# What could possibly be a stupid question



## irishsea

I know this may sound silly to most of you, but I have never owned a mouse (rats, dwarf hamsters, guinea pig yes) and am trying to learn everything before adopting one. While watching mice videos on youtube I stumbled across someone that said the only way to have a loving and trusting mouse is to hand raise it from a few days old.

Being I cannot find any mouse breeders in Northern Ireland close to me I would have to go with a feeder mouse as a pet. Does this mean that I can rule out having a pet that is happy to see me and interact with me?

I am not expecting rat like interaction at all, but a pet I can watch and interact with would be nice.


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## ThatCertainGlow

Wow. I'm not sure what mice that person has experienced, but that, thankfully, is not at all true. I've had downright clingy mice, whom I barely had any contact with as a baby. Like up the arm, then against the cheek, doing the mouse purr, at every opportunity. 

If you can not find any breeders at all, then carefully choosing the mouse/mice will help. If you have a selection to buy from, see if one comes to your hand, without squinting, or fleeing. Now, that mouse may not be happy at the shop keeper going to get them, but chances are each one that shows the initial open curiosity will become comfortable with you. I've read it takes a lot of patience to wait on such a mouse to trust you enough to climb into your hand, and stay. There are quiet a few articles/posts and probably videos, all over, about how to do that.

In general, non-breeder derived mice are going to be skittish and such, either from prior treatment, or just not being bred for temperament. A private feeder breeder might have nicer/better tempered mice? Maybe healthier too, depending, of course, on the person.

Good luck!
Zanne


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## DaisyTailsMousery

I go through a process called Taming when I get a new mouse from a pet shop. I leave them alone for their first day in the new cage, then I put my hand in the cage with a few treats on it and wait for it to come take them. I do this once or twice daily and in a few weeks she won't be skittish anymore and will crawl up on your arms and stuff. It can take a little while and there is a small chance that she will never really like you. If you decide to breed your mice, though, if you handle the babies 1-3 times daily they'll grow up being friendly. I've had mice that crave human attention so much so that they beg like dogs every time I walked into the room (although I've found that they're usually males). I have hand raised a mouse before (I found her at about a week old trying to nurse off her dead mommy in mouse trap and I felt so bad for her that I did the hand raising thing) and that was the friendliest mouse I've ever had because she thought of me as "mommy" and whenever I would put my hand in the cage she would come over and start grooming me and sit in my hand and let me pet her and she loved little rubs behind her ears. I've never had anothr mouse so friendly, but normal tamed mice can still be friendly and like attention


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## TwitchingWhiskers

I agree with TCG, it is to at all true that hand raising is the only way to a friendly mouse. I have, and have had mice that love human interaction, for example: crawling up my arms, licking me, some that stay still and just sit with me, and I haven't hand raised a single one of them.


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## Seafolly

I also agree with the others. My hand raised babies (aka handled since the day they were born) range in temperament but are not remotely like rats. The ONE mouse I picked up from a terrible feeder bin (inhumane living conditions) is the sweetest, most rat-like mouse I have ever met. I definitely urge you to stick your hand in a feeder bin and see if anyone special checks you out.


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## irishsea

thank you all, I have the patience (used to work with abused rescued animals) so I don't mind the work. It was a person on youtube that does a lot of training with their mice that I see always making the comment. While they do amazing things with their mice, I just couldn't comprehend the "it is impossible to bond with a mouse unless you have hand raised it and it sees you as its parent" statement. Heck, I rescued a snail from a severely cracked shell that once it had been in my care for a while would slowly move to the top of the tank and wait if it sensed me in the room. If my partner was in the room it wouldn't move. It was released back into the wild after the shell was healed and for months I would find it stuck to my kitchen window no matter how often I put it back in the garden. I know it was the same snail because of the way the shell healed lol. So if I can win over a snail a mouse shouldn't be impossible lol!

PS- did I really make myself sound like the crazy snail lady and tell the I nursed a snail back to health story *bangs head* LOL! I can't help it, I have a soft heart.


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## onionpencil

irish-

hahah i save little critters and creepy crawlies too. love the snail story 8D


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## Seafolly

HAHAHAHA. That is the best story I've ever heard! I'm surprised the snail had instincts to look to a parent -like figure but I know nothing about them. I too am the sort of person to save any critter that comes my way, injured.


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## DaisyTailsMousery

that's okay! everyone thought it was weird that I saved (well tried to.) the baby mouse and got up every 2 hours to feed the little guy.


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## TwitchingWhiskers

That snail story is rich! :lol:


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## Fantasia Mousery

To be honest, I think that anyone who hand raises a baby for no other reason than getting bonding with it is cruel. With that said, I agree with the others. It's absolutely not true. It's very individual how much work it takes for a mouse to get super tame, but with enough patient it will work.

Also loved the snail story! 

Good luck.


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## sanctuary

LOL an epic snail story


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## moustress

I Brake For Earthworms!! :lol: (JK)

Hand taming can be done with a pet store mousie and I agree that letting the mousie settle in for a day or two before trying to approach it with your hand is almost always a good plan. Feeding it a good but dull diet, like nothing but oats, and them present something irresistible like a chunk of dried bread in your hand. My meeces forget their shyness when presented with bread or crackers or breakfast cereal.

When they do come into The Hand you should hold them close to your body at first so the mousie feels safe, or mostly close you hands so the mousie can peek out when it's ready. This activity can lead to fun and play opportunity after awhile. I close my hand loosely and then when the mousie noses The Hand, that part of The Hand opens so they can peek out. Done over and over is good fun for both mousie and keeper.


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