What’s a safe temperature range for keeping mice outdoors?
Assuming you mean domestic/pet mice? They are poorly conditioned for outdoor life.
Mine go down to 50F in my basement with no draft.
They eat much more food at lower temps and litters are proportionately smaller as temp goes down.
Any older/weaker mice will succumb at lower than optimal temperatures so I 'refresh' my colony prior to winter.
Different strains of domestic mouse will have different tolerance levels.
Note: I catch wild mice outside in my traps even when the temp is 0 degrees F.
Temperture are no the only thing you need to worry about outdoor, predators, other mice that can transmit diseases and parasites etc are and it far more problematic if you keep those as feeders.
Ideal temps for optimal production is mid 70's, below 55 and above 80 the production will drop.
I keep my mice in my unheated but attached garage in winter, & while the temperatures get pretty cold at times (42-45 is about the lowest I've seen), keep
in mind that they have WELL-insulated cages and whenever I clean them I run a portable heater so it's not below about 50*. I'm not up north so much of my
winter isn't that severe, but we do get some snow & below freezing temps. here. When I cleaned them today my garage is 50-55* & they are reproducing fine-
but like I said, creatively-insulated caging makes all the difference.
I'd NEVER keep domestic mice or rats literally "outside"...just won't work (for reasons already given above). And I'd sure never keep wild mice either, fyi.
Last edited by Bogertophis; 01-13-2019 at 06:55 PM.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Jbabycsx
