"pet" mouse?

ok, my 10 yr old neice is insisting on keeping a mouse as a pet, she is working with a slim budget so just wondering, what are the bare neccesities needed for keeping a "pet" mouse. i.e. subtrate, food, etc. Would appreciate any input since i am not experienced with keeping mice as either pets or feeders for my bp.

IMO mice are foul pets. They bite, they stink (albeit females are less stinky) they poo and pee on you.. etc.

Rats, however, are awesome pets! Much smarter, friendlier, less stinky, and cuter (IMO)

If she is set on a mouse.. get a smallish wire cage (tight wire spacing or you won't have a mouse for long) Feed 1/2 high quality dog food (Nutro brand 'lite' formula) and 1/2 mix of puffed rice/wheat cheerios, oats, and tri color pasta. Water with a bottle. Bedding - aspen is good, carefresh, yesterday's news.. etc.

Bad pet for sure! The smell alone is brutal!

ok. in your opinion, are hamsters easier to keep, less stinky, and less likley to bite? I really apreciate your replies.

I would never keep a hamster or gerbil.. but they are preferable to mice, yes.

I had a gerbil bite and hang on to my finger.. yes, it bled. I was trimming her nails (I didn't cut too much and make her bleed either!)

I've been bitten by hamsters as they were just walking on my hands/arms.. just random bites as they walk along.. no reason whatsoever. Hams/gerbils don't seem to have much in the way of intelligence.

Both are much less stinky.

if you want a nice tame hamster you will pay a bit more. Black Syrian Hamster. they cost like $20 but worth it as a pet. don't get a dwarf. they are fast and mean.

The ones that were biting were dwarf hamsters.

I think the bigger hams are ugly.. bug eyes and that horrid tail. :bleh:

thanks everyone i think ive talked her into a syrian hamster instead whew!

rats are the way to go. i have two that breed for me and are absolute babies. never bit me or showed aggression. go with a rat. they get bigger, but are worth it. cant go wrong with a pet rat. they are like little dogs. easily tamed and trained.

I liked gerbils the best of all the rodents I 've kept. They had no smell and I could keep them in a group which I liked. Albeit I never tried to handle them much since I knew they're nippy but the entertainment value of just watching them play was way better than the hamster that I could hold.

Guinea pigs are good pets too. Not as smelly, a little bigger needing a little bigger cage, but I enjoyed it when I was little. Now we have pet rats, because they started out as Baby food, but she wasn't eating at the time.


Scabbers is the greatest. FD just loooves him, and even tho' she hadn't been handled much, when Peekaboo escaped, I called and called...no rat to be found. Before leaving the room about 5 min later, she was sitting on the windowsill and let me walk over, pick her up and put her back into her little cage. (Now it's tied down w/a loooooong bread tie wire!). I'm hoping to start breeding them soon for Baby food. :D

I have to second the syrian hamsters. We had a black bear hamster and he was gigantic, but the sweetest thing. He let my three year old pick him up and put him down without the slightest whimper or stress. They're really laid back and tolerant of young children.


That being said, my family kept rats for a while too and they were super sweet. Not as soft (being white lab types) but very docile and loving. There are so many types of rats out there that are just adorable. My sister had me drooling over the little dumbo rats out there!