine what a big time breeder does with all that extra stock in the winter, or the worry of whether it will sell or not, in the summer. I have a friend that produces 12000 adult mice a week, I cannot imagine him producing more just so there will be enough for fall. Just think about having 24000 mice and nowhere to put them? We have to plan on producing some extra in the winter, and try to get thru summer/fall as best we can.

So the answer is, the summer causes lots of breeders to slow down or stop, and feeder mouse consumers cannot think to purchase when mice are in season. So yes, summer and all, mice are gold. FR

thank you for the insight from a producer's point of view. I usually weather this span in comfort with rodents to spare... dang plan didn't hold up this time.

db

Thats the thing about plans, hahahahahahahahahaha. FR

Hey Dave... I think I told you of my "plan that failed" didn't I?
I thought I was all set when I picked up a small freezer and was ready to fill'er up. Well, about a month or so after (and thanfully I had just used the last of what I had on hand) I noticed it wasn't freezing water bags I put in there.. Turns out (in some kind of bad karma thing maybe) that a small family of wild rats had set up house in the compressor compartment--and chewed holes in the copper (freon lines).
My love for rodents has diminished somewhat.

:Mark

I raise my own rodents and I sell off the excess. There are times when I can't give them away, and then there are times they are in high demand. I believe the supply just keeps cycling.

Kerby...

Yep, happens every year in mid to late summer. Its best to keep this in mind and plan ahead. Phil

Phil-
i take my feed records for each month over the past x years to see my my useage is and then plan ahead to avoid the dry spell. somehow it didn't work this year...
Dave

I produce a set number of mice each year, but a limited supply, which doesn't cover my whole needs during the biggest eating times and when I have babies. So, I usually buy pinkies in winter to be ready for the big spring rush. Sometimes I have to buy some more pinkies and/or fuzzies in summer if all my resources are used up.

My motto...Be prepared, buy in advance

TC