# Mommy mouse eating all her babies' tails!



## Jimmythetiger (Mar 24, 2009)

So we started out with 10 which I brought down to five, and then mommy picked one off. After she ate a baby, I started boosting the protein in her diet a little bit. Now, the remaining babies are 10 days old, and every day she is nibbling more and more of their tails off! I heard that this is common, but what is the cause? Does she need more protein still?


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## Cait (Oct 3, 2008)

It's not common, but not unheard of for the mothers to remove part of the tails. I've never heard of them doing it in more than one stage though. Could it be that they are 'cleaning up' and removing the dead tissue from the end of the tail as it dies off?


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## Jimmythetiger (Mar 24, 2009)

I'm assuming not since they've got bloody stumps right by their butts..


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## Cait (Oct 3, 2008)

Oh dear. Well all you can do now if she's taken all of the tails off is hope she stops and that they heal. That is if you don't cull them, which may be kinder (though obviously only you can decide that because you know how bad the damage is). The main danger to the babies, apart from more damage from mum, is infection. There are things you could apply to prevent this but it may just encourage the mother to pick at the area.


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## SarahC (Oct 3, 2008)

I've had quite a few tail eaters.All the babies survive with no health problems but are very hard to pick up when they are at the wild jumpy stage.Get rid of the doe when the babies are weaned,she'll do it again.I dont think its anything to do with lack of one thing or another.Just a quirk,maybe related to captive living.I was told that it was caused by over zealous cleaning especially straight after birth when the after gunk,umbilical etc are being eaten.I'm not convinced about that either.Once a tail scoffer always a tail scoffer though in my experience.


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## Loganberry (Oct 24, 2008)

"Once a tail scoffer always a tail scoffer" - nice! hahaha! I'll remember that...


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