A mouse (Plural mice) is a mammal that belongs to one of numerous species of small rodents.
The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (Mus musculus). It is found in nearly all countries and, as the laboratory mouse, serves as an important model organism in biology; it is also a popular pet. (Non-biologists often use the term “mouse” synonymously with “Mus musculus”). The American white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) and the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) also sometimes live in houses. These species of mice live commensally with humans. Although they may live up to two years in the lab, the average mouse in the wild lives only 3 months, primarily due to heavy predation. Cats, wild dogs, birds-of-prey, and snakes prey heavily upon mice.
Mice can be harmful pests, damaging and eating crops and spreading diseases through their parasites and feces. The original motivation for the domestication of cats is thought to have been for their predation of mice and their relatives, the rats. A mouse trap can also be used to catch mice.
The mouse has bichromatic vision, lacking a photopigment that can detect red light.[1]
There are 38 species in the genus Mus.
Diet
Mice generally live on a herbivore diet, but are actually omnivores: they will eat meat, the dead bodies of other mice, and have been observed to self-cannibalise their tails during starvation. Grasshopper mice are an exception to the rule, being the only fully carnivorous mice. Mice eat grains and fruits for a regular diet, which is the main reason they damage crops.
Mice in laboratory experiments
Additional benefits of mice in laboratory research include the fact that mice are small, inexpensive, and several generations can be observed in a short period of time. The mouse genome has been sequenced, and most mouse genes have human homologs.
Inbred strains
Usually genetically uniform strains of mice are used in experiments. These inbred strains are commonly created by mating closely related mice, such as brothers and sisters, for over twenty consecutive generations. Except for sex differences, two mice belonging to the same inbred strain are nearly genetically indistinguishable. They are also homozygous at all genetic locations. As genetic variation is minimized, experiments using inbred mice have the potential for to be highly repeatable and are especially valuable in genetic crosses. The genotype, phenotype, and genealogy of commonly used inbred mouse strains are well-characterized. The C57BL/6 strain, also known as “Black 6″ is one of the most commonly used strains.
As in inbred human populations, inbred mice often show characteristics that are not common in the wild. This is usually due to the appearance recessive alleles of genes that are masked by dominant alleles in more heterogeneous populations. Sometimes these characteristics may be predispositions towards certain diseases. Other times they may be protections from disease. For instance, the C3H strain develops hardened arteries much less often than ordinary mice. These predispositions vary widely between inbred strains depending. This often facilitates studying particular diseases, though one must carefully select strains for use in disease models based on the susceptibilities each strain exhibits. As a result, one downside of using inbred mice is that they are not representative of “wild” mice and in many cases may make poor models for human biology.
The “nude” mouse
One interesting inbred strain is the nude mouse. Nude mice bear mutations that result in a lack of hair and an impaired immune system, particularly the lack of lymphocyte populations. Nude mice can be used in cancer studies because they do not reject cells and tissue from other mice or even other species, which can be tested in the mouse for tumor-forming capacities.
Knockout mice
Knockout mice are mice which have had a specific gene or genes inactivated, either through deletion or disruption of the portion of the genome containing the gene in question. This enables the study of the function of that gene and genes interacting with it. Knockout mice have aided the study of many conditions including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, obesity, arthritis, and Parkinson’s disease. Some genes are essential for survival; it is impossible to create viable mice without working copies of these genes. To circumvent this, conditional knockout mice have been developed. In these animals, the gene to be studied may be knocked out only in specific tissues or at specific stages in development. Thus, viable mice lacking the gene of interest may be generated.
Biosatellite experiment
In the 2006 Biosatellite project, a group of mice will orbit Earth inside a spinning spacecraft to determine how mice react to gravity equivalent to that of Mars.
Singing mice
In 2006, Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis discovered that male mice and rats actually make high-pitched songs to attract females of their species for mating.
Eyes
Most mice have brown or black eyes but some white mice have pink/red eyes because these white mice don’t have any colours or pigments in them. Red eyed mice were bred not to have any colours in them.
Mice as Feeder Animals
A very common use of mice currently is to feed many species of snakes, lizards, and even tarantulas. Most pet stores now carry mice for this purpose. They breed quickly, grow quickly, are easy to care for, and come in a wide variety of sizes due to this. This makes them suitable for consumption by animals of many different sizes. Mice also seem to be a desirable food item for a very large variety of carnivores. Common terms used to refer to different age/size mice are pinkies, fuzzies, hoppers, and adults. Pinkies are newborn mice that have not yet grown fur. Fuzzies have some fur but are generally not very mobile, hoppers have a full coat of hair and are fully mobile but are smaller than adult mice. These terms also refer to the various growth stages of rats (also see Fancy rat).
Mice specifically bred for pets and feeders are sometimes called fancy mice.
Mice as pets
Mice are now one of the leading rodent pets. Although their main purpose in pet stores is to be sold as snake food, many people buy mice as companion pets. Some common products used are:
Cage- Usually a hamster or gerbil cage, but special mouse cages are now available
Food- Special pelleted and seed-based food is available.
Bedding- Usually hardwoods, such as aspen. Cedar or pine should not be used because it contains harmful liquids that can damage any rodent’s respiratory system. Corn cob bedding should also not be used because it promotes Aspergillis Fungus and can grow mold once it gets wet. It also is quite rough on their feet. A fairly new product in the market is recycled virgin wood pulp, an environmentally-friendly, safe, clean, and efficient product. The most popular is Carefresh bedding. Another high quality litter available is chopped-up dried corn cobs.
Some benefits of having mice as pets are
Minimal shedding and allergens
Entertaining and affectionate
Inexpensive
Clean (contrary to popular belief)
Socially self-sufficient (when in a group of other mice)
Mice are quite intelligent given their size
There are, however, some disadvantages to having pet mice
Small and quite fragile (not as easy to handle as a dog or a cat)
Nocturnal
Frequent eye infections under stress
Easily subject to disease when without optimal care
Frequent reproduction
Short lifespan
The male’s urine gives off an unpleasant odor
Trivia
An estimated half a million mice live on the London Underground.
Two mice of opposite sexes can produce up to 5,000 descendents in a year.
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