# Help with an introduction that might be going strangely



## sgillespie31 (Nov 14, 2018)

Hi, first time mouse owner trying to give my girls a good life! We put a lot of effort into taking care of them but have an introduction that I may have made a mistake with and am seeking advice.

We got two mice and after a year, one died. Our vet thought it may have been a uri but was unsure (she died on our way to the vet, poor girl). We observed the other one for a full week and she had less energy, but otherwise seemed okay and always got ger energy back when we took her out to play. We took her to the vet who thought she was most likely fine and just a bit lonely/bored. The vet recommended we get another mouse. So we got a 4 weeks old little girl from the breeder.

We introduced them on neutral territory for about 4 hours and they fought (the older mouse went after her a few times). They fought less and less though, with no blood, and after 2 hours of no fighting we put them in a freshly cleaned cage.

They fought some more in the cage, and then began to fight less and less again. We were hopefull things were progressing. They have mostly stopped fighting, but its 24 hours later and our older mouse, Fantomah, spends all her time sitting in one spot now. She shakes a little bit too but I dont hear any uri clicking and when we take her out she plays with us. Is she just stressed from the new mouse? What should we do? I am worried I screwed up by placing them in a cage filled with toys and structures, rather than an empty cage...

Any advice is appreciated. I hate seeing Fantomah, who lost her sister 10 days ago, just sitting shaking with most of her time. I love both mice dearly, but we wanted this to make Fantomah's remaining time more rewarding for her...


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## Fantasia Mousery (Jul 16, 2011)

I would advice getting one more little girl  Having three mice or more means that when one dies, you don't have one that is alone for any amount of time.
Otherwise, yes, try letting them just have an empty cage the first few days, and then gradually adding one item at a time. Doesn't sound like you've done anything wrong. The empty cage method is not always necessary, but sometimes it can help. Good luck!


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## sgillespie31 (Nov 14, 2018)

Thank you for the reassurance. Have you even seen one mouse (mostly) spend her time sleeping in one place during an introduction?


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## Fantasia Mousery (Jul 16, 2011)

Sometimes it happens until they warm up to each other, but my guess is your girl is doing it because of her age. She's getting a bit old.


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