# Feeder Breeder here!



## Crested_Tern (Aug 7, 2010)

Hey All!! I just joined a little while ago and I figured that I should probably introduce myself before asking questions.... anyways....

I'm a 19year old college student (3 semesters left!!) Who has tons of animals - 1 dog, 1 cat, 14 chickens, 5 horses, fish... mice and probably rats soon!! I'm interested in genetics (gonna do my graduate studies in animal genetics), I currently work at a Wildlife Refuge that specializes in birds of prey such as Red-Tailed Hawks, Bald Eagles and American Kestrels. I am also working on learning enough about birds of prey to take my falconers exam and become an apprentice falconer!!

The reason that I joined this site is that I'd like to learn more about keeping and breeding mice with the intent to feed them to my raw-fed cat and dog as well as to provide any extras I get to the wildlife refuge and eventually supply my own mice for myself when I get my falconers license and subsequently an American Kestrel.

The two things that I'm currently having the most trouble with is sourcing my first mice to start a colony and setting up a place to keep them all!! The only places that I can currently find live mice would be either Petsmart or Petco and I'm probably going to end up purchasing at least some mice from them but I'd love to purchase stock from a more reputable breeder even if I have to pay a little extra for them!!
As far as where to keep them I am currently thinking of keeping them in the loft of my horse barn in 10gallon tanks (I can get the tanks for free from someone who used to breed mice but doesn't anymore). If anyone sees a problem with that please let me know. The biggest thing I'm worried about is the temperature. In the winter it gets cold but I was thinking that I'd be able to insulate the area around the tanks with hay bales - it would be my chickens in their pen up there and the mice in their tanks all backed into a corner of the loft and surrounded on two/three sides by square hay bales. As I'm purchasing the mice in a couple weeks I'm not too worried about having hot temperatures but I am concerned with the temperatures in the summertime, how warm can mice be??

I'm sure I'll be posting more questions in the appropriate sections as they come to me.

Thanks in advance for your help!!

Lauren and the crew


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## Rhasputin (Feb 21, 2010)

Mice can't really stand temperatures of 80+ 

Where are you from? It's good to see someone who wants to be a responsible feeder breeder.


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## Crested_Tern (Aug 7, 2010)

Oh sorry!! I'm in Northwestern PA. We get temps from about 0degrees (and under) in the winter and this summer we've hit over 90degrees outside. I'm thinking it would be absolutely mandatory to bring the mice at least downstairs in the barn or something during the summer, probably with a fan. A few years ago I bred Mini Rex rabbits for pets/show and had them set up in the barn and used fans when it was warm out and froze water bottles and gave them ice blocks in really hot weather. Is the same/similar thing OK for mice??


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## Rhasputin (Feb 21, 2010)

Well, rabbits are much better at regulating their own temperatures than mice are. 
I know some people keep their mice in sheds, but they need heating, and air conditioning, and do best when the shed is insulated.


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## Crested_Tern (Aug 7, 2010)

Hmmm..... so perhaps it would be better to build in a section of the loft and get a small AC unit for in it?? I also have a shed that was used for our pony when we first got her. It has a small loft as well as a decently sized run-in area... I'll see about adding functional doors to that and maybe that will work just as well...

How do mice do with the cold weather?? How warm should they stay and would they keep themselves warm enough assuming there were 5-6 mice per setup and they had plenty of fluffy bedding??


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## moustress (Sep 25, 2009)

Cold weather is not good for meeces. They like temps that we would find tolerable. That's why many folks find wild mousies invading their homes when the weather get cold. Even 60 to 65 degrees is not really great for them. I keep mine at 70 to 75F. Temps of 60 and below they might survive, but probably have reduced fertility.


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## Rhasputin (Feb 21, 2010)

Yes, mine seem to reproduce consistantly well at 70-75. Lower, and they sleep too much, higher, and they don't want to move.

Modifying one of your sheds might be a good idea. It would need heating, and air though.


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## Crested_Tern (Aug 7, 2010)

OK.... In that case I'll rethink my plans of location and probably just rebuild the pony's run-in for them...

I should be able to get a small heating/AC unit for it...


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## jessilynn (Jul 9, 2010)

6 mice is much to many for a ten gallon tank. 3 is maximum. Also, no responsible breeders will sell their mice to have them milled for animal food. You would be best of getting petstore mice


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## Crested_Tern (Aug 7, 2010)

I'm only planning to have 2 females to a male and the females would have a few weeks between each litter for a break. Each female would be put into her own tank to give birth and then she'd be put into a rest tank with 1-2 other females for 2-3 weeks after the babies are weaned.

I know 99% of what I'm doing when it comes to the breeding. I've bred many types of animals from rabbits to fresh and saltwater fish to cats and dogs to goats. My goal is to breed for quality along with quantity, nothing I breed would be any good to me if they weren't both healthy and genetically sound.

The only thing that I haven't completely confirmed yet is where I'll be keeping them. My parents don't want them in the house in case of escapes so, as you'll see elsewhere, I've already said that I'm willing to renovate what I have and make the necessary accommodations for them. I would think that most people would see that as being a responsible breeder.

Thank you for your concern but I hope that you can see that I'm dedicated to providing the best possible conditions for my feeders so that I can provide the best possible food for my other animals. My animals, from my fish to my horses, are treated as PETS first and THEN as their intended purpose, be that food, riding, or breeding.


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## SarahY (Nov 6, 2008)

> Also, no responsible breeders will sell their mice to have them milled for animal food.


That's not true. I would have no problem selling mice to responsible feeder breeders, and a lot of show breeders I know wouldn't have a problem either. Show breeders cull, feeder breeders cull, there's not much difference really.

I think it's laudable when people are willing to give feeder animals a better life and their own carnivores a better diet by breeding their own instead of buying mass produced.

Sarah xxx


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## WoodWitch (Oct 18, 2009)

Welcome to Lauren and the Crew......


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