The hazel dormouse is little rodent, similar to a mouse, but with a more attractive, fluffy tail. This animal lives in the wild, but in Lately he was increasingly kept at home. How to take care of such an animal? What do you need to know about it?

Dormouse animal: characteristics of a rodent

In nature, there are two types of these rodents - ground dormouse and tree dormouse. The ground one is more like a mouse familiar to everyone, and the woody one looks like a squirrel. Both those and others get along well next to a person, if they are created the most comfortable conditions for life. At the same time, it is very important to remember the cleanliness in the cage: dormouse, despite the fact that they are very small animals, pollute their home very quickly, and this, in turn, leads to an unpleasant smell in the room.

Now a little about the appearance of this animal:

Dormouse is a nocturnal animal, so it will sleep most of the day. Such animals do not live long - from 3 to 5 years.

It is very interesting to watch the dormice moving along the branches of trees, because this little rodent is very dexterous and is able to jump a distance of 10 m.

Where to buy such an animal

hazel dormouse- not such an exotic animal, so you can buy it at any pet store, as well as at the bird market, or even from the hands of breeders. On the Internet, you can often find ads from individuals for the sale of this rodent.

By the way, when buying dormouse from your hands, you need to be careful: it is possible that this particular individual was caught in the forest, respectively, there is a risk that it can bite its owner and infect him with some kind of infection.

But if the baby is very shy and at the same time completely non-aggressive, which means that he was already born in captivity, and this one can continue to be taught to hands.

On average, you will need to pay about 1000 rubles for a sleepyhead.

Before buying the animal itself, you need to take care of its future home in advance. For Sonya, a cage measuring 100x200x50 cm with many ladders, shelves and houses inside it is perfect. Also, you can install ropes in the cage so that the animal climbs on them, and a running wheel, which all rodents like without exception.

Round cages for these animals are not suitable at all.. Sonya is best kept in a standard square or rectangular cage. It is important that it be spacious and with many attributes for active life animal.

At first, the hazel dormouse will show maximum caution to its new home, and this is normal, so you should not get upset and think that something is wrong with the animal. Over time, it adapts to the cage, examines all the ladders, takes a closer look at the houses and the wheel, after which it will begin its usual active lifestyle. Hazel dormouse is very active by nature, so very soon she will start climbing ropes, going down the established ladders, then going up, and this will be her main hobby.

Attention: you should not let the animal out of the cage and let it run around the apartment or house. These are very agile rodents, so it will be very difficult to catch them, and there is also a high risk that the dormouse can get stuck somewhere, gnaw something or be caught by other pets (for example, a cat).

The hazel rodent feels great alone, but it can also be kept in pairs. It should be remembered that such animals within the same cage can live either in pairs or as one family. Planting two pairs or even two families of rodents on one territory is fraught: hazel dormouse will not tolerate competition and will endlessly fight among themselves.

These rodents are very prolific, therefore, when pairing them, you need to be prepared for a constant offspring. If there is no goal of breeding hazel dormouse, then all individuals should be kept separately from each other.

Sony - animals are not the cleanest, therefore, in addition to daily cleaning of the litter, it will be necessary to carry out regular weekly cleaning of the entire cage, which involves washing the bottom, feeders, rods.

What do dormice eat

Sony nutrition almost no different from the diet of any other rodent, it consists of the following products:

It is very important that the animal always has clean and fresh water, so the drinker should be cleaned and filled every day.

Every day, it is enough for Sonya to eat about 40 grams of food, so these animals are completely unwilling to overeat and gain weight.

A couple of times a week this animal can be treated with special treats., For example:

  • ground gray loves ordinary bread and herbs;
  • woody redhead will like regular eggs.

A few words about rodent reproduction

These animals reach puberty very quickly, and as early as 1 month old they can be reduced. They bring offspring only once a year, and this usually happens in the spring. Pregnancy of the female takes exactly one month, after which babies are born in the amount of 10 pieces approximately. Since the dormouse is a mammal, the young will feed on mother's milk. The feeding period is 3 weeks, after which the grown-up babies switch to independent nutrition. After a week of self-feeding, babies become adults and can bear offspring themselves.

