# Introducing females with litters?



## DaisyTailsMousery (Nov 8, 2012)

Right now I only have 3 cages. 1 50 gallon and 2 10 gallons. in each of the 10 gallons I have a mother with a litter (each litter has their eyes open and the larger litter is starting to leave the nest) In the 50 gallon I have a male and a pregnant female. My friend was supposed to take the male after my female was pregnant but can't anymore. What I want to do is put both litters of babies and their mothers in the 50 gallon aquarium and put the male and the female each into their own 10 gallon. Would it be possible to introduce the females with litters, or would that just end badly?


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## ThatCertainGlow (Jun 23, 2012)

Have both mothers gotten along well in the past? Is the mother with the younger litter Dom, or sub to the mother with the older litter? I don't think I'd try it (even if they got along great before, and the younger litter mom was Dom to the other), until both litters were mobile. If at all possible. Can you set up some sort of divider in the 50 gal to protect the non-mobile litter until they are walking? I'm guessing you can't wait until they can all walk, with the buck's doe currently visibly pregnant.

If it works, I'd still supply two feeding areas, and two water bottles, at either end, just to head off any trouble there. I have a bad memory mess when it comes to this question. Can't recall if I did it, and it worked, or I just thought about it, to death, and never attempted it in the waking world.


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## DaisyTailsMousery (Nov 8, 2012)

They did get along in the past but I'm not entirely sure which one was dominant. I can put a divider in the 50 gallon, but I'm short a water bottle and one of the does would have to use a bowl until I can get another one, which has never worked in the past. The litters are only 2 days apart with the older litter being 20 days.


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## ThatCertainGlow (Jun 23, 2012)

I'm really hoping someone with actual experience doing this will pop in, but not sure if you only have this weekend free to really observe the sorting. I'd start with re-introing the mom's in a neutral location, see how that goes. you should be able to notice right off who is D, and s. Not that I suppose it matters as much with only two days separating litters? If it's a really 'kind' Dom, and sub, then I can't think why they wouldn't be social enough to share the remaining time of mom duties. (Could be WAY wrong.)

Only one water bottle... do you have a little travel container to intro the mom's in? If so, what I'd try is to let them interact for about 10 mins with like a TP roll, some bedding, and that's it. Then add all babies to that tiny container. If they work that out nicely, then just lower the container into the newly cleaned 50 gal (in some way that they can remove themselves to the 50 gal, at their leisure), and then pray like mad?

Dare I ask what you are going to do in another couple weeks? LOL I think I'd have fits with only 3 cages. Not sure I ever had that few. Even at the tail end of when I stopped breeding. In fact, I thought I had saved two aquariums over the years, recently checked out the attic they were in... I had saved five. For over 18 years of no mice.  But I am all about backups...


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## DaisyTailsMousery (Nov 8, 2012)

If it doesn't work I have a cage in the basement, but I don't like using it because it's a critter trail cage and it has tubes that stink badly and I've had escapees in the past (just weaned bubs that can just barely squeeze through the bars) and the wheel is a ball that flings poop everywhere and has to be cleaned daily. So I really only want to use it if I absolutely have to (and it looks like I might). I breed on such a small scale that 3 cages has usually been enough. I usually only do one litter at a time, but now I'm growing a bit and I might need to expand. I can fit 20 or so in the 50 gallon and have never really had more mice than can live comfortably in there. I usually have the nursing/pregnant females in one 10 gallon a male in the other and all my just weaned/between litters/retired females in the 50 gallon.


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## ThatCertainGlow (Jun 23, 2012)

Here's hoping you don't have to use one of those things. If so, might try it with the pregnant doe, as you wouldn't have to worry about escapes for a couple weeks. I have been trying to search for posts, articles, anything where people have done this, and coming up blank.

I know someone asked the question, some time back, on one of the two main forums I read. I don't think I was satisfied with the detail of the answers, he/she changed their mind, or something? Didn't bookmark it, whatever the result. It seems to me, that with many breeders having reasonable success housing two does together to raise their litters, a careful intro later of does who know each other, with their half-raised litters, should have a good chance?

I have two does now that appear to wish to do something like this. I take them out to visit with each other everyday, minus the kittens, but I'm too scared for the younger litter. Not to mention the younger litter is the sub doe's litter, for mine. I was just planning to house them together after the buck separation at 5 weeks (most breeders do that at 4 weeks).


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## DaisyTailsMousery (Nov 8, 2012)

I just went ahead and tried it. I cleaned all the tanks out thoroughly and put just the adult does in the 50 gallon ( NO babies) and waited for them to get their dominance squabbling over with (which didn't take long since they've been housed together before) and turns out the mother of the younger litter is dominant (no surprise there, she's a lot bigger than all my other mice) then I put the babies in. I just put one in at first and both mothers groomed him and didn't really seem to care that he was in there. So I put the rest of the bubs in and they are all exploring and following the adults around and there hasn't been any fighting or baby eating going on


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## ThatCertainGlow (Jun 23, 2012)

Yay! Please update if anything changes? Or if it works out until weaning.


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