Breeding Mice!

**Dionythicus** · 06-11-08, 09:16 PM

I love my mice, even though they are feeders. There are certain colours and coats I prefer and have been hoping to produce. When you feed off most of the pinks, it's hard to tell what you're actually producing. LOL What I ultimately would like to breed are long hair satin tans (blk/tan, choc/tan, dove/tan, etc). On my last round of creating new breeding groups I put together my favourite male, a chocolate and tan (named Monocle for the patch around his left eye), a choc/tan female, a silver and white female who's blind in one eye and what I think is a dove and white female. I already have long hair genes throughout my colony, but I thought I had lost the satin gene because I haven't seen one in a year. In another group this time, though, a satin RY popped up and in Monocle's group I got four satins in this litter, including what looks like a long haired choc/tan!!! Since I need more fuzzies and hoppers than pinks now, I'm going start breeding specifically for what I want. I can let them get big enough to see coat and colour before I cull, so I'll be able to have an entire colony of long haired satin tans!! I'm keeping the satin choc/tan and her PEW satin brother. I'll be putting together groups of satins, long hairs and tans to see if I can get a whole colony of what I want. Yea!!!

**FireDrake** · 06-18-08, 05:31 PM

I love the tan pattern ones, I want to find some to breed into mine.

I started with some petco mice and some mice I got from a frozen rodent supplier and started getting a lot of satins but they were all orange or cream and white, recenlty I have been getting more different colors and now have a satin silver mouse, just stunning!. The most recent litter I grew up has long hair satins as well! This is so exciting for me!

Once I raise a couple litters I usually know what to expect from a pairing, and I keep one colony where I just take the pinks without worrying about growing them because I know they will be albinos and the orangey spotted with or without satin.

I'm leaning more towards holding back dark solid colors now, with the goal of an all black satin hopefully.

It's fun!

Originally Posted by Dionythicus

I love my mice, even though they are feeders. There are certain colours and coats I prefer and have been hoping to produce. When you feed off most of the pinks, it's hard to tell what you're actually producing. LOL What I ultimately would like to breed are long hair satin tans (blk/tan, choc/tan, dove/tan, etc). On my last round of creating new breeding groups I put together my favourite male, a chocolate and tan (named Monocle for the patch around his left eye), a choc/tan female, a silver and white female who's blind in one eye and what I think is a dove and white female. I already have long hair genes throughout my colony, but I thought I had lost the satin gene because I haven't seen one in a year. In another group this time, though, a satin RY popped up and in Monocle's group I got four satins in this litter, including what looks like a long haired choc/tan!!! Since I need more fuzzies and hoppers than pinks now, I'm going start breeding specifically for what I want. I can let them get big enough to see coat and colour before I cull, so I'll be able to have an entire colony of long haired satin tans!! I'm keeping the satin choc/tan and her PEW satin brother. I'll be putting together groups of satins, long hairs and tans to see if I can get a whole colony of what I want. Yea!!!

**Dionythicus** · 06-18-08, 08:56 PM

Ain't it neat to get all the unexpected colours and coats? It's like hidden hets with corns. Most of the satins in my line are from the orange ones I got over a year ago. My mouse pusher calls them OJ's (orange juice). I'm going to be making some changes in my colony soon, since one group has only produced one small litter in two months. They'll be replaced by the new satins and a few pretties that I've kept back. I have one little right now with a satin dad that I'm hoping will produce a few more satins.

I'd love to see pics of your satins and LH's!

**FireDrake** · 06-19-08, 09:42 AM

Sure thing, I have been meaning to take photos of my newest ones anyways! I never thought I would be so excited over snake food!

The funniest thing is, I am babysitting a bunch of snakes for a friend of mine, and she brought their own mice, as I pick through them I see all the colors and patterns I wish I had, there are lots of tan pattern ones in there.... too bad they are frozen!

Originally Posted by Dionythicus

Ain't it neat to get all the unexpected colours and coats? It's like hidden hets with corns. Most of the satins in my line are from the orange ones I got over a year ago. My mouse pusher calls them OJ's (orange juice). I'm going to be making some changes in my colony soon, since one group has only produced one small litter in two months. They'll be replaced by the new satins and a few pretties that I've kept back. I have one little right now with a satin dad that I'm hoping will produce a few more satins.

