Rex Mouse

Coat and looks how to spot one

Rex/Astrex: curly coat and curly whiskers

A fancy mouse with wavy, curly fur and bent, curly whiskers. Babies have a tight curl, and as the hair follicles grow larger the coat relaxes around ten weeks of age into a looser, slightly rougher adult texture.16

Personality what they are like

Coat type has no effect on character, so these are typical fancy mice: lively, curious and happiest with mouse company. With calm, gentle handling close to the ground they settle well and seldom nip, and the AFRMA expects every show mouse to be easy to handle.457

Daily activity how busy a day looks

Busy and quick, most active at night and around dusk and dawn. Offer a solid-surface wheel, ropes, branches, tubes and tunnels, and scatter part of the food so they can forage.589

Grooming and care the hands-on bits

No brushing is needed; mice look after their own coats. Keep bedding clean and dry, spot-clean daily and fully clean the cage every one to two weeks.8

Home where they are happiest

A roomy, escape-proof cage with bar gaps under 5 mm, at least 2 cm of dust-free bedding plus paper or hay for nesting, hides with more than one exit, a solid wheel and climbing items. Keep it well ventilated, out of draughts and away from heat.8

Food basics what goes in the bowl

Complete mouse nuggets as the main food, with small portions of vegetables and fruit counted into the daily amount. Scatter some of the ration for foraging and provide fresh water from a bottle, checked daily.9

Company who they like around

Sociable animals that do best in stable, same-sex groups. Females usually live together easily; males are best kept with brothers they grew up with. Avoid swapping members in a settled group.104

The story where it all began

Rex is the general name for soft, curly fur in mammals, seen in cats, rabbits, hamsters and mice. In British mouse shows the curly mouse is exhibited as the Astrex within the Any Other Variety group, while naming between clubs varies, so the same word can mean different coats on each side of the Atlantic.612

Recognised by the official bits

National Mouse Club (UK)

Astrex is shown in the Any Other Variety (AOV) group; a 1998 UK club page described Rex as not yet standardised at that time.1

American Fancy Rat and Mouse Association (AFRMA)

Has no variety called Rex or Astrex; its curly coats are the Frizzie, Frizzie Satin and Frizzled. It notes the NMC calls the Frizzled coat 'Rex'.2