If you’re seeking rodent removal services for your home or commercial property, you may first want to learn more about the mice you’ve found living in your walls or under your floorboards. Will they cause harm to you or your family? Are they having babies? If they have their young in your home, how do they care for them? Learn the answer to these questions and more below.

How Many Babies Do Mice Have?

Mouse mothers gestate their babies for about three weeks and give birth to up to 14 pups. They can mate again right after they give birth, and if they’re healthy, they can typically undergo about 10 pregnancies each year. Outdoor mice may only live for 12 months or less, but in the coziness of your home where they are not easy prey for larger animals, they can live for three years. You can see how the number of mice in your home can quickly add up — especially if your house is accessible, warm, and contains material for them to create nests for their young. Rodent services may be necessary when dealing with the many generations of mice that may be living in your home! 

If you’ve ever cared for a newborn, you understand how stressful and vulnerable a time this can be. Newborn mice, like human babies, are born with very few defences against the outside world and they are totally dependent on their mothers and other adult mice to care for them until they can do so themselves. Newborn mice are also born completely blind and deaf. They develop these senses later as they grow.

How Do Mice Mothers Raise and Provide for Their Young?

Mice are intentional and careful about the way they raise and care for their young. They enlist the help of their partners as well as other female mice to feed and look after the babies as soon as the little ones are born. 

Raising and Caring for Mouse Babies

In contrast to many mammals, female mice expect the fathers of their young to help protect and provide for the babies. They use pheromones to exercise control over the male mice’s behaviour as well as vocal signals to effectively tell the fathers how they can help. Female mice also often choose another female mouse to help them care for their young. If a pregnant female mouse has a pregnant friend, they will often team up and become a parental unit for their collective young. 

Feeding Mouse Babies

As newborn mice are so vulnerable, they rely on their parents for food. Like other mammals, they drink their mother’s milk until they are about three weeks old. At this point, they can eat solid foods and venture out of their nest to help forage for seeds, nuts, crumbs, and the occasional small insect. 

Get In Touch With Truly Nolen for Rodent Removal 

Though it may be heartwarming to see a mouse mother care for her new babies, it’s not a good idea to try to relocate them by yourself. Do not attempt to hold, touch, or pet the babies as this will distress both them and the mother. If you’ve found a baby mouse that seems to have been abandoned, try to locate the nest and return it to its family. If you’re sure it’s been abandoned, use gloves to put it in a safe, warm place and call a professional to determine how to care for it.

It’s best to seal any cracks in your home or other entry points that may serve as doors for mice long before they make your house their new residence. Mice, though they can be cute, can carry rodent infections and cause damage to your property. Call Truly Nolen or schedule your rodent inspection for mouse-proofing as well as safe, effective removal as soon as possible!