# Pet carrier - are my holes too big?



## squirrelpot (Aug 5, 2017)

I have a Ferplast pet carrier, a good sturdy plastic thing that has done great service carrying rats for many years.

But for recently-weaned mice.... I'm not sure it's suitable because the holes at the top are ovals, 0.7cm wide and 1.6cm long.

This prompts two questions:

1. Are these holes big enough for five week-old mice to escape through?

2. If the holes are too big, could you recommend a sturdy pet-carrier suitable for groups of baby mice?

Thanks in advance 

Chris


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## Cosmicmice (Jul 13, 2017)

How long will they be in there for? I have a similar carrier and they have never escaped, but I haven't really seen them trying. They seem to concentrate more on the slot-holes on the side then the top when they are feeling escape-y, but mostly they just stick to the bottom and hide in the fluff. Mine were fairly small, sleek babies too


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## squirrelpot (Aug 5, 2017)

The journey was under an hour.

As it turned out, the very kind breeder who sold me the boy had prepared a small safe and secure plastic carrier with dozens of small ventilation holes in the lid, so the journey was easy.

This is my first encounter with mouse buck scent. Wow. It's strong!! It took me a while to realise what it reminds me of: it's the smell of hops that emerges from a brewery.


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## Lilly (Nov 21, 2015)

They usually smell more when stressed of in a new environment so it should settle down a little bit. My worst buck that I had to move with smelled like rotten fish almost immediately, needless to say the 8+ hour drive with him was not the most pleasant.


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## squirrelpot (Aug 5, 2017)

I would be delighted if the scent settled down!


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## Lilly (Nov 21, 2015)

Sounds a little counter-intuitive perhaps but the best thing is to not clean very well initially. Bucks do a lot better if not cleaned completely too often, leave something still in the cage that smells of them when they do clean. Could leave the nest area and only clean the litter area for example.

Some bucks just outright stink though lol


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## squirrelpot (Aug 5, 2017)

Thanks for the cleaning advice.

I've removed and replaced about 80% of the substrate, I've washed his wheel, and I've washed his little pink house, but not all on the same day. So he's had a sort of rolling project for cleaning, and there's always plenty of stuff left in the cage which he has already scent-marked.

He's a lot more settled than when he arrived, more relaxed, friendlier, busier, bolder, cheekier, and I think that being more settled and calmer means he is scent-marking less, because the smell - although it's the same smell - is not nearly as strong as it was a week ago. Which is a relief.

Chris


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## Lilly (Nov 21, 2015)

That is great to hear


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