Which is less gross to breed?

[MrLang]

In terms of gross habits, level of upkeep, 'rodenty-ness', the frequency you get bit... which is least gross/high maintainence to breed?

[notmyfault]

ASFs are by far the least smelly to breed. Followed by rats then mice being the most smelly. For the most part you can do a weekly to bi-weekly substrate change to them, more or less if you think the smell is unbearable.

You can check the general feeders section and read the feeders FAQ for further information.

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[Don]

I refuse to breed mice. I've met people who do and been to facilities where they are bred and they stink, stank, stunk! Rats smell better than mice, but ASF's I can breed in my home without worrying about the strong odor. Contrary to what some people experience, my ASFs rarely bite. I've raised rats before and prefer the smaller size of the ASFs (they don't out grow ball pythons) and the lower odor levels.

[sorraia]

I am not familiar with ASF (never seen them here, they may be illegal for this state...), but between rats and mice, rats are far less stinky and gross. I used to breed (pet) rats, and as long as their cages were of sufficient sized and cleaned at least once a week (maybe with spot cleaning in between - some were even litter trained!), you wouldn't even know they were in the house. I have never personally bred mice, but I used to work in a pet store and my job was taking care of their feeder mouse colony. They needed to be cleaned out daily and still stank.

[LotusCorvus]

Rats all the way, unless you have a super-picky eater (then ASFs are pretty cool if you can find them). I've got a 4-tub rack maybe 4 yards from my bed and I only ever smell them if I've been slacking on cleaning. I've never been bit by the rats I've bred, although they are a bit skittish since I don't spend a ton of time handling them.

[satomi325]

1) ASFs have little to no odor. Because they are a desert species, they don't urinate as much as mice and rats in order to conserve water.
They also have a designated 'potty corner', where they only defecate in that one corner. It makes spot cleaning very easy. They have huge litters, but grow very slow. Can get aggressive or nippy when pups are around.

2) Norway Rats themselves don't smell much. And while they are very clean animals, they do urinate and defecate fairly often, which is what builds up. They need weekly or bi-weekly cleaning. Have moderately sized litters, but grow very fast. Rats have the best temperaments.

3) Mice have a very strong odor. They urinate and defecate very very often. This is the main reason they smell so awful. Male mice mark A LOT. Have moderately sized litters, but grows fast.


I cannot keep mice. They smell terrible. 2 mice can smell worse than my entire rack of rats.
A mouse cage will smell just hours after changing bedding compared to days with rats. It takes about 5 days for my rats to start to smell after a bedding change. Keeping uncrowded cages will help with the odor as well.
ASFs are still by far the best in regard to maintenance and odor.

[DooLittle]

I have had all three. My vote would go to rats for which to go with for breeding. Mice just flat stink. Asf's are nice in that they have "toilet" area, instead of all over. So easier to clean. But they can be bitey, and the babies take a lot longer to grow out. Rats are friendly and cute, and babies grow fast. More cleaning and food than Asf's though.

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[RobNJ]

I've been breeding all 3 for a while now, and as long as you have a well ventilated space and clean in accordance to odor levels, none are gross to keep at all, and are all pretty fascinating.

P.s.- ASF's are not desert dwelling animals.

[TJ_Burton]

I find ASFs and Rats to be nearly neck-in-neck. The only reason ASFs come out as number one for least gross is because they pee in one corner which makes spot cleaning possible.

[MrLang]

Great insight so far, thanks so much!

I think I'll focus more of my research on norway rats. ASFs sound great but I'm not a rodent person and they strike me as faster and nippier. Then again, if I'm not gonna handle them as pets I can just get some diesel leather gloves for working with them. Undecided again...


Do the ASFs jump higher and run around faster? I have a fear of them getting loose while I'm working with them.


If all of my snakes are on frozen and I am basically breeding solely to feed hatchlings and gas my own frozen, does this make a difference? If the ASFs grow slower, will I need less breeding pairs to ensure that I almost always have 15-25 gram rats to feed off?