Hot Weather, Hot Mouse

by stephlisa Tue 19 Jul 2016, 4:34 pm

So the temperatures here in England seems to have rocketed up and I'm a bit concerned for Colin with the heat in our house!

I'd like to give him the option of cooling down if he needs it, what are the best ways of doing this? With the English weather this is probably only temporary (I sure hope it is!) but I'd like to do something because if he's anything like me he's probably not used to this sort of heat!

Obviously I want to make sure that its just a small bit of his home and that he has the option for warmth elsewhere should he decide it prefers it! If it helps, he currently lives in a plastic 'tank' with a metal mesh on the top (originally designed for a hamster, but is the equivalent of a 10gal). I tried putting an iceblock against the side of the tank but it just caused condensation and made the bedding rather soggy (I replaced that bit of bedding with some clean dry stuff).

Any suggestions appreciated.

by Artistwolf Tue 19 Jul 2016, 5:03 pm

What exactly is the temperature there? Because I'm going to England and I don't think it gets up to anywhere near what we get here in the US lol
Do you have air conditioning? I'm guessing not? You can use ceramic tiles in the tank, or frozen water bottles wrapped in a cloth or towel or something and placed against the side of your mouse's tank. The tile could also be placed in the fridge or freezer prior to giving it to your mice.

by stephlisa Tue 19 Jul 2016, 5:31 pm

Whoops, managed to delete that bit from my post...indoors the temperature is around 27degC (80F I think), we normally have a fairly constant 20degC (70ish F). Outdoors its been around 30degC (85ish F?) although inside the greenhouse was 50degC (120ishF) which my plants didn't like :-(
I guess its nowhere near what you guys get, but we're not used to extremes so this feels horrible!

Would a ceramic mug work instead of a tile? (Just thinking what I have around the house!)

We have confusing weather at the moment...one day cold windy and rainy, the next sunshine and too much warmth. You never know, maybe it'll snow next week... I'm down in East Anglia if you're going further north there might be very different weather (although today it sounds like everywhere was too hot!). Hopefully the thunderstorms I've seen in the forecast will hit after I've done my volunteering on a nature reserve tomorrow... (Mmm, that went a bit off topic...sorry!)

Edited to add: no air con.. It rarely gets warm enough to make it worthwhile!

by CallaLily Tue 19 Jul 2016, 6:04 pm

A ceramic mug would work just fine. 80F isn't terribly bad for a mouse, so just providing him with the slightly cooler surface of the ceramic should be plenty. If it does get hotter you could refrigerate it. Or better yet, two ceramic mugs so you can swap them out as needed.

by Rodents rock! Tue 19 Jul 2016, 9:36 pm

Yes, a ceramic mug is a great idea! Smile

by timez Wed 20 Jul 2016, 9:54 am

I wanted to do something to the same effect and didnt have a tile and could not make an ice plate thing that i saw on youtube as i don't have any small enough plates - the cup is a brill idea! using this too Smile

by MouseLover Wed 20 Jul 2016, 11:34 am

Yeah it was 34c here yesterday (93 farenheit) and there was no breeze what so ever, it was just horrible Sad

and as we just don't get weather like this often, hardly anyone has air con. I'm not made for this heat, I was dying haha. I prefer winter.

All I could do for my mice, was put a fan on in the room (not near their cage or pointed right at them) and then I gave them a ceramic mug that had been in the fridge. They seemed fine though, they didn't even use the mug lol.

by timez Wed 20 Jul 2016, 5:47 pm

Sparky went into the cup instantlly and then i had to go out - not sure how long he has been in there but he was also in it when i just got home and checked haha - he defenitlly seems to like it (I have not refridgerated it yet tho - prob will tommorow while hes asleep - hopefully he doesnt decide to sleep in the cup haha.

and i agree with you mouselover - i also was dying - and roll on winter!

timez

by AnonymousMouseOwner Wed 20 Jul 2016, 6:33 pm

MouseLover wrote:Yeah it was 34c here yesterday (93 farenheit) and there was no breeze what so ever, it was just horrible and as we just don't get weather like this often, hardly anyone has air con. I'm not made for this heat, I was dying haha. I prefer winter.

All I could do for my mice, was put a fan on in the room (not near their cage or pointed right at them) and then I gave them a ceramic mug that had been in the fridge. They seemed fine though, they didn't even use the mug lol.

Goodness, 93 degrees fahrenheit is not bad for summertime where I live. It is on average 96-110 degrees fahrenheit in the summer here, so hot! Rarely does it gets lower than 93 degrees fahrenheit during the summertime. I have to keep a fan near my mouse's cage running at all times so they don't get too hot. They seem to enjoy it, they move their nest to the side of the cage the fan is pointing on the hottest days. Smile

by MouseLover Wed 20 Jul 2016, 6:58 pm

AnonymousMouseOwner - wherever you live, I wouldn't survive. At least without aircon, a swimming pool and tonnes of ice lollies Razz

by River Wed 20 Jul 2016, 7:04 pm

Jeez. It's usually around 95-96 here, or at least it has been this summer. The hottest it's gotten was 100 something, not higher than 103, though.

by stephlisa Thu 21 Jul 2016, 2:17 am

Colin is loving the chilled mug...he'll snuggle up to it for a few minutes then wander off, then come back, then go away, then cone back, it was very cute :-)

Sadly us English people aren't used to this sort of heat, we get it so rarely! I think I'd never get anything done if I lived somewhere this warm, it just makes me want to sleep all day!

by CallaLily Thu 21 Jul 2016, 8:25 am

It can get 95+ here in summer and it's humid so it often feels much hotter. This Saturday is supposed to be 96F with a "real feel" of 106F. I've lived here all my life and I still can't handle it. I'd be miserable without air conditoning. I much prefer 65-80F.

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