Is my mouse pregnant? Why is she building a nest outside the box?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! You are correct in planning for the arrival of the pups. I recommend separating the male as soon as you are sure that the female is pregnant, because females can get pregnant again very shortly after giving birth. It is important to keep the pups quiet and calm, to prevent the mother from eating them when stressed. You should also not touch the pups until they are about 14 days old. There are several types of nesting material available in pet stores, or you could use pieces of paperCut up into small strips. The pups should be separated from their mother when they are about 14 to 21 days old. At this point they should be able to eat normal adult mouse food. I hope this helps and I’m happy to answer any additional questions you may have!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is hard to know if she is fat or pregnant. If she has been in with a male in the past month she very well could be pregnant. The other female mouse might eat the babies, so I would separate the mice if she does have babies. Best of luck with your little ones!

As long as Jacky isn't pregnant again, you can keep her with the babies for another week. At four weeks, you can separate them. Be sure to house the male and female babies separately before eight weeks of age, or else they will mate with each other. I hope this helps!

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! From the photo, it does not appear that Chino’s abdomen is distended and she seems quite active. It is not uncommon for mice to lose pregnancies and resorb the fetuses, and this may have happened in Chino’s case. I recommend keeping a close eye on her to make sure she is eating and drinking normally and does not appear hunched or unkempt as these may be signs of dystocia or difficulty giving birth. I hope this helps and that all is well with you and Chino!

Your friend’s mice were probably just startled for some reason when you approached them today. I would recommend that you continue to engage and interact with them regularly to help gain their trust. The mice are in a relatively new environment and are probably very prone to stress. I would also recommend separating the pregnant mouse from the other two mice. Her pregnancy and birth can be very stressful and so anything you can do to help relieve her anxieties/stress would be good for her. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

With these pictures, I would guess she is pregnant. Gestation for a hamster is 15-18 days. On the third photo, it appears as if her mammary glands are developed. Usually hamsters start building a nest site in a corner. I would definitely separate her from the male as they can be aggressive during birthing. It is important to allow the female to have a quiet, minimally disturbed environment, especially during their first litter, to decrease the chance of rejection of babies by the mother.

Mice are prolific breeders. Gestation is about 3 weeks and they can reproduce throughout the year having 5-10 litters each year. Separating males from females is necessary to stop breeding. Females can breed at 3 weeks of age, so it is important to separate them prior to this age.