What Do Mice Eat

All you need to know about what do mice eat

Dear Fellow Mice Owners!

If your an exciteable little boy or girl or the parent of an exciteable little boy or girl and you own mice then this site is for you!

I can imagine it now, you've gone to the pet shop, chose your mice and carefully took'em home... then you think to yourself...

WHAT DO MICE EAT?

Don't panic! Mice (including pet mice) will eat anything, but that doesn't mean you should feed them anything

"The name mouse comes from "mus", a Sanskrit word that means thief"

The Easiest Method of feeding mice is to take a trip to the pet store and buy a prepared food bag suitable for mice, just double check you are buying mice food as rabbit food, guinea pig food and hamster food is slightly different to mice food.

Mice are pretty easy to feed. Their main diet is mixture of seeds and grains. If the mix has a lot of sunflower seeds or nuts in it, you should remove part of them. A mouse can gain too much weight from fatty food. You should also add every once in a while dog (or cat) dry food. There are also "lab blocks" you can feed your mouse. Blocks designed for rats suit mice well. In addition to seeds or blocks, you should give your mice fresh food. Different fruits and vegetables are very good -- cucumber, tomato, pear, salad. Always wash and/or peel the vegetables well. Every once in a while, give your mouse dried bread or dog biscuit to gnaw to prevent the mouse's teeth growing too long.

"Mice are primarily herbivore animals, although opportunity may lead them to eat almost anything!"

You should feed your pet mouse always at the same time of day, preferably in the evening. The amount of food given depends on the size of the mouse. Pregnant and nursing does should be given as much food as they will eat and add a few drops of vitamin solution into the drinking water.

Always give your pet mouse water to drink, not milk. Water must be available at all times and it should be changed daily.

"Mice have to build their homes near sources of food because they like to eat 15 to 20 times per day"

Treats - we all like a treat every now and again, and so do mice. Every now and again you might want to let your pet mice eat some Apple, Cereal or a little dry bread

What Not To Eat

Please take note of this part, if there is one part of this site that you read make sure its this bit!

Please do not feed your mice...

• Chocolate
• Food designed for other small animals
• Acidic Fruits (oranges, lemons, etc)
• Acidic Vegetables (onions, garlic, etc)
• Raw meats
• Peanuts

"Mice are good jumpers, climbers and swimmers"

Mice In The Wild

So what do mice eat? in the wild? Mice in the wild eat fruits and seeds that have fallen onto the ground. Some mice eat meat, such as insects or grasshoppers. Mice that live around farms will eat grain and whatever crops they can find. Mice move inside when it starts to get cold outside and winter is on its way. A mouse can get though an opening no more than 3/8-inches wide. This is when they start eating people food and anything thing else they can get their teeth into or around, after they gnaw through the packaging.

"A Male mouse is called a Buck, A Female mouse is called a Doe and Baby mice are called Kittens or a Pinky"

Other Info

Housing

A simple wire cage with a plastic floor or a glass tank with a wire lid will make an ideal home for your pet Mice. Avoid wooden cages.

Your Mouse cage should be kept out of direct sunlight and away from draughts.

Minimum cage size for a pair of Mice is 45cm x 30cm with at least 25cm depth, giving them plenty of room to stand upright. Remember Mice can squeeze through very tiny gaps, so make sure there are no spaces wider than your little finger otherwise your Mice could escape.

Exercise And Entertainment:

Mice will enjoy playing with toys and they like cardboard tubes to run through and chew on.

"In fiction, mice are popularly portrayed as loving cheese, but, in reality, most mice do not particularly like cheese, and prefer foods in their natural diet. Too much cheese may cause digestive problems and strong-smelling excrement"

Handling

Mice are usually friendly and enjoy human contact but can occasionally be timid. If this is the case, place your hand in the cage whilst holding a treat (a few sunflower seeds). Your pet mouse will become more confident once he gets used to accepting the treats. You can pick up a Mouse by gently holding the base of the tail, lifting the back carefully, and sliding your hand under its body.

"Mice can make their own vitamin C"

General Health Tips

What do mice eat tips!!!

• A good balanced diet of rodent mix and small amounts of fresh food
• Clean dry housing, cleaned once a week with a mild disinfectant
• No extreme or sudden changes in temperature
• Water bottle and feed bowls cleaned daily
• Gnawing block or fruit tree branch to help wear their continually growing teeth
• Other Mice for company

Just For Fun

Top Ten Famous Mice

1. Mickey Mouse - It had to be him!
2. Minnie Mouse - You can't have one without the other!
3. Danger Mouse - He's The Greatest
4. Mighty Mouse - Thats right Mighty Mouse
5. Speedy Gonzales - Arreeeeba!
6. Algernon (Flowers For Algernon) - Well worth a read!
7. Pinky and The Brain - One is a genius the others insane
8. Stuart Little - I want his toy car!
9. The Dormouse - Hic!
10. Computer Mouse - Fits in the palm of your hand!

"Mice will nurse babies that are not their own."

Thanks for taking the time to read the page. I hope you have found the information handy, and now you know what do mice eat!