It is interesting that such rodents take a very responsible approach to raising their offspring, in which not only the mother, but also the father participates. So, such a family can be considered complete in all respects.

In winter, the animals hibernate, which is why the cages should contain a small warm house with sawdust and rags inside. Also, the cage itself in the cold season should be moved to warm room. Thus, the rodents will sleep for about 3-4 months, and then, in the spring, they will definitely bring offspring.

In the period before hibernation and after it, you should be more attentive to the nutrition of the animal: it should be more nutritious and balanced.

Class: mammals.
Squad: rodents.
Family: dormouse.
Genus: The classification includes 9 genera.
Habitat in nature: in nature, there are 28 species of dormouse, most of which live from North Africa and Asia Minor to Altai, Northwest China and Japan, some species of the genus Graphiurus are isolated in Africa south of the Sahara, and are distributed in Europe to Southern Scandinavia. Most dormice are forest animals, preferring broad-leaved and mixed forests, they can be found in the forest-steppe regions and in the mountains, where they settle at an altitude of up to 3500m. In Russia, there are 5 species of these rodents.
Lifespan: in nature 2-3 years, at home 4-6 years.
Averages: body length 8-20cm, tail 4-17cm. Weight depends on the type of animal, but does not exceed 70g.

Description
Dormouse is a small and medium rodent, with terrestrial forms more like mice, and arboreal ones like squirrels. The muzzle is sharp or slightly rounded (depending on the species), the ears are small, rounded, the eyes are bulging, round, large. The tail, as a rule, is densely pubescent, although there are species with a semi-naked tail. The coat is thick and soft, but short. The color depends on the species.
The coat on the back and sides may be gray to buffy-brown, the abdomen and paws may be lighter or white. Long, up to 20 percent of the body length, extremely mobile vibrissae, growing like a fan near the nose, are the main tactile organ for the dormouse.

Character
Dormouse are very sociable, lively, active and social animals. They prefer to live in the company of relatives, but at home they are best kept alone or in pairs. These rodents are very cautious and shy, afraid of loud or unexpected sounds, sudden movements. Hazel, African and dormouse-dormouse quickly get used to people, taming other species requires more attention and patience.

Relationships with other pets
Dormouse that has left the cage can be dangerous to smaller rodents, small birds and lizards. Cats, dogs, ferrets and large birds are dangerous to dormice.

Attitude towards children
Sony is not very suitable for children as pets.

Education
Dormouse, who appeared in the house in early age, get used to the person quite quickly, will expect your arrival with food and can get used to taking food from the hands. They can be taught to go out for a treat when called, but they most likely will not become completely tame.

Nutrition
For all types of dormouse, a diet that includes sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, pine nuts and walnuts, melon, watermelon, pumpkin seeds. It is useful to include apples in the diet of sleepyheads (an adult animal can eat a whole apple overnight), grapes, buds, branch bark, wild rose, dried mountain ash, viburnum, dry apricots. In summer, it is useful to reduce the number of oil seeds. Forest, garden and African dormice need animal food. They are suitable for mealworms, butterfly pupae, crickets, May bugs, snails, large cockroaches, sometimes they can be pampered raw meat, cottage cheese and eggs.

