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When can I move does?

Cattsy

Cattsy

New member
Okay so both my pregnant does had their litters today.

Tomorrow is cleaning day, but I'm afraid of disturbing the does? I'd hate for them to eat these babies :( How long should I wait before I can safely move them to clean their cage? Any tips to reduce their stress?

Trina
 
Cattsy said:
Okay so both my pregnant does had their litters today.

Tomorrow is cleaning day, but I'm afraid of disturbing the does? I'd hate for them to eat these babies :( How long should I wait before I can safely move them to clean their cage? Any tips to reduce their stress?

Trina
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Skipping a cage cleaning isn't going to hurt. I would wait till they are a little more established, then you should be fine. Maybe a couple of weeks.

Wayne
 
I've cleaned cages while the female was giving birth. I have a lot of mice and losing a few is not a heart break for me. But as I rule I clean when it is time and don't pay attention to what the mice are doing.
 
medusacoils said:
Skipping a cage cleaning isn't going to hurt. I would wait till they are a little more established, then you should be fine. Maybe a couple of weeks.

Wayne
Click to expand...

That's usually what I do, skip for a few weeks- or if it is really messy, I've had to spot clean a couple of times and throw in a few more clean shavings or news paper shreddings.
 
I'm with Wade, if the cage is bad it needs to be cleaned. The mom getting all sick from the filth isn't going to help anything. It doesn't really cause problems for her.
 
I haven't gotten to this yet, but I would think that scooping up the pups and the substrate they're on when you put the mice in a separate container for cleaning would work if you scooped them up again to place them back in the clean container. Just so there's normal smell around them.
 
Like Wade, I also clean when the bins are dirty. I cull all the litters on day one so they have 10 or less to feed and continue to thin them out as they reach the sizes I need to feed. Just make sure if you touch any babies that you touch them all. Haven't had any problems with them eating young ones yet.
 

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Waiting a few days won't hurt. I start pulling babies out and examining them once they start getting their fuzz. I've even handled pinkies before, that's generally emergency cases though. Rule of thumb, if she eats the babies after you've touched them, it's probably a good idea to feed her off. A good doe won't be bothered.
 
Ernst: AWW Love that little brown pointed doe in the top left corner of your picture!

SO I went ahead and cleaned both cages today. The nesting material was clean (had just added some toilet paper the day before and that's what they both nested in) So I scooped out the nests babies and all and put them in a bowl, removed the adults and cleaned the cages.

I then put the nests back in the same corner they were in (after taking a good ogle at the little pinkies) and returned the adults. Watched axiously while the adults settled back in and thankfully the does are back to their litters after some re-arranging of he nests. Neither of them seemed to concerned so I'm happy about that!

Thanks everyone for all the advice :)
 
Critter 1398

I know very little about specific breeds and I'm not sure what she is. I got her mother with several feeders from a reptile store when I was still buying them. I started my colony with does from these feeders with the addition of a few 'Fancy Mice' from a small pet store. Sorry I don't know more but they are terrific parents and will nurse other doe's litters whether or not they have their own.
 
Mice don't really have breeds. They're either lab (albino) or fancy (colored mice). The mouse in question looks like it's a siamese but I'm not sure.
 
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