Handling African Pygmy Dormice
Whether your African Pygmy Dormice can be handled or not will depend on the line and breeder. Ask your breeder how they handle dormice and if they are tame. Despite a good breeder, some animals may never be tame enough to handle and African Pygmy Dormice are best considered as interesting pets to watch rather than play with. Even if your dormice cannot be handled, you may find they will interact with you and let you gently stroke them or will lick maple syrup from your fingers.
One tip to get your new animals used is to remove the foliage in your enclosure. This may seem a bit distressing to them, but will actually get them used to moving about in the open to learn that this is safe. The existence of familiar smells also helps so try not to clean too excessively when you first get them and retain part of their bedding instead of doing a full clean out.
You can also try investing in a bonding pouch, like the ones used for sugar gliders. This will allow your pet to feel secure in a dark place against your skin, whilst becoming familiar with your scent. Always show great care with your dormice, as they are lightning fast!
Never handle your dormouse by its tail since they may shed it. This is extremely painful and is not something that would ever grow back.
Example method
If you want to try to handle your dormouse ideally you should do this in dim light and in an enclosed space. You need to dormice proof whatever you chose and check vertical space as well - such as curtains or furniture. A dressing gown is or something with large pockets is good to wear whilst you handle your dormouse as you can accustom your dormice to hiding in pockets - therefore if they become stressed when being handled they always have a place they feel secure. You will also find that two people make handling much easier since they treat you much like a tree and may hide or cling to bits of yourself you just cannot reach. A favourite place seems to be nestled right at the back of your neck.
If you have to pick one up you can swiftly and gently cup your hands round them, leaving only a small exit by your thumbs. Do not pick up by the base of the tail as this can break. It is easily to tell if a dormice is distressed whilst you are doing this, as they will breath very rapidly or make sudden, frantic movements and jumps.
Dormice can have a sharp bite if provoked so be careful. In the event of an escapee a fine meshed net such as those for fish is useful. Also bear in mind their aversion to light and try dimming the lights and using a torch or some such to direct their movements. We found that a small lamp in a dim room can make an effective barrier for them, as they tend to dive directly away from it, and into the darkest corner. Then try placing a familiar item or nest on the floor for them to flee to.
In conclusion, think of yourself as a tree and make sure the dormice have somewhere they feel safe to retreat to - such as a pocket. Handling them is to be advocated insofar as it will accustom the dormice to you and reduce stress when you are checking their health.
Breeding African Pygmy Dormice
Before beginning this, you must have a set plan and goals. Are you breeding pygmy Dormice indefinitely? If so then first make links with other Dormice breeders to swop animals with to ensure bloodlines remain fresh and prevent inbreeding.
Breeding any animal should only be undertaken after a lot of thought, research and care. It is not a decision to be taken lightly. For more details, see our article on When to Breed Rodents - Ethics and Care.
You must also have enough space to house a larger colony of breeding Pygmy Dormice, and separate habitats in case of dormice territory disputes.
Please bear in mind the high price tag and nocturnal nature of Dormice mean they are not easy to find good homes for. It may be worth creating your own care sheet or directing potential homes to an online resource, as there are still people who feed only hamster food rather than a full and varied diet and who keep in small and otherwise unsuitable enclosures.
In the event of sickness or ill-health you also need space and money for additional habitats and breeding pairs need more space than normal. You may also want to provide a backup for your animals and let potential homes know that if they become unable to keep their dormice then they can be returned to you.
Another important thing to note is that there can be a large variation in the sizes of African Pygmy Dormice in the UK pet trade. It is useful to know whether you have the small or the 'chunky' version of these animals before you begin.
Breeding and Pygmy Dormouse Gestation
Providing their food, space and temperature needs are met the dormice will be happy to breed. A good mix is a trio comprising of two girls and an unrelated male. Breeding is self-regulated and they appear to breed both as the dominant pair and on a colony basis.
When mating, the male will chase the female dormouse around for some time and will sometimes bite the female dormouse sharply on the back of the neck once he has caught her. Matings often occur from 10pm and will involve several bouts and also then a 'mating lock' where the male and female are joined together with the female being pulled around after the male. Some evidence suggests that male dormice have a barbed penis, to prevent another male from obstructing mating.
Matings should be recorded to help identify when litters are due and so you can ensure no major cleanouts during a risky time. Your litter should arrive around 25 days from the time of observed mating.
The Pygmy Dormouse gestation period is between 25-28 days and the female will become less active for the days preceding the birth.
Litters
Litter sizes ranged from 1-6 with eyes opening at around 14 days. Pygmy Dormice pups weigh about 3.5g at birth. Do not disturb the litter for the first 14 days, however tempting, as it may distress the female which could lead her to eat the litter. Note that a single pair the female is more prone to stress than in a colony situation.
