Decorative mice: breeds, maintenance and care

Today you can often see in the apartments of different animals. Someone gets cats, others - dogs. There are people who choose their rodents. Some houses have chinchillas, guinea pigs and decorative mice.

The latter will be discussed in our article. There is a white and gray mouse. You can also meet rodents with a more original color, for example, spotty.

Japanese mouse: description of species

For the first time these mice were bred in Japan as food for small snakes. But thanks to a friendly disposition, an interesting color and unpretentiousness in their content, they soon became another kind of pet. The Japanese decorative mouse became popular not only in its own country, but also in many other states.

What is this animal? A small mouse measuring four centimeters. The weight of the animal is 6 grams. The wool is white, chaotically decorated with black specks, which make the rodent look like a Dalmatian. Markings in animals are all different, they are usually bizarre forms. The peculiarity of these mice is that they do not smell.

Contents and feeding of Japanese mice

You can keep such mice, and one by one, and in groups. Just remember that you can not keep two males in the cage, because they will arrange a "war" for the territory. Those who want to get a mouse to play with her, watch her, it's better to stop the choice on the boy.

Keep mice in a plastic terrarium, covered with a grill from above. Furnish it with various leisure items: ladder, ropes, wheel, driftwood and other elements. In the terrarium put the house for the mouse.

It is necessary to lined the bottom with sawdust. Change them should be two times a week. The optimum temperature for the content of these rodents is 21 degrees.

Feeding mice follows pumpkin seeds, fruits, corn, oats, millet, burdock leaves, coriander, fruits, plantain, parsley and others.

Once a week you need to give protein food. It can be a low-fat cottage cheese, a piece of boiled meat or an egg (hard-boiled). Hang the mineral stone in the cage.

Mice-babies

It is not only the smallest rodent, but also the smallest mammal on Earth. The weight of the beast is eight grams. The body length of the rodent does not exceed seven centimeters.

Such mice are great for keeping in a cage with small cells (no more than five millimeters). These rodents do not produce a specific smell. Mice are placed in a cage to put clay or glass plates. Rodents feed on grain and groats.

Also in the diet, add greens, vegetables and fruits. Give sometimes rodents of flour worms, lean meat, ground into minced meat.

Cottage cheese and white bread occasionally is sometimes added to the diet of mice.

Gerbil

These rodents are well suited for keeping in an apartment. Gerbils in the light of time are more active. They are easily accustomed to, people are not aggressive.

The habitat in nature is deserts and semi-deserts. In appearance , the rodent resembles a jerboa, thanks to elongated hind limbs and a tail with a tassel at the end.

Rodents multiply very well, in food are not fastidious.

The cage for gerbil should be metallic, with dimensions of 40x50 cm and more.

Feed the rodent followed by legumes, herbs, cereals. They also use hay, branches of soft tree species (poplars, willows and others). Sprouted grasses are useful for gerbil. Also, the rodent loves vegetables, berries and fruits, not only fresh, but also dry. Sometimes, give gerbil milk products, cottage cheese, flour worms, dry gammarus and others. Gray bread is readily eaten by rodents.

Tubular bones of farm animals and chalk should be used for mineral feeding of pets. There must always be water in the cage.

In gerbils, the front legs are mobile, so they are often used in the process of eating food for convenience.

From the end of winter until the fall, these rodents multiply. In one litter there are up to five cubs. But, unfortunately, not all survive. The duration of pregnancy of such an animal is 23 days. After the birth of the babies, it is not necessary to plant the male.

At the age of twelve days, the kids are already starting to eat on their own. During this period they also continue to feed on mother's milk.

Spiny mouse

Sparkling mice decorative like pets have become popular relatively recently. These rodents conquered people's hearts. They are sociable, quickly get used to people, especially to those who look after them. In terms of content in captivity and care are unpretentious. What is such an animal? A spiny mouse is something in between a sandstorm, a hedgehog and a tusk. The eyes of these animals are large and beautiful. The whole body is covered with fluffy fur, on the back there are real needles.

This feature and became the reason that these decorative mice were called needle-shaped. The body length is on average 10 cm, and the tail is 9 cm. The muzzle of this rodent is very cute. The lower part of the mouse body is covered with a white pile, on the top are the needles of yellow, dark-sulfuric or tan.

It is necessary to contain in a cage, on the bottom of which it is necessary to lay sawdust. To change them it is necessary in process of pollution.

In a cage it is necessary to put a house, in it mice will have a rest. Also, in the cage, place the shelves for lasagna and ladder.

These rodents need to give branches of deciduous trees. In occasion of a food of features is not present. Eat all that other mice are decorative.

White home (laboratory) mouse

These rodents have long since lost their wildlife. Recently, they are very often found in humans as pets. Mass content began somewhere 125 years ago. These rodents are sociable, unpretentious in their care.

Best white mouse gets used to a person if you buy a monthly rodent. After buying, you need to take it in your hands more often, play with it. These rodents are very amenable to training.

Feeding is easy, they eat different feeds for rodents. A white mouse eats greens, vegetables, cereals. In no case do not give rodents fried and fatty foods. It is useful to supplement the diet with flour worms or other invertebrates.

For growing incisors, it is necessary to add to the nutrition of young animals branches of shrubs or stone fruit trees, croutons.

The duration of pregnancy in a rodent of this species is approximately twenty days. The female brings about seven toddlers, although there are more. In a year the mouse can give about ten litters.

Rodents should live in a cage. It must contain a house. It is also desirable to put a wheel or additional accessories for games. The optimum temperature for the content is twenty degrees.

Home Gray Mouse

Besides white, there are gray mice. They are also a subspecies of domestic animals. The gray mouse weighs about thirty grams, the body length is about ten centimeters. The length of the tail of this mouse is 10 cm. The wool of the rodent is stiff. The color is monophonic.

Lifespan

And how many live decorative mice? It is impossible to answer this question exactly. Since the life expectancy of animals depends on many factors. On average, it is two to three years.

Conclusion

Now you know what are the decorative mice. We examined different breeds. We also touched upon the content and feeding of these small rodents. We hope that our article was useful to you.