Advice for new mouse.

by ThreeArmedStar Tue 23 Mar 2021, 10:47 pm

Hello, I am new here and I hope I put this in the correct forum area.

Last summer I bought three mice sisters and just this past weekend I was at the pet store and saw a three legged mouse in the albino mouse section. I instantly fell in love and a worker overheard me talking about getting her and gave me her for free. Due to my social anxiety I was afraid to bring up wanting a companion for her but figured I could try to bond her to my 3 mice at home. So we took her home and named her Star. I did research on how to get mice to bond before trying it.

It went well the first few days but it seems the alpha of the sisters ended up not liking Star and bit her enough to draw some blood tonight (it’s a small bite, nothing serious). As soon as I noticed I removed her and put her back into the cage we originally had her in the first night we brought her home.

Now my dilemma is, should I go back to the store this weekend and get another mouse from the tank she was in and see if they remember each other/bond? Or should I keep her alone?
She wasn’t the aggressor before, but I’m worried she may be bullied again if we get a new mouse for her, and I really don’t want to stress her out anymore, but I also don’t want her to be lonely.

I’m really torn on what to do because I want to do the best for her!!! Please give me all and any advice possible, even your personal tips on bonding if you recommend me getting an old tank mate of hers.

Thank you!!!!

by ApricotWinter Wed 24 Mar 2021, 12:33 pm

Hmmm. First, I am not a professional, this is only my experience and opinion. Bouncy

When I introduce new mice, I usually do a full cleaning of the cage, and I disinfect everything. Then I redo the cage so that it is new to all the mice. I usually put the new mouse in first, for about 5 minutes, then I add the other mouse/mice. If that doesn’t work, and they fight. Then I usually try doing small sessions (5-10 minutes) together in a play area (Neutral territory) then I gradually increase the time they are together and eventually move the new mouse into the cage after cleaning everything off. I hope this helps!

by River Wed 24 Mar 2021, 1:09 pm

I usually do the same as Apricot. Smile

Since she's already been bitten hard enough to draw blood once, though, I'd personally do a more 'extensive' introduction. It's called the stage method and it's usually for hard to introduce mice. It can be extended or shortened as needed.

You start on neutral territory with food and water, and nothing else. This can be a bathtub. Keep them there until they end up in a cuddle pile. This can take an hour or so but it won't last too long, usually.

After that, put them in a small cage. Still no furniture, just food and water. I'd leave this for 12 hours. All conflicts should be fixed during this period. When the group is calm and relaxed, you can move on. If they're still bickering a bit, then go back a step or extend this step.

Depending on how many different 'enclosures' you have and how well they're doing, you can keep slowly upgrading (spending more time in each larger enclosure) or just go into the main enclosure at this point. However, I'd keep it sparsely furnished and add only hides with multiple exits (like bendy bridges for example) after 24 hours. Slowly build up until everything is back to normal.

The main issue with this method is that it can tempt you to try it forever. A lot of people keep going back a step over, and over, and over when it's never going to work. However, I think this works with does almost every single time. Take it very slow. If they fought once, they remember that, and bonding is going to be harder.

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