Bean's new house!

by metalmouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 1:52 pm

Bean upgraded from her nursery today. It's a 20-gallon as opposed to the 40-gallon I planned to get her. Maybe in the future. All of this was kind of a last-minute buy because Bean escaped her nursery box and I found her chilling in my closet the next morning.

Bean's new house! W15P6t8

by Rodents rock! Sun 23 Apr 2017, 3:46 pm

That looks so nice and Bean is adorable sleeping on the teddy bear. I have a question tough, is the white cotton looking stuff in the center of the tank and in the little straw house in the corner a cotton type bedding? If so, you will want to remove it right away as its not safe for any animal. It can get tangled around a limb and cut off circulation and they can choke on it too. I tear up plain paper towels for all my rodents to use as bedding. The set up looks awesome!

by PastelMouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 3:49 pm

Nice setup, although I would recommend getting paper bedding and using toilet paper as nesting material. Are you planning on getting Bean some cute lil friends?

by Rodents rock! Sun 23 Apr 2017, 3:54 pm

PastelMouse wrote:Nice setup, although I would recommend getting paper bedding and using toilet paper as nesting material. Are you planning on getting Bean some cute lil friends?

The sandy substrate is probably more suited for this type of mouse since it's from the desert. I wouldn't recommend trying to add more mice as Bean is a wild mouse.

by PastelMouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 3:57 pm

Rodents rock! wrote:
PastelMouse wrote:Nice setup, although I would recommend getting paper bedding and using toilet paper as nesting material. Are you planning on getting Bean some cute lil friends?

The sandy substrate is probably more suited for this type of mouse since it's from the desert. I wouldn't recommend trying to add more mice as Bean is a wild mouse.

I am now remembering that I read about Bean... must have slipped me mind, oops.

In that case the setup seems good. xD

by River Sun 23 Apr 2017, 5:53 pm

Looks great so far! She looks comfortable. Love

by metalmouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 6:43 pm

PastelMouse wrote:
Rodents rock! wrote:
PastelMouse wrote:Nice setup, although I would recommend getting paper bedding and using toilet paper as nesting material. Are you planning on getting Bean some cute lil friends?

The sandy substrate is probably more suited for this type of mouse since it's from the desert. I wouldn't recommend trying to add more mice as Bean is a wild mouse.

I am now remembering that I read about Bean... must have slipped me mind, oops.

In that case the setup seems good. xD

Yes, Bean is a cactus mouse. She enjoys burrowing and hunting in the sand, and actually has two mealworm roommates living in it ~~for now~~.

I need to do more research; however, I'm almost certain cactus mice are actually solitary mice. Most desert mice are solitary. Not sure why, my guess is they only come together to breed because there aren't enough resources in this particular biome to share with an entire social group. So yes, I don't think Bean would take kindly to friends--wild or not. Smile

by metalmouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 6:45 pm

Rodents rock! wrote:That looks so nice and Bean is adorable sleeping on the teddy bear. I have a question tough, is the white cotton looking stuff in the center of the tank and in the little straw house in the corner a cotton type bedding? If so, you will want to remove it right away as its not safe for any animal. It can get tangled around a limb and cut off circulation and they can choke on it too. I tear up plain paper towels for all my rodents to use as bedding. The set up looks awesome!

Thank you for the warning. I don't actually enjoy buying the cotton stuff anyway. Too much waste. Smile

by Rodents rock! Sun 23 Apr 2017, 7:36 pm

metalmouse wrote:
Rodents rock! wrote:That looks so nice and Bean is adorable sleeping on the teddy bear. I have a question tough, is the white cotton looking stuff in the center of the tank and in the little straw house in the corner a cotton type bedding? If so, you will want to remove it right away as its not safe for any animal. It can get tangled around a limb and cut off circulation and they can choke on it too. I tear up plain paper towels for all my rodents to use as bedding. The set up looks awesome!

Thank you for the warning. I don't actually enjoy buying the cotton stuff anyway. Too much waste.

You're welcome Very Happy

I really don't know how they are even still allowed to sell that stuff for small pets.
Again, that photo of Bean sleeping on the teddy bear is just too adorable! Day Dream

by PastelMouse Sun 23 Apr 2017, 9:13 pm

I reread your intro post and was curious how Bean is doing with her front paws. It's sweet that you're helping her, if she is normal are you going to release her into her natural habitat? Also what are you feeding her?

by Rodents rock! Sun 23 Apr 2017, 9:49 pm

PastelMouse wrote:I reread your intro post and was curious how Bean is doing with her front paws. It's sweet that you're helping her, if she is normal are you going to release her into her natural habitat? Also what are you feeding her?

Bean wouldn't survive in the wild with the damage to her legs. She would be easy prey and wouldn't be able to get food very well.. Bean is so very lucky that MetalMouse found her and helped her grow into a beautiful girl and has provided a wonderful home for her. Very Happy

by River Sun 23 Apr 2017, 10:12 pm

I did some research for you and yes, cactus mice seem to be aggressively solitary! She sure seems to like that toy, though.

EDIT: They sound lovely! Apparently they can live for seven years, and feed on fruits, seeds and succulents, so maybe some succulent plants can be safely added to the environment for enrichment?

by metalmouse Mon 24 Apr 2017, 1:00 am

Huh, I wondered about succulents. I'll try looking up the ones native in my area, maybe figure something out.

EDIT: Thank you for looking that up for me!

by metalmouse Mon 24 Apr 2017, 1:14 am

PastelMouse wrote:I reread your intro post and was curious how Bean is doing with her front paws. It's sweet that you're helping her, if she is normal are you going to release her into her natural habitat? Also what are you feeding her?

As Rodents rock! said, Bean has a significant disability. I don't trust her chances of survival in the wild. More than that, I don't think she does either. She escaped from her nursery box during the night (terrible, sad morning that was D:) and when I found her in my closet she was persistent about staying in my hand, even to drink from her water dish. Pretty sure she realized the world is a lot bigger and scarier on the ground. But that whole event of a morning is what prompted the quick buy and setup of her new house lol. She does extremely well without her front paws where movement is concerned. Unfortunately, she's a slower eater and not as effective at climbing/burrowing/foraging/hunting.

Bean is fed this organic mouse and rat food, fresh fruits and vegetables, and live insects (from a store, not wild caught). She digs the organic mix like there's no tomorrow, but she's a little pickier about the fresh stuff. Insects aren't a huge part of the cactus mouse diet, but they are good once in a while and she gets to be around another living creature such as it would be in a natural environment... until she decides mealworms make better food than friends, or I'll remove them before they mature and breed. Eek.

by metalmouse Mon 24 Apr 2017, 1:15 am

Rodents rock! wrote:
PastelMouse wrote:I reread your intro post and was curious how Bean is doing with her front paws. It's sweet that you're helping her, if she is normal are you going to release her into her natural habitat? Also what are you feeding her?

Bean wouldn't survive in the wild with the damage to her legs. She would be easy prey and wouldn't be able to get food very well.. Bean is so very lucky that MetalMouse found her and helped her grow into a beautiful girl and has provided a wonderful home for her.

Thank you so much. Smile

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