Care and maintenance
Of the species that live on the territory of Russia, at home they most often contain hazel, garden, forest and dormice. African dormouse, which is called dwarf dormouse because of its very small size, is also well suited for keeping as a pet. Hazel and African dormouse are well suited for cage keeping, dormouse can be kept both in a cage and in an aviary, but it is better to keep garden and forest dormouse in an aviary, where you can create a landscape for them that resembles natural environment a habitat.
When keeping sleepyheads in a cage, it is easier to communicate with them, it is more convenient to observe, they make better contact. It is advisable to choose a cage that is small-meshed, spacious and all-metal, in order to avoid the unpleasant odor that impregnates the wooden parts of the cage, and various infections. They are well suited for squirrel cages with a spinning wheel, as these rodents have a very high need for movement. Existence in a cage of the sliding pallet considerably facilitates cleaning and cleaning. Sawdust, dry sand or small shavings can be used as bedding. It is necessary to put heavy bowls for food, a drinker, preferably automatic, place various ladders, hollow pipes, a hammock in the cage, fix the ropes and the wheel and attach houses to the grate where the dormouse will make a nest. To equip the nest, they can be offered hay, straw, unpainted strips of paper, small twigs. Every day it is necessary to wash the food bowls and the drinking bowl, remove the leftover food; two, three times a week, the bedding should be changed, twice a month, a complete cleaning and disinfection of the cage is required. Disinfection can be carried out by spilling the cage with boiling water.
Dormouse do not like temperature changes, drafts and direct sunlight, so the cage should be placed at least 40 cm from heating appliances and away from windows and doors.
Dormouse are nocturnal animals and can disturb you with noise. However, often communicating with a person, dormice gradually move to a daytime lifestyle, especially if you feed them only in the morning and evening no later than 19 hours.
With properly equipped housing, dormouse does not need to walk. If you decide to get the animal out of the cage, then be prepared for the fact that it can easily arrange an escape.
In summer, in dry weather, the animals can be taken out to the balcony during the day or put the cage on the table near the house on suburban area shading part of the cage from the sun's rays so that the animals can rest.
Dormouse living in nature fall into hibernation in winter, which can last 6-7 months, but at temperatures above 10 ° C, dormouse can be active all year round.
Outside the city, these rodents can be kept in an aviary, where you can recreate a piece of wildlife: make a litter of moss or peat, put stumps and snags, fix strong branches with hollows, put grass and oats in pots, plant bushes of currants, gooseberries, blackberries. Dormouse kept in an aviary are less tameable, because when a person appears, they hide in various shelters, do not make contact, and retain the behavior characteristic of them in wild nature, and are not given in the hands. Many owners are happy to talk about their observations of these lively, funny, active animals living in an aviary. It should be borne in mind that all species of the dormouse family in winter in an aviary can only survive in a properly made shelter, arranged in the ground in the form of an artificial hole, well insulated and covered with a layer of sawdust from above. Before wintering, dormouse gain weight 3-4 times higher than usual. However, you should carefully monitor the awakening animals: a sleeping dormouse that has awakened can eat a fellow sleeping nearby.

A bit of history
Unlike many other rodents, dormouse came to the homes of animal lovers directly from the wild. In the 20th century, the number of dormouse began to decline rapidly due to the destruction natural environment habitation of these rodents as a result human activity. Many species of dormouse have been listed in the Red Book, and programs have begun to be developed around the world to restore the livestock of these cute animals. In the wake of this popularity, Sony first got into living corners with youth circles, and then into apartments, where they feel very good.

A cute animal that looks like a squirrel, a hamster and a red mouse at the same time, moreover, as if from cartoons, it is a hazel dormouse, which is also called a mushlovka. This charming creature is protected by law - the Muscardinus avellanarius species is listed in the Red Book. Introducing a small rodent from the dormouse family.

Description of hazel dormouse

Mushlovka does not apply to hamsters, or squirrels, or mice, which it resembles in appearance, although it is also a rodent. The dormouse family includes animals of various sizes, of which the hazel dormouse is the smallest..

Appearance

This tiny rodent weighs no more than 27 grams as an adult (slightly larger than the average size of a normal mouse). This is the maximum weight before hibernation. Only the dormouse, which has woken up and emaciated during the winter, weighs only about 15-17 g.

