[*Lisa*]

I'm a bit confused right now.

I have 4 young females housed together who had a male in with them until about 5 weeks ago. They all (or so I thought) dropped litters around the 12-14th November. There were over 20 babies which the mothers have now weaned. Today I went to check on them as some of the babies will be going to new homes in the next week or so, and there was a litter of day-old pinks. They weren't there yesterday!

I know mice can have slightly longer gestations depending on conditions, but the others gave birth 3 weeks ago and they have not been with a male for 5 weeks, as I removed him as soon as the does started to look pregnant.

I guess the litter speaks for itself and that doe must have had an extended pregnancy, but does this happen often?

 

[SarahC]

no chance of a pregnancy being extended for as long as 5 weeks.Could one of the babies have mated her or is one of the does really a buck?

 

[*Lisa*]

The babies are only 3 weeks old. Plus the litters were sexed and males culled at 2 weeks old. There should only be females in there now.

I will check all 4 adult "does" again, just to make sure. :?

edit - just checked and all 4 adults are 100% female - nipples and not a scrotum in sight. I really don't understand what's happened.

 

[Cait]

It's likely that a wild mouse has managed to get to the does and mate with one or more of them.

 

[SarahC]

hmm.Well I would guess then that she littered before the others,the babies were eaten and she was remated by the buck and has now littered again :? But then that wouldn't add up if the buck was removed a full 5 weeks ago.Christmas miracle :wavesanta

 

[*Lisa*]

The cage mesh is too small for an adult to get through, so I don't think it could've been a wild buck getting in. Unless he managed to fit just his manly parts through somehow. :lol:

The buck was definitely out some time before the first litter was born on November 12th, but maybe it wasn't quite 5 weeks. I guess if it was 4 weeks, she might have just had a slightly longer pregnancy than normal. That's all I can think of.

I'm going to call her Mary.........

 

[Cait]

It's 19 days today since the first litter was born, so if the buck was only taken out just before that then he could easily be the father to an average gestation litter. You say there were around 20 babies, which is what you'd expect from 2 or perhaps 3 litters - the other doe just seems to have conceived later.

 

[Jack Garcia]

The cage mesh is too small for an adult to get through, so I don't think it could've been a wild buck getting in. Unless he managed to fit just his manly parts through somehow. :lol:

Don't laugh. This is possible and is known to have happened with rats.

 

[moustress]

The girls sometimes help getting Romeo in and out of the palace. Unless the cage top is heavily weighted or latched it is quite possible. I have the half-wild meeces to prove it!

 

[*Lisa*]

The cage is similar to the Ferplast mini duna - so the only access is through the top hatch. I have visions now of the girls forming a mouse pyramid so Romeo can reach the hatch to make good his escape! :lol:

The buck was out of the cage a good while before the first litter was born on November 12th. I would have estimated 2 weeks, but maybe it was only 1, which would give her a gestation of 26 days - still within limits I suppose. Either way, it was an unexpected surprise!

 

[Jack Garcia]

If all the babies are agouti, you know it was a wild male.