|
Post by whipple on May 14, 2011 12:35:31 GMT -5
I have a 1:3 group of mice. This is the one my first litter is from. Anyhow, two of the females wont breed, and they are quite small. I'm not sure what to do. If they won't breed, theyre kinda useless to me.
Also could I add a female to an already established group? Or do I have to pull the male first? (I've done it without a male before)
|
|
|
Post by goingpostal on May 14, 2011 13:01:00 GMT -5
How old are they? How long have they been with the male and not producing? I haven't had much luck trying to add adult breeding females with others, they fight, not terribly but enough to worry me. You might be able to get away adding a younger female though.
|
|
|
Post by whipple on May 14, 2011 13:28:42 GMT -5
I don't know how old they are, the only ones I know for sure are the ones I bred. But I do know how much they weigh, 17 grams each. Not growing at all. I weigh all the mice every few days or so. They are the only ones not growing at all.
|
|
|
Post by goingpostal on May 14, 2011 14:36:51 GMT -5
That's pretty small and if they aren't growing I would probably cull them and find some larger ones, I like breeder mice to be big so they have big babies. Most of my 4 week old weanlings weigh more than that.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on May 14, 2011 14:39:29 GMT -5
they might be too young/small. if you have left over kibble, try that, some mice need some protein. also, it could possible be the male. has he been bred before. if not, just wait a few more weeks, for your girls to grow and then see, because I'm thinking those are some smaller mice.
|
|
|
Post by katt on May 14, 2011 15:20:50 GMT -5
What is your set up and what is their diet?
I have had some infertile females, it does happen. But honestly those two sound WAY too small - or young or both. They should be at least 3 months old before breeding as a rule of thumb. And I think I remember the appropriate breeding weight was 25g... but I never weight mine I just have a good idea of how big they should be. I find that bigger females have bigger babies and healthier litters as the pregnancy is less straining on them. Or rather, their bodies are more able to handle the strain.
I would feed those two females off and get a new pair, and let them grow to a good size before putting the male in. I move mice around and introduce new groups quite frequently. As long as you clean the cage before putting them in there so that it does not smell like anyone's territory, then there is usually (in my experience) not an issue. Even when there is, a chase here and there, and the dominance is established and they settle back into peaceful living. (Kind of like ferrets, they need to establish their heiarchy too). The only time I have had attacks and injuries is when I failed to remove a male from the group of babies early enough.
|
|
|
Post by whipple on May 14, 2011 23:03:36 GMT -5
Crap. I've had them for about a month and they havent grown a bit. I bought the scale cuz I figured they weren't. The male is fine, it's his litter thats 2 weeks old now. I switched everyone except the mum and one other female in there, so now I have 6 1:2 groups. If nothing happens in a month, I'll be peeved
|
|
|
Post by katt on May 14, 2011 23:25:08 GMT -5
For whatever reason 1:2 groups seem to work best and be the most productive. I know other people have seen this too.
|
|
|
Post by whipple on May 15, 2011 19:28:04 GMT -5
Awesome. Oh, and when I first got them, I was feeding them ferret food on top of rodent food. So if nothing happens, they might just become pets They're the friendliest ones. Too bad.
|
|