# Tempreture



## jammin32 (Jun 14, 2012)

Whats the ideal average tempreture to keep the environment for mice in ?

I have an outside shed that is very well made and weatherproof but im concerned with the hot weather we have at times and that its going to be too hot for the mice, are they suseptable to the heat ?

Is there anything i can do, for example putting a small fan in to circulate the air etc ?

(granted here in the uk its very rare for it to be hot an sunny :lol: ) but when it is i want to ensure my mice are all comfortable.


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## Velvet_Meece (Apr 20, 2009)

They suffer terribly with the heat, cope much better in winter!
I lost 3 mice to that small heatwave we had a few weeks back, anything above 26 degrees is dangerous.

I have the door open all day on hot days, i have open slats just under the roof overhang which allows for a breeze and i block them up with polystyrene in winter, but they are deemed useless on ridiculous days when there's no wind at all.
I also have a white roof on my shed to reflect the sunlight.

A fan won't cool a mouse down apparently as i was told, though i personally don't see how that is because a simple fan that rotates from side to side reduces the temp in my shed by a degree or two on silly days and thus a mouse is cooler, no? and it does help circulate the air, i have it pointing into my glass tanks as with no vents in the side the air does sit in the bottom a bit, so circulation sure helps.

If we ever did have a proper heat wave in Britain i do have a an air con unit sitting in the shed, but its really only there for emergencies as it does eat electricity.


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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

Velvet Meece is right - mice find it easier to keep warm than to cool down. Their main cooling mechanism is the artery in their tails. In hot weather, the artery dilates, allowing heat to be lost. In the cooler temperature, the artery constricts, retaining heat. It's not a particularly efficient means of regulation, which is why they need lots of bedding in cold temps. They keep warm by burrowing. In the heat their options are more limited so they don't cope as well.

Using a fan to circulate the air has only limited use in a heatwave. The problem is that mice don't sweat, so moving air doesn't evaporate from their bodies to cool them. Our perspiration is the reason fans keep us cool.

A good rule of thumb is that if you walk into the shed and find that it's uncomfortably warm, then it's too hot for the mice.


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## thewesterngate (May 22, 2012)

Good information so far, just adding my two cents: it's gotten to be unbearably hot in my state lately, I had to move every critter I have indoors. I lost a full-grown rat who was housed in a sheltered porch here, goodness knows I would have lost every mouse if I hadn't moved them! Today temperatures are going to hit 105F (40C) outside!


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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

thewesterngate said:


> Good information so far, just adding my two cents: it's gotten to be unbearably hot in my state lately, I had to move every critter I have indoors. I lost a full-grown rat who was housed in a sheltered porch here, goodness knows I would have lost every mouse if I hadn't moved them! Today temperatures are going to hit 105F (40C) outside!


We get those temperature extremes regularly in summer. Mice just don't cope. That's why I keep mice inside.


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## sys15 (Nov 26, 2011)

i've been keeping most of my mice outside in a garage, which is a bit of an experiment, as i'm new to this climate.

thus far, they have survived very well, much better than i would have guessed. the garage can get very hot during the day, as it has no roof vent or even high wall venting, is not shaded at all, and it gets quite hot here in the summers (90-100 F daily highs). However, the cement slab remains cool throughout the day. by placing the mouse cages directly on the slab as the weather has turned warmer, they've been able to do perfectly well thus far. i have not tried it, but i suspect that a fan would actually be counterproductive, as it would disturb the thermal layering and push some of the hotter air down to the level of the mice.

all that said, i'm happy that i'll be moving soon and i can put the mice into an environment where i have to worry less about thermal extremes.


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## jammin32 (Jun 14, 2012)

What about sunlight ? Is this a requirement for mice ?

I know birds need it fir vitamin D and even more so whilst breeding so is this the same for mice ?

If so can lighting be used that mimics sunlight that's on a 12 hour timer for example ?

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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

The standard daylight/dark ratio for mice is a 14 to 10 hour cycle. I'm not sure about the vitamin D production and their physiology, but lab mice spend their entire lives without exposure to sunlight, so I think their bodies must be able to manufacture it from the nutrients in their food.


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## jammin32 (Jun 14, 2012)

So artificial lights would be ok on a standard daily timer ?

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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

jammin32 said:


> So artificial lights would be ok on a standard daily timer ?
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2


Should be. Even better would be if you can get daylight globes for the lights. Doesn't the shed have windows?


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## Velvet_Meece (Apr 20, 2009)

My mice get the lights on when i'm in there, otherwise its a bit of light from the window.

Mice prefer the dark anyway and breed better in the dark hense why breeders sometimes use wooden or black boxes.

In the wild mice will hide away in the daylight ours and come out at night if they can so i'd have thought sunlight/UV exposure isn't really necessary.


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## jammin32 (Jun 14, 2012)

MojoMouse said:


> jammin32 said:
> 
> 
> > So artificial lights would be ok on a standard daily timer ?
> ...


Yes it has a window but it doesn't let in a lot of light hence I thought full spectrum lighting maybe a better alternative

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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

Velvet_Meece said:


> In the wild mice will hide away in the daylight ours and come out at night if they can so i'd have thought sunlight/UV exposure isn't really necessary.


It's not the UV exposure that's important, rather, it's the day/night_ cycle_ that they need, as this influences the production of melatonin. This is an important homone that regulates things like the reproductive cycle, levels of aggression and even is thought to have an influence on the immunity system.


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## Velvet_Meece (Apr 20, 2009)

Sorry should have made that clearer, i was referring to the comment about some animals needing Vitamin D, not so much the daylight hours


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## Serena (Dec 29, 2011)

It's been really hot here the last few days (up to 35°C).
I try to keep my room cooled down (windows and blindfolds closed during the day, windows open at night), but it's still really warm.
so far the mice seem to be ok, they are really active in the evenings and mornings, which I wouldn't have suspected, but still I'm woried about their wellbeing.
I tried putting wet towels over a part of the cage (evaporative cooling), ice-packs on top of the mesh-lids (cool air sinks down) and giving iced veggies (of course they don't stay cold for very long).
Hopefully something will work and keep the losses to a minimum during the summer.


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## MojoMouse (Apr 20, 2012)

Velvet_Meece said:


> Sorry should have made that clearer, i was referring to the comment about some animals needing Vitamin D, not so much the daylight hours


Sorry, I misunderstood!  No, I don't think they need it from the sun, they can process it from the nutrients they eat.


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