King of the Wheel

by lizardtails Mon 18 Feb 2019, 11:22 pm

I just. I can't stop crying.

Ignis, Gladio, and Noctis all love the exercise wheel SO MUCH they all want to use it at the SAME TIME. (My fourth little girl Prompto I've seen using the wheel only once or maybe twice, and never at the same time as any of the others. Smart girl.) And I've seen them fling each other--and in Noctis' case, HERSELF--off it several times now! (Noctis keeps trying to run too fast, it's like when someone turns up the treadmill too high, and she finally gets flung off by her own momentum. I die every time it happens.)

I'm slightly concerned they're gonna hurt themselves getting flung against the glass of the tank like that. Do you guys think there's any real risk from that? Or at they just silly mice being silly and I can let them continue as they are?

Also, for bonus laughs:

Gladio go BOING at the end. Laughing

by MouseLover Tue 19 Feb 2019, 10:28 am

Aww, they are so cute. Tbh I've never heard of mice actually injuring themselves by being thrown off wheels. And they get thrown off wheels a lot. Perhaps someone else has, and they'd disagree with me, but it's not something I'd be overly concerned about.

Not sure how big your tank is, or what else you've got going on in there. But maybe adding a second wheel (maybe a regular/upright one for variety) or more toys/enrichment would make them less obsessed with the saucer wheel Laughing

Bless them.

by lizardtails Tue 19 Feb 2019, 9:19 pm

Thanks for the reassurance! These are my first mice, and I've been a little paranoid about, well. Everything. Rolling Eyes

Like right now, after I got home and moved some stuff around their tank, three of them--the three you see on the exercise wheel actully--all came out to sniff around and see what all I did. But the fourth one, little golden girl Prompto, only poked her head out of the little toilet paper roll she's been hiding in since I got home, and then went right back in and hasn't come out again. Logically, I think she should be okay, since she seemed fine during that brief time she poked out, but emotionally, I'm kinda screaming and want to reach in and pull her out just to make sure, even though I've been trying to keep hands off to let them settle in and be less afraid.

They're in a ten gallon tank with a tank topper attachment for added vertical space. I've been slowly adding more things for them to hide in and play with as I try to figure what they will enjoy most; I'll try that second wheel next, I'll just have to find a better brand than the last upright wheel I used, they couldn't get that one to spin no matter how they climbed around inside it!

by MouseLover Wed 20 Feb 2019, 7:16 am

Some mice just take a bit longer to come out of their shell (or toilet roll in this case) after moving house. It's pretty scary and they want to make sure everything's safe before they come out to explore. Totally normal for a prey animal.

A 10 gallon tank is usually considered a space appropriate for up to 3 mice. For 4 you would be better off with a 20 gallon or more. You're a first time mouse owner, so don't worry about making mistakes, you'll learn as you go. But as you add more toys/activities in their tank, and once you've had them longer, you will start to realise just how crazy active and intelligent mice are, and you'll want to give them more and more space. I honestly get addicted to shopping for or making mouse-toys, so in my opinion the more space the better Very Happy

More space also means they're less likely to squabble over toys, and their tank will smell less/need cleaning less frequently.

There's a thread of pictures of mouse tanks/cages if you need inspiration Smile

decorating mouse cages and watching them interact with toys is so much fun, and one of my favourite things about owning mice Very Happy

Housing Thread Link

by lizardtails Wed 20 Feb 2019, 11:21 am

I already am, lol! I'm eyeballing a 20-gal long Zilla reptile tank--I like the sliding lid it comes with lol. I just need to save up more money to afford it and a couple new toys to fill it with. I was also wondering--should I also fill it out with lots of bedding for them to burrow through and to absorb their mess? Most of you guys don't seem to use nearly as much bedding as I've been encouraged to lol. (I also look forward to putting more little pots of grass in the new tank when I get it--They absolutely loved--by which I mean, destroyed--the last one I put in there. XD

I might repurpose their 10-gallon and the tank topper I got with it for a larger hamster who won't escape lmao.

by MouseLover Thu 21 Feb 2019, 6:52 am

lizardtails wrote:I was also wondering--should I also fill it out with lots of bedding for them to burrow through and to absorb their mess? Most of you guys don't seem to use nearly as much bedding as I've been encouraged to lol.

None of my mice have ever seemed that interested in burrowing, so I just put a couple of inches of litter/bedding on the bottom, and then I give them something nicer to make nests with (usually strips of tissue paper or toilet paper, or strips of fleece if it's colder). However some mice apparently do like to dig/burrow. You could try them with deeper bedding and see whether or not they're interested in burrowing. If they're not interested it seems like a waste to fill the whole tank with deep bedding for them not to use it. You can also make them "digging boxes" if you want Smile

You can get a cardboard box or something to fill with a deep level of bedding for them to dig around in, so you don't have to fill the whole tank really deep.

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