Harvice Mice Breeding for Release

[citychick]

Hi Everyone,

I am a member on an exotic pet forum (dont ask why, when I have a jack russell and a rabbit!), there are fancy mice breeders out there and Harvest Mice are readily available. I wanted to know what the situation is with breeding for release of this stunning little critters?

Thanks
Lauren

[posie]

..Hello...Harvest Mice are not legally protected in Britain....Don't know about any other issues though..

[STYRBJORN]

Far from being protected, they are included in the mammalian pest species on General Licence. As such they can legally be trapped and humanely dispatched. Releasing them on farmland would not be a good idea.

[paulthomas]

I'd advise you check with Natural England on the legal situation. The other thing you need to assess is suitable habitat. Harvest Mice have fairly particular needs so you really need to assess that the release site is suitable otherwise they'll probably just die. Suitability will include

- availability of suitable foods
- availability of suitable grass species for nest sites (only a few species are suitable)
- is the site large large enough to hold a self-sustaining population of Harvest Mice?
- will the site be managed in future years in a way that ensures that the habitat continues to be favourable for Harvest Mice?

[Alex90]

Which forum is it you are a member of? EKF?

I am involved with a harvest mouse breeding and release project with a local wildlife centre.

You can't simply buy any old harvest mice form a private breeder and start releasing them into the wild(well you can... but it would be irresponsible). a lot of the harvest mice kept in captivity arent british lines they are form mainland europe, i have imported several species from europe before but never for release. Having been involved in the exotics fancy in the uk for several years i know for a fact hardly any breeders keep records of their harvest mice and i believe they are regularly inbred. You should really start with wild caught stock or stock from a known wild origin. You should also keep accurate records of each individual animal.

I would also recommend breeding at least 5 generations of harvest mice from your lines before even considering releasing any... this way an genetic flaws will hopefully pop up before you release any unhealthy animals into the wild... such lines should be ceased immediately.

When it comes to releasing .. the mammal society are good to talk to and can either help themselves or put you in touch with the right people... i work with my local countryside rangers... you could possibly do the same. You need to seek the advice of people who know the area and its best to seek advice on which locations would be suitable for a release.

Natural england arent really the people to talk to about this... they can advise you on the legal aspects although i can assure you there are no issues as long as you are responsible in your actions... oh and only conduct releases with the permission of the landowners... i can't imagine farmers will be too happy if someone comes along and releases 100 harvest mice in one of thier crop fields.

If you need any further advise, i'll do my best to help but i'd still recommend seeking advice from the mammal society of such like.

Alex

[citychick]

[quote=Alex90;646532]Which forum is it you are a member of? EKF?

I am involved with a harvest mouse breeding and release project with a local wildlife centre.

You can't simply buy any old harvest mice form a private breeder and start releasing them into the wild(well you can... but it would be irresponsible). a lot of the harvest mice kept in captivity arent british lines they are form mainland europe, i have imported several species from europe before but never for release. Having been involved in the exotics fancy in the uk for several years i know for a fact hardly any breeders keep records of their harvest mice and i believe they are regularly inbred. You should really start with wild caught stock or stock from a known wild origin. You should also keep accurate records of each individual animal.

I would also recommend breeding at least 5 generations of harvest mice from your lines before even considering releasing any... this way an genetic flaws will hopefully pop up before you release any unhealthy animals into the wild... such lines should be ceased immediately.

When it comes to releasing .. the mammal society are good to talk to and can either help themselves or put you in touch with the right people... i work with my local countryside rangers... you could possibly do the same. You need to seek the advice of people who know the area and its best to seek advice on which locations would be suitable for a release.

Natural england arent really the people to talk to about this... they can advise you on the legal aspects although i can assure you there are no issues as long as you are responsible in your actions... oh and only conduct releases with the permission of the landowners... i can't imagine farmers will be too happy if someone comes along and releases 100 harvest mice in one of thier crop fields.

If you need any further advise, i'll do my best to help but i'd still recommend seeking advice from the mammal society of such like.

Alex[/QUOTE

Alex - how did you source your mice? Where would I go about sourcing strictly native HM?

Thanks

Lauren

[Alex90]

I got them from several sources, private breeders and a few wildlife parks. They don't generally deal with private keepers but knowing the right people can be very useful... once you have one or two good contacts you will find it very easy to source unrelated animals. I sometimes move on surplus animals to other breeders but i doubt i'd have any animals available until the end of the summer/autumn.

Think it might be advisable to start with captive stock and just get used to keeping them, they are very easy to care for in comparison to most "exotics" just a case of getting the housing right then feeding and watering them.

Which forum is it you are a member of?

[STYRBJORN]

As I said. Releasing mouses on agrarian farmland will result in annoyed farmers, dead mouses and slaps upside the head for the releasers.

Now, if you have a neighbour who plays loud music late at night and has a veggie patch, you have the ideal revenge scenario . . . Amazing how much lettuce 5 generations of hungry mouses can eat in one night. Just don't let anyone see how much lettuce you now have in your fridge!

Why is the plural of "house" not "hice"?

[solus]

For much the same reason that the plural of "mouse" is "meece"!!

Oh... and if you came from the very poshest of upper classes your mansion would in fact be your "hice" and it'd cost you "thysands of pynds" in upkeep!

[RKB]

Technically it is illegal to just turf out any animal under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. It's deemed abandonment and cruelty. So it would need to be as a proper considered release (and this would need a lot of pre- and post- release monitoring). This is not a simple matter and you'd need to really research this - introductions cost a lot of time and money.

I'd strongly urge you to forget the idea. Harvest Mice are not especially rare, and they don't really need 'introducing' anywhere. If the habitat is right for them, and can support them, then they will be there already or can colonise. If it isn't then you'll be releasing animals that are going to quickly die, which is cruel.

Also, there might already be harvest mice present, so your releasing more makes it harder for the residents due to increased competition. Again, the net result is dead mice.

If you want to keep and breed harvest mice as pets then that's up to you, but it is unnecessary and likely cruel to start releasing them. It wont work in establishing a population, and could harm one that is already there, and will almost certainly harm the animals you're releasing. Taking wild animals out of a breeding population and into captivity for this purpose it pretty unethical.

Also, be aware that harvest mice often go brown in captivity, so don't stay ginger for long.