How to Tell if a Mouse is Male or Female
Mice make for fun, fuzzy pets and it’s only natural you’d want to know if you are dealing with a male or female. How else could you name him or her properly? You can tell if a mouse is male or female with a few simple steps and some keen observational skills.
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Instructions
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Hold the mouse in the cup of your hand on its back.
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Look closely near the base of the tail on the mouse’s underside.
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See how close to the tail the genitals are. A female mouse will have her small opening right at the base of the tail while a male mouse will have his farther away from the base of the tail.
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Also note if the mouse has a small swelling, indicating maleness, on his underside near the base of his tail. Not all small swellings will be obvious so don’t use that as the only determination.
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Pay attention to other characteristics that mark a mouse as male. Male mice’s urine stinks to high heaven. Female mice are much more scent-friendly.
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Tips & Warnings
Obviously, a pregnant mouse has her gender determined for you.
You may not be able to determine the gender in very young mice.
- Photo Credit Illustration by Ryn Gargulinski
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Comments
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I have 2 mice that we bought that were girl's acording to the pet shop owner but today the brown one was mating with the black one the brown one is a bit bigger and a bit more livly than the black one but she is not pregnant could the shop keeper have been wrong about the sex?
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bernee
Dec 23, 2009
Another way to tell if your mouse is male or female is to check for nipples. On a baby (pinky or fuzzy) it's easy to tell. After your young mouse has a full coat of fur, if you can easily see the nipples then your mouse is probably pregnant.
