# advice on wire cages



## cristowe (Feb 13, 2011)

Hi...I bought a cage for my single buck . It is plastic bottom and sides and has a wire grill on the top. The bars are less than 1cm wide, but i covered them in a very fine wire mesh from b&q so he couldnt get out or any wild mice couldnt get in( he lives in my shed with the guinea pigs). I heard somewhere before...not on here...that a mouse can squeeze through a hole as small as a biro pen , so i was worried the bars would be to big.
Having looked at other cages on here, do you think i should take off the wire mesh ?
I am thinking of getting a bigger cage that is for a hamster. it has thinly spaced bars but i owuld be able to attatch ropes to it, which i cant do at the moment.
Thanks.
Alison.x


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## racingmouse (Jan 12, 2011)

Normally 1cm bar spacing or less is fine, but if you keep him in a shed, the meshing is probably a good idea for obvious reasons. Can`t you keep him indoors? Being a lone male he will need more attention. Especially when it`s freezing outside. Do you have a heated shed?


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## cristowe (Feb 13, 2011)

HI ,
My shed isnt heated but i asked on the cavy forum before i got a mouse to see if it was ok for them to live in my shed. The response from people who also keep mice on there was that it was ok as long as extra bedding was given when its cold. i cant keep mice in the house as my husband has allergies. I am always out in the shed and he comes out a lot and gets lots of attention. x


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## racingmouse (Jan 12, 2011)

I would still be worried about abnormal temperatures like the winter we`ve just had. Mice will tolerate cold better than heat (and then you have the heat that can build up in a shed in summertime and that could kill a mouse). So keeping mice out of doors can be tricky when it comes to sheds and garages. They are very prone to respiratory problems and environmental changes can trigger this. Some people can be very allergic to mice, so if he ever does need taking into the house due to extreme weather, it would be an idea to have his cage in a room that your other half does`nt go into? Maybe keep this little guy for a while before taking on more incase it becomes a problem if you need to keep them in the house.


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## geordiesmice (Oct 26, 2010)

If a mouse can get its head through a hole I think it can get the rest of its body through 5mm is the right gage for a mouse cage.I agree too high a temperature is more harmfull.My shed has heating inside radiators and thermostaiclly controlled fan heater which is not pointed at any of the mice for draughts I keep it at a constant 60 F, 18 c about the fan heater was on quite alot in that cold spell but I wasnt bothered as long as the mice were ok, importantly good ventilaltion is a must too in hot summers if we get any  .Before the shed roof was put on it was lined with foil sheeting if you can get hold of some of this do it is great for insulating the roof its used to line metal storage containers.And my shed is raised 2 ft off the ground to keep vermin away from underneath .Keeping your mice in the house is fine maybe not in a bedroom where someone is sleeping noisy wheels and mice scratting keeps you awake lol.


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## cristowe (Feb 13, 2011)

In summer i do put the reflective sheets on the roof and its surprising how good it works. also all of my shed windows are removed allowing for extra ventilation and the doors stay open too. I have fans for the cavies also . I have never used a heater in winter for the piggies, but if i need one for the mice then they will get one lol.x


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