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Excessive running?

1847 Views 12 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  geordiesmice, 
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Not sure exactly what it is like for mice and what is normal behavior. I didn't notice Frankie really running this much in his wheel until yesterday and today. He has been running for a number of hours both days, as opposed to just sometimes before that and not so much consistent.

He seems pretty ok otherwise. He drinks enough water (I think) and he doesn't seem to have runny poo or anything that might indicate he's not feeling well (although I'm not sure I would even know what that looks like either).

Could he just be bored?
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If he only has a wheel to keep him occupied then he could be focusing on that as an obsessive. Lone mice need stimulation or they can begin to self mutilate their fur by scratching too and showing obsessive compulsion to do certain things. If he has a good diet and drinks well and is just active, then I would`nt worry too much, but I would try and give him other things to explore like a cardboard egg box with holes cut out of each side and snip off one of the turrets. He will love that! :) A sleeping box with safe bedding (shredding up some plain toilet paper is fine) on the ground floor under his shelf where it`s nice and dark. Little things like this mean a lot to a lone mouse.
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Not all mice like wheels people who breed mice alot of the breeders do not have any toys in for there mice.
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He would be very sad if you took his wheel away. I have a male that is crazy about his wheel, he loves it so much. When I took it out to clean it and didn't put it back right away he started chewing on his cage trying to get out and then just slumped in a pile of his bedding all depressed. He is pet store derived and is more hyper then my show mice by a long stretch. The show mice are content to just lay around and look pretty but the pet mice have nervous energy to burn. When I came to visit him he got really excited to see me. When I put his wheel back he immediately jumped on it and started spinning. I swear I seen a smile on his face of pure simple joy.
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Yes My male Mamate loves his wheel but hes out grown the old wheel and needs a new one. Im going back out today in search of a wheel lol hes not obsessed with his wheel he goes on his other toys but the WHEEL is his favourite most definately.The doe isnt interested in it at all and just ignores Hermate while hes playing , My mum really enjoys watching themice too as shes poorly it gives her alot of enjoyment.
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I agree. Definately keep his wheel whatever happens!

Geordie, do your multis chew their plastic wheels or do they leave them alone? Just curious really as they say multis love to destroy anything plastic!
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If you can get saucers instead of the wheel it's a different experience for the mice and they enjoy it just as much. For the mice I have with long tails they don't fit in any wheel so I give them saucers instead. They don't seem to be able to outgrow a large saucer and they cost the same as a wheel.
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They left it racingmouse the only thing they have not chewed was the wheel I like the wheels you fit into the cage bars myself, now I have bought a free standing one I bought a glass tank and a hold guard to protect the water bottle they go beserk at night through the day they sleep.I have seen the buck climb on the does back in the old cage and he used to leap and hang upside down on the cage top.There both quite large mice but very fit and agile I wouldnt swap them for gold.The doe has a bent tail it sticks up in the air shes like a dogem car running round the cage she doesnt bother with a wheel.Beth I have not seen the saucers what are they?
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Flying Saucer wheels are the new kids on the block really. They are slighly curved and rotate on an axel that sits on the floor acting as a stand, so the mice run on them as if spinning a saucer on the ground. But I too prefer the bar attached wheels. They don`t take up floor space. Regular Silent spinners are roughly 6.5" inches across, so just big enough for small fancy mice to run in comfortable. My bigger female Betsy fits in one fine, although as beth stated, their tails are much longer and stick up in the air and wobble when they run! :lol:
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Yeah I would not remove his wheel, not sure why I would. I have the wheel that attaches to the bar and not sit on the ground. He basically has the whole bottom half and he has some paper towel down there that he digs up from under his bedding, I put it there to help in that one corner where he pees to soak up but he just digs it up and seems to like it so I keep putting it in there for him. He has a little piece of wood chew toy and a toilet paper roll to sleep in (he sleeps in it a lot) and also my cage has a little ramp with a little platform and the platform has a hole cut in it for his little food bowl. He likes to go up there and dig out all his food pellets and scatter them around the cage (including on the platform) and just nibble around.

I want to add in a rope or something that hangs from the ceiling bars of his cage because the cage is high and the higher space is unutilized so it's sort of a waste to not have something for him to play on. He does love to climb up the walls sometimes and see whats up on the high end of life! lol
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My lone buck is also really hooked on his wheel. He goes on it the whole night it seems... I change up his toys a lot (like every week) so he has plenty to explore! (I have a bin with extra toys, empty closet rolls, boxes etc) and do you know those knibble sticks/crackers you can hang in the cage? They really like that too and have to climb it to eat it! (I buy the one for Hamsters but you have them for Mice too)

My Siamese Mice are actually running/spinning the wheel together, haha too cute, they were trying to run in it together for a few days but would each want to go another direction and yesterday they went in-sinc for the first time, I almost cried :)
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My Siamese Mice are actually running/spinning the wheel together, haha too cute, they were trying to run in it together for a few days but would each want to go another direction and yesterday they went in-sinc for the first time, I almost cried
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I love it when they do that! If you have the wire mesh kind of wheel it's really cool when they figure out that when one mouse stops and hangs on and the other mouse keeps going that they can do loop-d-loops.
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My spiny mice when one is running another wil join her inside the wheel and one will jump on the top of the wheel and try and run on the top lol it is hilarious too watch :D .
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