If your pygmy dormice pups are abandoned or something has happened to their mother, then you may have attempt handrearing. Unfortunately orphaned Pygmy Dormice, like normal mice, are extremely difficult to handrear. See our guide to African Pygmy Dormice - orphan pups.
Some breeders advocate handling from 14 days; handling pygmy dormice pups will most definitely rely on the temperament of your female. With one female we found it best to leave it until the dormice are 5 weeks of age and leaving the nest of their own accord.
If you then want to try handling the babies, make sure that the parents are also within hearing range as otherwise this will upset them greatly. Young can remain with their parents for the entire span of their lives - although depending on gender this may not be advisable because of the risk of in-breeding. Observe the males as fighting between them can be fatal.
Sexing
Dormice reach sexual maturity around 5 months and are one of the hardest rodents to sex, meaning a lot of breeders sell young as unsexed. See our guide to sexing African Pygmy Dormice. It is important to keep a stable gender ratio and swop adults to prevent inbreeding. Introducing new dormice needs to be done with care.
Mutations
As a relatively new introduction to the pet trade, Pygmy Dormice obviously don't have full colour mutations that you see in more common rodents. However a pied variation has cropped up where an individual has a white splash across the forehead and there has also been occurences of a white stripe in the middle of their tail. The fur colour can range from the normal grey to a more brown colour.
African Pygmy Dormice Environment
African Pygmy Dormice are incredibly active, so it is important to give them an environment with plenty of branches and climbing material. A large arboreal vivarium is ideal for dormice as height is much more important than length.
A breeding pair need more space than a same-sex pair and as they are colony animals, you should try and a minimum of a pair. Please only get a breeding pair or trio if you are able to swop animals with another breeder, to prevent inbreeding.
A 60 x 45 x 45cm Exo-Terra can work well for a breeding pair if offspring are to be homed, otherwise a 3 foot aboreal vivarium makes a good minimum. The dormice vivarium pictured on the right measures 80cm width, 100cm height and 48cm depth and can happily house around 6-10 African Pygmy Dormice. African Pygmy Dormice should always be kept with company where possible so a pair should have a minimum of 60 x 45 x 45cm. Vivexotic do a good range of arboreal vivariums for a reasonable price, that are often available second-hand. You could order a custom vivarium for a good price or could build your own for much cheaper providing you have good DIY skills.
Temperature
Given that these are an African species, they need a temperature of at least 21°C in your Dormouse vivarium to avoid them going into a state of torpor. You need a temperature gauge on the side of your vivarium so you can monitor this.
Nesting
A Dormouse setup will need as many nest boxes as animals in your habitat. Blue tit nesting boxes with small entrances holes are favoured as well as suspended hollowed out coconuts are ideal. However, do bear in mind that there will be occasions when you may need access to these nests in order to clean them.
Filling your vivarium
Branches taken straight from woods and trimmed to size must be dry, good quality woods for your Dormouse setup. Before use place them in the oven for around 20 minutes first to remove any parasites and check you are using wood that has not been collected near a roadside and that is safe for rodent use.
A small solid-surface rodent wheel can be handy, and sisal rope is useful for climbing and hiding small sunflower seeds or peanuts inside the twists. Do not chose nylon or other plastic ropes.
Climbing nets such designed for ferrets are loved, also some wooden parrots toys are useful. Just consider in terms of height, more than breadth and remember that will need cover to hide from you and from light.
Some reptile-friendly artificial branches and leaves can be draped across your vivarium, and twisted into the sisal rope. Exo-Terra backgrounds are an attractive feature for a Dormouse vivarium however many Dormice will nibble on these and may try to nest behind them.
See our article on How to Furnish a Vivarium for an Exotic Rodent for more details on setting up your dormouse vivarium and links to a DIY guide for building your own vivarium.
African Pygmy Dormice Behaviour
African Pygmy Dormice behaviour is very fast and agile, they are lively and enquiring creatures who are hugely active at dusk and dawn. This means they need a great deal of enrichment, nests, climbing and places to hide to reduce the risks of fighting and to keep them content. African Pygmy Dormice are generally a shy rodent although some can grow to become more confident and familiar with humans through regular interaction. This will vary from animal to animal with the majority being too swift and shy so they are best considered an animal to watch rather than interact with due to their levels of stress. Those that can be handled will be keener on climbing over their human and hiding in pockets and are unlikely to stay still and be stroked. Bonding pouches or pockets can be used though care must be taken due to their small size and speed.
African Pygmy Dormice are not keen on being touched although they may be happy taking food from familiar hands. They are extremely curious and do seem fascinated by voices. You can obtain a red light to view during the darker hours when they become most active to allow them to keep their natural routine, as they are very sensitive to the light.
Vocals
African Pygmy Dormouse sounds include an insect-like twitter, an enquiring 'thrumming' sound, and a sharp bark when distressed. The sounds are surprisingly loud for such small creatures with some colonies being extremely vocal.