The body of the flycatcher is only about 7-9 cm long, not counting the tail, which will add about 6-7 cm more. The animal is covered with soft short fur. The coat color is terracotta-red on the back, head and tail, yellowish or whitish on the belly and the inner surface of the paws. The tip of the tail is brown or, conversely, white. Light spots can decorate the breast and abdomen of the animal.

The skeleton of a dormouse is able to shrink vertically - this allows the animal to curl up into a small ball, take up very little space and squeeze into narrow cracks. The paws are relatively long, flexible, tenacious movable fingers are clearly visible, also of a light color. 4 fingers are of the same length, and the fifth, perpendicularly spaced, is somewhat smaller.

This is interesting! When the dormouse jumps along the branches, its brushes turn almost at a right angle.

Sonya has a rounded muzzle with a small pink nose, near which grow very large vibrissae whiskers, almost half the length of the body. The ears are small, slightly flattened and rounded, they move like locators, and each ear is separate. The eyes are round, slightly convex, large, shiny black. It has very sharp incisors for chewing through hard nutshells, practically does not use them to bite.

hazel dormouse lifestyle

The animal is named dormouse partly because it spends most of the day in hibernation, being active only at night. Dormouse also sleeps in winter (October to April) in underground burrows. Thus, more than half of the life of a mousetrap is sleep.

Attention! When the animal is sleeping, you can pick it up and it will not wake up. Sony doesn't like low temperature, if suddenly a cold snap of up to 17 degrees and below occurs among the heat, they can oversleep for several days in a row.

At night, dormouse crawls out of their shelters and seeks food by climbing the branches of bushes, in which their light weight and strong flexible legs help them a lot. They jump from branch to branch like miniature squirrels.

These are trusting and friendly creatures that are easily tamed and can be easily kept at home, like hamsters. These animals were especially popular in Victorian England, in books there are often mentions that children looked after them. Today there are clubs of dormouse lovers, enthusiasts - those who are not deterred by the nocturnal lifestyle of these animals - are breeding new hybrid breeds.

Nests of hazel dormouse

The animals make comfortable nests for themselves to sleep, which are insulated with moss, wood shavings, leaves, feathers. As a place for a "day" sleepyhead can be:

  • hollow;
  • a hole under the roots;
  • mink under an old stump;
  • nest, independently woven from grass, suspended at a height of 1-2 m;
  • a bird's nest, empty or one from which the rodent evicted the rightful owners.

If Sonya failed to find or make a home for herself from natural materials, she is not averse to taking advantage of the fruits of human hands: curl up in an old tin can or an abandoned car tire. They can take an empty birdhouse, settle in the attic. One dormouse can have several places for days at once. For hibernation dormice build a special wintering nest - underground or between tree roots. They try to insulate it as much as possible and close the entrance.

To breed offspring, females build a spacious maternity nest, trying to place it at a certain height from the ground. It is two-layered: the outer shell is made of foliage, and the inner “capsule” is made of the softest materials available to Sonya - feathers, down, chopped grass.

Lifespan

In the wild, dormice do not live long, 2-3 years. As a pet, they can live longer, up to 7-8 years. Cause short life in the wild - not at all dangers, but mainly temperature jumps and environmental troubles. Many animals freeze during hibernation (up to 70% according to the data of the Moscow region).

Range, habitats

Dormouse do not like to travel, occupying their own territory, separate for each individual. Females do not violate the unwritten boundaries of their plots up to about half a hectare, and males cross their possessions up to twice the area. Animals meet each other for a short time, only during the mating season.

For the settlement of the mussel, they choose places with a generous undergrowth, preferably hazel (hence the epithet "hazel" in the name of the dormouse). Thickets of wild rose, viburnum, mountain ash, young oaks, linden, ash are perfect for her life. Dormouse also settles in orchards, without harming them at all, on the contrary, contributing to better pollination. coniferous forests they like it less, unless they come across a clearing with their favorite fruit bushes.

