Tank size

[Flora]

Hi everyone! I wanted to start a disscussion on what the proper size cage for a colony of females/one male mouse is. I find that there isn't a clear number and most people say that a 10 gallon is fine but I've also heard 20-29 gal. what do you think?

[Robin]

Quite honestly I don’t prefer tanks at all. With how sensitive mice are to dust, having a barred cage with a ton of air flow can really help sweep some of that away. Plus, especially with males, it helps the scent dissipate.

In terms of actual footprint, though, I wouldn’t go smaller than a 20/29g. I have a 10g fish tank and it’s pretty darn small—I can’t imagine fitting more than one mouse in there. Heck, I can barely fit a flying saucer in there. With a 20g I can at least see a male or a small group of females working out.

[daisy]

Apart from the better ventilation, I think cages are also easier to set up for mice, because you can have things hanging from the bars.

The UK mouse groups I've looked at on Facebook tend to say about 70x40cm minimum for mice, which sounds about right to me (though I haven't had mice yet). 10g is so small, I don't see any reason for a pet keeper to go that small (rescues, where they might have lots of single male mice to temporarily house, are a different matter).

[dominobabies]

While a bar cage is preferred, a tank works fine as well! Tanks should be a minimum of 20 gallons for 3 female mice. This at the least gives you the option to give your mice 2 wheels (rather than one).

[Flora]

Agreed btw I think a 29 gallon is great for a pair or a trio I personally think at least 300 sq. in. is good though something around 400-500 sq. in. is better. I am going to be keeping 4-5 females in a 40 gallon breeder when I get them I personally just can't handle the cleaning of wired cages and I havent found many good ones for as cheap as I get tanks since my local pet store sells used ones for $per gal. I am working on a company that sells easy to clean, nice looking proper sized cages for a good price. Though that won't be possible for a few years but I plan to start building my own cages for my animals.