mice litter

[BaLLPAddICT]

i was so excited to see that my female mouse had her babies but then the next day they were all dead..... did she just abondon them or something? because the caging and everything was perfect for her... should i try to breed her again or no??

[Emilio]

I've never breed mice but from what I've heard and read some female's will eat their first litter.

[BaLLPAddICT]

she didnt eat them though.. they were all just scattered on one side dead

[Emilio]

Did you see them alive or crying out for milk?

[TekWarren]

Something must not have been quite right. Either the babies where defective or the mother was stressed by something. It is not "normal" for mothers to eat their first litter but it happens

[BaLLPAddICT]

i see, and im not sure what happend, i didnt see them very often just checked up on them a few times. i will try to breed her again and hope the next litter will do fine.

[BaLLPAddICT]

when i bought her she was already pregnant.. mistakely by the shop owners.. you think that may have something to do with it?

[frankykeno]

Quite possibly she was too young or not in good physical condition or just plain stressed out and that caused her to abandon her litter. I've gotten preggie rats from stores (either they didn't appear pregnant or in one case it was a rescue due to the living conditions of the heavily pregnant female rat) and it's often not a great outcome. Really young females of any species are often just not equipped to handle a birth. Hopefully she'll do better for you the next time around. Let her rest up a bit, feed her up well and then see how it goes.