The habitat of dormouse is quite wide: animals live throughout Europe, up to southern regions Sweden and the UK. You will not meet Sonya in Spain and Portugal - it is too hot for them in the Iberian Peninsula. On the territory of Russia, dormouse live in forest zones ah Volga, Dnieper and Ciscaucasia.

The diet of hazel dormouse

Hazel dormouse is predominantly a vegetarian. She eats nuts, acorns, seeds, which is why it is important that in her habitat the fruits ripen in different time. IN warm days in early spring, the mushlovka is not averse to feasting on young buds and shoots, and in summer it will be happy to eat fresh fruits and berries.

If the rodent manages to find bird eggs or catch a worm, he will not refuse protein food either. Nuts are especially fond of the animal, for which the dormouse got its name. Sharp teeth leave characteristic holes on the shell. While eating, the dormouse, like the squirrel, holds food in its front paws.

Description of the forest dormouse

The small dart frog forest dormouse has much in common with mice and squirrels, and at the same time. Peculiarities appearance, namely color, size and behavior depend on the place of immediate habitat. Depending on the place of residence, the coat color of the forest dormouse may be darker or lighter, the contrast between the shades manifests itself in different ways.

Appearance

Dormouse are small animals with a slightly elongated body. The total body length is from 60 to 120 mm. The flattened tail, separately, can be the same length, with longer hair. The tail is not just an ornament, but an important vestibular tool. It helps to balance on the branches, playing the role of a kind of steering wheel. Also, this part of the body may indicate the mood of the rodent. If the long hair on the tail lies smoothly, the animal feels safe. Rearing hairs in this zone indicate an unfriendly attitude. In anticipation of danger, the dormouse raises its hairs to appear larger for its opponent. Cats do the same.

This is interesting! The long narrow head ends with a sharp muzzle, the eyes of the rodent stand out noticeably against the general background, they are dark, round and shiny. On the head of the animal are prominent rounded ears, they are quite large.

On the muzzle itself, like in most rodent species, vibrissae are located. These are additional "tools" for orientation in the space of the animal. With them, they capture the smallest fluctuations in the air, as a result of which they can navigate in space in conditions of relative darkness. The length of the vibrissae in relation to the body size of the forest dormouse ranges from 20 to 40%. The antennae, each individually, can make movements due to the contraction of the subcutaneous muscles of the face. Such an organ of touch helps to better navigate the world around the rodent.

It is interesting that the dormouse's hind legs have 5 fingers each, and the front ones have 4. The legs are thin and short. The coat of the rodent is short, of uniform length throughout the body, except for the tail, soft and silky to the touch.. As a rule, on the chest it is painted in grayish-yellow shades. The coat of the same color is also on the chest with the throat part. The back of the forest dormouse is brown-reddish. On the muzzle, these two colors are separated by a contrasting stripe of dark black-brown.

Character and lifestyle

Deciduous thickets and forests are considered favorite habitats for forest dormouse. She is a fan of the thicket with dense undergrowth, places of hollow trees. But at the same time, you can meet her in a garden or park area. This funny animal is widely distributed in middle lane and in the west of the European part Russian Federation. For housing, dormouse chooses natural shelters. It can be hollow trees, old abandoned nests of all kinds of birds. For example, forty. If a suitable vacant place was not found, the dormouse will not be embarrassed by the presence of the "owners" in the nest. She can settle in a hollow or birdhouse, driving the feathered owners out of there with a bang.

This rodent can make a home on its own. As a material, the bast of trees and other vegetable small "garbage" are most often used. These are grass, fluffs, dry leaves, wickerwork is used as a frame. flexible branches. It takes about 2-4 days to build one dwelling. Dormouse manages to build their homes in the density of thickets of thorny bushes. Thus, they make it safer, preventing predators from getting close. Forest dormouse is an economic rodent, they devote most of the construction time to arranging the interior of the housing. Sonya stuffs it with fluff, wool, dry grass, which makes it not only warm and cozy, but also perfectly masks the chicks grown in it from prying eyes.

