Rats really an improvement?

I got some mice a couple weeks back to start a breeding colony. Now they dont smell that bad as i can close the door to the room and not have a problem. But i find that its hard for me to even work in that room with them with the smell they produce. Even directly after a cleaning, i still cannot get close to their cage.

Are rats really that much of an improvement over mice?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bc30629

Are rats really that much of an improvement over mice?

---

To me rats smell way better than mice. But you get any number of animals pooping and peeing there is going to be some smell

Yes. Mice have a much stronger smell than rats do.

An exhaust fan in the window may help get some of the bad air out, but as long as you've got a ton of male mice laying their scent down, you'll have to deal with it.

Well put it this way, I can have 65 plus rats in a room and have no problems with a regular weekly cleaning and a midweek freshening up....add in one darn small group of mice and it STINKS in there. Mice...blech! :mad:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by frankykeno

Well put it this way, I can have 65 plus rats in a room and have no problems with a regular weekly cleaning and a midweek freshening up....add in one darn small group of mice and it STINKS in there. Mice...blech! :mad:

---

Yeah i only have three mice right now with many expected soon and i already cannot stand the smell.

I have about 10 cages of mice, with groups ranging from 1.2-1.8, and I only clean once per week. They don't smell to me.

ONE male mouse smells so much worse than 10 male mice in a cage together. It's odd.. I guess they don't scent mark as much when together.

Well I'm going to go against the crowd and say that I really don't notice much difference between the rats and the mice. I have 2 male rats in a cage, and numerous mice in several cages, and they all seem to produce the same amount of odor per cage.

I've got everything in the same small room and it's not too bad with an exhaust fan that blows outside. But I notice it when I'm cleaning the racks. After a week the rat tubs can be kind of smelly, but the mouse tubs make my eyes water. I think the mice must give off more ammonia.

Mark

Maybe it's just me but for me mice smell like mothballs and I cannot stand the smell of mothballs...*gag*

Since I feel that male mice stink...I cycle them in with the females....I have 3 female mice per 10 gall tank....I buy a male mouse for each tank, leave him in there for a few days then feed him off....so far I've had luck with him doing his "job" in the few days that he is in with the female group....He might miss a female or two, but its a trade off for a better smell.