What Is a Fancy Mouse

A few years ago I too was asking people, “what is a fancy mouse?”. It sounded like a type of mouse that was, well, fancy. Fancy meaning something that is special, kind of unique and better than others.

In fact the term fancy mouse is used for domesticated mice. They look a lot like normal common house mice, but come in a wide variety of colors, and are more tame. I touched on some of these areas on the front page.

They are also sold in volume for the purpose of feeding snakes and other reptiles. But we won’t focus on that here, we will look at the more humane side of them being pets.

What Is a Fancy Mouse like as a Pet?

Well, they are bred to be pets, so they are tame and friendly generally speaking. Obviously there are some with different personalities that may not be as nice as others. But this is the same with any pets, right?

I have owned many over the years and I think they make great pets. The females are friendly and affectionate, while the males are a bit more boisterous but more relaxed.

If you are experienced owning rats you will have no problems owning mice. They are however two very different species of rodent. Rats are a lot more active, obviously a lot bigger, and will play with you more.

Your friendly little mice however are a bit more inclined to run around and do their own things. This isn’t such a bad thing, but it’s important to know your not getting a lap pet here.

Fancy Mice at Shows

Did you know that there is quite a large following for mice being shown at shows? They evaluate a persons mouse by looking at how all their characteristics are developed, and rating them.

They look for a number of things for the best presented little rodents, these are as follows:

• Long slender body
• Long, clean head
• Not too pointy of a nose
• Large, prominent eyes
• Large ears with no creases
• A nice tail with no kinks

So an all round well maintained presentation. I wouldn’t recommend anyone joins, it’s quite a serious activity. You cannot just take your prized pet and hope for a rosette.

However, if you are interested in learning more about the shows, or want to attend one in the UK – there is more info over at the Mouse Club.

Thinking of Owning Mice?

I covered the details of mice breeding here, or you can easily buy some. If you have a warm, dry space for a cage and want to own some I would recommend it. There is not a lot of risk, as long as you are a responsible person.

There is a great deal of fun to be had with mice as pets, there are carious pros and cons as with any pet. But the pros outweigh the cons, and you’ll have some experiences to remember.

You’ll find plenty of information within this site, so feel free to have a look around. If you have any questions that you think are not answered, please leave a comment and I will answer you in no time at all.