Therefore, if you happened to see an untidy translucent nest without litter, this is a bachelor's dwelling or a temporary overnight stay. In such a house, the animal will not stay for a long time, it could serve as an overexposure point, then the dormouse will set off to build a new nest. On the territory of residence of one individual, you can find up to 8 such dwellings. The rodent can change apartments, even if they are clogged, in order to comply with sanitary standards. There is no separate passage to the nest. Dormouse enters and exits through any suitable gap between the bars. This structure also makes it a difficult prey for predators.

This is interesting! Forest dormice are also meticulous about cleanliness own body. They can spend hours combing every hair of their own tail, carefully sorting them out.

Winter apartments are built deep underground in heaps of brushwood or thickets of the root system of a tree. Close to the surface, the soil freezes too much, not giving a chance to survive, so they settle with the onset of cold weather at a distance of 30 cm below ground level.

The forest dormouse is a climbing animal. It moves perfectly along the branches of trees and shrubs, while being active both during the day and at night. During the day, even most of the species spends in a dream. Sharp curved claws and special "corns" allow her to easily hold onto the branches without falling down. And vibrissae help to navigate well in dense thickets.

The cold puts the animal into a stupor. In this state, the forest dormouse hibernates all the cold days of the year. Such numbness lowers the temperature of the body of the rodent, slowing down the course of metabolic processes, allowing the economical use of vital resources. For this period, some dormice stock up on food, which they eat with pleasure at the moments of awakening during periods of thaw. After that, with a repeated decrease in temperature, the dormouse can fall asleep, having refreshed itself, continue its hibernation. The rest of the representatives of the species consume only the fat reserves of their own body, accumulated in warm times of the year.

How long does a forest dormouse live

In wild nature forest dormouse live from 2 to 6 years. This animal can be tamed if it was caught back in infancy. When fishing, do not take them with bare hands Sony doesn't like this.

Range, habitats

Forest dormice are common in the forest zone from Central Asia to Kazakhstan and European countries. They inhabited the northern part of Africa, China and Japan. The Dormouse family has up to 9 genera. The number of their species is 28. They can be found even in Asia Minor and Altai.

The diet of the forest dormouse

Various insects may be present in the diet of forest dormouse.. However, animals choose plant foods as their preferred type of food. They are happy to eat the seeds of plants, fruits that come across on the way, and do not disdain the seeds of berries. If on the way the forest dormouse meets a bird's nest with small chicks or laid eggs, she will eat them with pleasure.

This is interesting! The very process of food intake by animals deserves special attention and tenderness. Like most rodents, they take food in their tiny paws and then bring it to their mouths. It's nice to watch how deftly these kids straighten their tiny fingers with seeds and berries.

This small animal is very similar to an ordinary mouse, but with a fluffy "squirrel" tail. Externally, there are two types of dormice - mouse-like and protein-like. The former have a bare tail and live on the ground, the latter live in trees. Dormouse are very small animals, an adult animal easily fits in the palm of your hand. They are active mainly at night. They began to domesticate these animals relatively recently, in the last century, this was facilitated by a decrease in the number of individuals of the species. Thanks to the technical progress of the last century, the number of forest zones where these animals live has significantly decreased, and dormouse was listed in the Red Book, and also began to be bred in artificial conditions to prevent the extinction of the species.

Titles in other languages:
The name of the dormouse in Latin sounds like Myoxidae or Gliridae. There is also a Latin name for the dormouse subfamily, Graphiurinae. On English language"sleepy" sounds like Dormouse, and in German - Siebenschlaefer.

Classification:
Dormouse belongs to the animal kingdom, a type of chordates, a subtype of vertebrates. Dormouse are mammals of the placental subclass. Of course, these are rodents that belong to the squirrel-like, dormouse family. In total, 9 genera and 28 species of these animals are known in nature.

