Taming Mice

by Sparrow Thu 20 Sep 2018, 10:43 am

Hello.
I'm not sure how to get around the forum too well just yet or if this is the right section to ask this.

In two days I will be adopting five mice. 4 females and 1 male. They are all 3 months old and the male has been separated from the females for over a month now. They are all siblings and I asked in another post about how to go about keeping them all happy.

While I will leave it to the other post to answer the questions on general care, I would like to also ask about how to tame my new mice?

What are some techniques and ways that work best in taming mice and should I tame the females one by one or all at once?

Should I leave the mice to settle for the first week in the new home and then begin taming or can I start taming the day I get them?

Should I tame them with the use of treats or mainly just my hands?

Also, how common is it for mice to bite? I'm not overly worried about bites, since I have been bitten many times by hamsters in the past but it just would be good to have some heads up Smile

Many thanks for helping me out in advance!

by CallaLily Thu 20 Sep 2018, 3:27 pm

There are taming tips here: https://www.petmousefanciers.com/t8-handling-and-taming.

I found pulling each group of females out together to work best for me. I used a big storage bin, others use a (dry) bathtub.

When to start depends on them. I usually let new mice settle in for at least a few days. But if they’re super skittish, I may let them settle in longer.

I prefer to not hand feed treats to my mice. Especially in the beginning. I find it encourages biting/nipping. Instead I’ll hide treats around their cage for them to find after taming or play sessions are over. They learn to expect it and get super excited.

I’ve never been seriously bitten by any of my mice. Had a few nibbles from curious new ones and twice I’ve had mice get kind of fed up with me but it didn’t break skin or honestly even hurt at all. Just a little press of teeth, just a “hey, can you stop that” kind of thing. The first time being an elderly mouse on her way out - stupid me thought she’d like to be held during that time like another mouse I had that passed but she wasn’t into that. The second I was trying for a picture and the mouse was like “yo put me down already, I’ve got things to do.” Now hamsters, yes! I think I’ve been bitten by almost every hamster that we’ve had. Laughing

by Sparrow Thu 20 Sep 2018, 6:30 pm

CallaLily wrote:There are taming tips here: https://www.petmousefanciers.com/t8-handling-and-taming.

I found pulling each group of females out together to work best for me. I used a big storage bin, others use a (dry) bathtub.

When to start depends on them. I usually let new mice settle in for at least a few days. But if they’re super skittish, I may let them settle in longer.

I prefer to not hand feed treats to my mice. Especially in the beginning. I find it encourages biting/nipping. Instead I’ll hide treats around their cage for them to find after taming or play sessions are over. They learn to expect it and get super excited.

I’ve never been seriously bitten by any of my mice. Had a few nibbles from curious new ones and twice I’ve had mice get kind of fed up with me but it didn’t break skin or honestly even hurt at all. Just a little press of teeth, just a “hey, can you stop that” kind of thing. The first time being an elderly mouse on her way out - stupid me thought she’d like to be held during that time like another mouse I had that passed but she wasn’t into that. The second I was trying for a picture and the mouse was like “yo put me down already, I’ve got things to do.” Now hamsters, yes! I think I’ve been bitten by almost every hamster that we’ve had.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write out all of this info, its very helpful! I might leave them to settle in and get used to their new home for the first 2-3 days and see if they are ready for taming from then on Smile

I have to admit, I'm a little bit anxious to begin the taming in the first place, I never had to start taming such a big group of animals at once. I was told that they are still in the popcorning stage even though they are 3 months old already...

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