{"topic_id":"exotic_rat_mouse_husbandry","category":"exotic-pet-husbandry","context":"---\ntopic_id: exotic_rat_mouse_husbandry\ncategory: exotic-pet-husbandry\ntitle: \"Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control)\"\nlang: en\nsource: \"Merck Veterinary Manual (merckvetmanual.com) — non-Open-Access; paraphrased derived fact summary per COPYRIGHT_POLICY §3.\"\nsource_file: pdf-raw/exotic-health/mvm_mice_rats_pets_2026.txt\ndate_parsed: 2026-07-28\ntokens_estimated: 120\nverified: true\nverification:\n  method: paraphrase\n  claims: 2\n  passed: 2\n  date: 2026-08-04\nsource_document: \"Merck Veterinary Manual (first-hand veterinary reference, tag-stripped local copy)\"\ncitation:\n  authority: \"Merck Veterinary Manual\"\n  title: 'Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control)'\n  url: 'https://www.merckvetmanual.com/exotic-and-laboratory-animals/rodents/mice-and-rats-as-pets'\n  ref: \"Merck Veterinary Manual\"\n  doc_type: \"professional veterinary reference\"\n  needs_review: false\n  authority: \"Merck Veterinary Manual\"\n  title: \"Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control)\"\n  url: \"https://www.merckvetmanual.com/\"\n  retrieved: \"2026-07-28\"\n  ref: \"Merck Veterinary Manual — Rats and Mice / Rabbits / Guinea Pigs sections\"\n  doc_type: \"first-hand veterinary reference (authentic)\"\n  needs_review: false\nlicense: paraphrase\ncopyright_note: \"Source Merck Veterinary Manual (merckvetmanual.com) is © Merck & Co., Inc. and not openly licensed; per COPYRIGHT_POLICY §3 all claims are paraphrased derived fact summaries (numbers and proper nouns preserved, sentences rewritten), not verbatim quotations.\"\nauthority_tier: T3\nauthority_tier_basis: \"T3:vet-ref\"\nauthority_tier_date: 2026-08-04\n---\n# Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control)\n\nSource: Merck Veterinary Manual (merckvetmanual.com), a copyrighted professional veterinary reference. Per COPYRIGHT_POLICY §3, the points below are paraphrased derived fact summaries: numerical values and proper nouns are preserved from the source, but sentences are rewritten and not quoted verbatim.\n\n## Claims\n\n*[Paraphrased derived summary — non-Open-Access source.]* Best cages for pet rats and mice are easy to clean and deodorise and resist rodent chewing or digging; solid (not wire-mesh) floors are preferred because feet and hind limbs can get trapped and injured in the gaps.\n*[Paraphrased derived summary — non-Open-Access source.]* Good husbandry protects rats' and mice's health: suitable bedding plus frequent cage cleaning helps prevent respiratory disease, which worsens in high-ammonia air.\n","sources":["exotic-pet-husbandry — Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control) (retrieved 2026-07-28)"],"source":{"authority":"exotic-pet-husbandry","title":"Husbandry of pet rats and mice (caging, solid floors, bedding, ammonia control)","url":"https://www.merckvetmanual.com/","retrieved":"2026-07-28","ref":"","doc_type":"official PDF","source_document":"Merck Veterinary Manual (first-hand veterinary reference, tag-stripped local copy)","verification_file":"pdf-raw/exotic-health/mvm_mice_rats_pets_2026.txt"},"source_document":"Merck Veterinary Manual (first-hand veterinary reference, tag-stripped local copy)","source_file":"pdf-raw/exotic-health/mvm_mice_rats_pets_2026.txt","trust":{"authority_tier":"T3","fidelity":"paraphrase","license":"paraphrase","display_grade":"B"},"tokens_estimated":120,"generated_at":null,"tip":"Use /api/v1/topics to discover more topics. /api/v1/nutrient for precise single-point queries. /api/v1/cross_compare for 2-3 standard comparisons."}