Dormouse Habitat:
These rodents are mostly found in the steppes and forest-steppes. The main regions of their habitat are the northern part of Africa, China and Japan, Altai, Asia Minor. And in southern Africa lives even separate view animal, which is called the African dormouse. Other genera of this rodent prefer cooler climates. The most common dormice are those that live in trees. For example, a dormouse can live all its life on a tree. tree species settle mainly in hollows or nests, ground burrows dig next to tree roots or fallen trunks. There are also garden species of these animals, they cause great damage to gardening, destroying cultivated plants.

Sony description:
Mouse-like animals, as the name implies, look like mice, and squirrel-like animals look like squirrels. On average, dormice grow up to 10 cm, sometimes there are 20-centimeter individuals. They have cute round ears and beady eyes. Dormouse, thanks to their sharp claws, can cling well to tree bark. In some members of the family, one claw on the hind paw may be missing. If you put the animal on the palm of your hand, you can feel the hard pads on the paws of the animal. The wool of the dormouse is reddish-gray, very soft and long, the hairs are smoothed, reaching a length of 17 cm. In squirrels, a fluffy tail stands out very much. Winter for dormouse is a period of hibernation. As for a rodent, dormouse lives for a relatively long time - in nature up to 5 years, in captivity no more than 3 years.

Sony nutrition:
Tree dormouse feed on what mainly grows and lives on trees. These are nuts, seeds, fruits of trees, small insects. Ground dormouse is more herbivorous, they love different herbs, dandelion leaves, clover, nettles. Dormouse living in trees destroy bird nests in order to feast on their eggs. This breed of rodents is also characterized by a predatory trait, they can eat other, smaller animals. If dormouse is kept at home, it is preferable for her to diversify her diet with plant foods - grains, seeds, fruits, nuts, sometimes bread and carrots. Also, do not exclude animal food. A pet can occasionally be pampered with boiled meat, milk, cottage cheese, chicken eggs. And for some species, animal products are even more important in the diet than vegetation. In the feeder of garden and African dormouse, insects and eggs should always be present. It is also possible to breed special flour worms for the full nutrition of dormouse. If you add dormouse to food fish fat, the animal's body will receive even more vitamins and nutrients.

Dormouse reproduction:
From the first month of life, dormouse are ready for reproduction. Period mating games comes to them in the spring. The offspring of females appears mainly once a year. Almost all types of dormouse, except for the dormouse, reproduce well both in natural and at home conditions. The female carries the cubs for a month, after which naked and blind babies are born. There are up to 10 of them in the litter, and they feed on mother's milk for up to 3 weeks. Little sleepyheads are very attached to their mother, so you can’t tear them away from her ahead of time, this can be a serious stress for babies. It is curious that dormice take care of their cubs together with their fathers, a “full-fledged” family.

Maintenance and care of dormouse:
Sony are known for their unpretentiousness and peacefulness. They calmly get along with several animals in one aviary or cage. The animals feel good in spacious enclosures, because in a cramped cage the dormouse will not be able to move actively enough and will begin to gain excess weight. It is best for dormouse to equip a home that is as similar as possible to the natural habitat. Moss or a layer of peat can be laid on the floor of the enclosure, twigs, bark, stumps can be laid out on it. Edible plants, grass, gooseberry or currant bushes can be grown right in the dormouse's dwelling. For hibernation of these small animals, it is necessary to equip a cozy corner. For this, a pipe leading from a hole to a small box insulated with dry hay is suitable. If a dormouse lives in a cage, it must be equipped with all the attributes necessary for rodents - a drinking bowl, sawdust on the floor, a bowl, a pallet, toys. Dormouse are very fond of messing with their nests, so you can hang a small wooden box in the cage with a set of “building materials”: ​​twigs, hay, etc.

Additionally:
Dormouse is not only very fond of starting as pets. They are also valued for their good coats, like fur animals. The skin of the sony regiment was especially highly valued, at one time special hunts were organized for them. In general, this is a very curious species, the dormouse has an excellent appetite and by the autumn period is gaining big weight, but still makes large stocks for the winter in its nest.