I'd love to see pics of your satins and LH's!

**Dionythicus** · 06-19-08, 06:02 PM

Yeah, I see all kinds of pretty ones in the f/t that I get. I'll try to get pics of my newest babies, too.

**FireDrake** · 06-19-08, 09:40 PM

Here are all my satins...

In the first photo are my original three satin babies that I found, the mostly white one with red eyes is Smokey, my only male satin currently. The two others are FireBrat and FireBaby

2nd pic: Two more females, Diamond and Marigold, in a different colony just starting out

3rd: my silver baby, Mercury! I was hoping this would be a male, no such luck.

4th: Mercury and Gold, sisters, Smokey is their dad.

5th: Magpie, the litter she was in is the first I have gotten with black in it, I was again hoping this one would be male...

6th and 7th: the two long hairs... The satin is Panda and the normal is Wookie. They are siblings to Magpie and Smokey is their father too. Thier mother has just had another litter, I am crossing my fingers for a nice male out of there to hold back!

There is a fair bit of inbreeding going on here... I keep on looking for new stock but nothing in the petstores has caught my eye and the local mouse breeders wont sell to someone who has snakes!

**Dionythicus** · 06-19-08, 10:39 PM

Mercury is gorgeous!! I'm hoping for a silver satin someday. I want all satin long hairs (LH) for breeding, just cuz I like 'em. I've been socializing some of my new keepers so they are less nervous about handling. One is a beautiful LH silver agouti, non satin - oh, I wish she was! She looks like a gerbil, but then her dad looks like a teddy bear hamster (hence his name, Hammie). The grandfather was my all time fave mouse, a LH black named Teddy. Another of my faves is a short hair silver and tan, named Bluebell. Then there's the PEW LH satin male and his red eyed choc/tan LH satin sister. It looks like there are some OJ's in the new litter sired by my OJ male. I'll be keeping those back. I always end up with more males than females, but that's more snake food. I'm trying to decide who to match up in groups since I only have 8 trays and I don't want to get into 10 gals all over. They're all so cute!! I'll get pics soon.

**FireDrake** · 06-20-08, 04:27 PM

I have three 10 gallons and a 20... would rather have a rack, but right now this is it! I have another larger tank, maybe 50 or bigger I am thinking of starting rats in because I keep ball and blood pythons too, but I have always loved rats, not sure if I can do them in.

I want some agoutis too...and a silver agouti! Wow! Would love to see that one!

Originally Posted by Dionythicus

Mercury is gorgeous!! I'm hoping for a silver satin someday. I want all satin long hairs (LH) for breeding, just cuz I like 'em. I've been socializing some of my new keepers so they are less nervous about handling. One is a beautiful LH silver agouti, non satin - oh, I wish she was! She looks like a gerbil, but then her dad looks like a teddy bear hamster (hence his name, Hammie). The grandfather was my all time fave mouse, a LH black named Teddy. Another of my faves is a short hair silver and tan, named Bluebell. Then there's the PEW LH satin male and his red eyed choc/tan LH satin sister. It looks like there are some OJ's in the new litter sired by my OJ male. I'll be keeping those back. I always end up with more males than females, but that's more snake food. I'm trying to decide who to match up in groups since I only have 8 trays and I don't want to get into 10 gals all over. They're all so cute!! I'll get pics soon.

**Dionythicus** · 06-20-08, 07:01 PM

Your pics are so much better than mine, but here goes....

1. PEW satin buck, possibly LH
2. choc/tan broken satin doe, possibly LH
3. choc/tan broken buck, Monocle (father to the above)
4. silver agouti? LH doe
4. pale silver/tan doe

**FireDrake** · 06-20-08, 07:38 PM

Very nice! You're right the agouti looks like a gerbil, how cute!

Since I had such rotten luck in the snake department this year, all my genetic tinkering urges are being focused on my mice.... I have two litters of pinkies I am watching closely for more interesting colors...

I'm glad I'm not the only one!