Taking Care of an Accidental LitterAvoiding accidental litters:- Adopt from pet breeders with experience. Female pet store rats are often pregnant. Show
I hope to help avoid accidental litters by providing my information above, however if a mistake has been made or you adopt a rat that is already pregnant, this post is here to help. Firstly, I would like to note that you may have many problems with your litter. As you do not know the genetic lineage of the parents of your accidental litter (unless they are from a breeder, in which case the parent and babies should be immediately returned to that breeder), your rats may have illnesses (FTT, megacolon, heavy respiratory illnesses, tumours, etc) and genetically predisposed aggression that you did not expect. No matter whether the parent rat is friendly or not, their history largely affects your babies' health and how they act. When you are rehoming your babies, be sure to mention to those looking to take them home that this was an accidental litter, and their future health and temperament will be unknown. PSA: Please note that the following information does not have nearly enough information to help you start becoming an informed and reputable breeder. If you are looking into intentionally breeding, feel free to message me with your thoughts and I can direct you to another 12 page section that gives my thoughts and advice on breeding. The steps shown are how to simply care for baby rats, not how to breed healthy, friendly rats and keep reliable lines. On to the rest:Accidental litters can be scary and intimidating, but are unfortunately quite common. If you have left a male and female rattie together that are over 5 weeks for more than 1 second, it is likely that your female is pregnant and is going to have babies. First thing is first, if you adopted your pregnant rat from a breeder please contact that breeder first and foremost. The breeder may wish to take care of the litter for you, in which case that would be your best option. Signs that your rattie may be pregnant: If your litter is born and your mama rattie is having issues with nursing, does not take care of the babies, or passes away, please first contact your local breeders to see if they have a mother that would be able to nurse the babies for you. If not, please click here to see how to take care of baby rats and raise them by hand. Facts about rattie pregnancy:- Rats usually give birth between 21 and 26 days after being impregnated. How to prepare when your female is pregnant1. Find a suitable tank or bin for your female to stay in while she is giving birth and nursing.
2. Separate your female from her partner. Move your female into her nursing bin/tank. Put your male in with another boy, or rehome your male so he can live with another male so he is not lonely. 3. Start feeding your female rat a protein heavy diet. Adding Boost/Ensure or raw chicken hearts and gizzards (gross I know, but soooo good for them at this time) really helps them hold their weight, and also helps keep lactation rich for the babies. 4. Set up two large cages for your babies to be in when they are separated. The cages should be at a minimum of 4ft squared, and have all necessary requirements such as food, water, huts, hammocks, apple wood toys, cardboard toys, etc. Make sure that these cages are both close to the ground, as babies can be clumsy and fast and a fall from a high up cage can be fatal. During birthWhile your female is giving birth, please do not disturb her. Let her be. I know it is tempting to watch, but
that can stress her out. After birth
Rehoming your baby ratsRehoming your baby rats to new homes can be difficult, and can take a while, so don't get discouraged! Some places that you can post your ratties for adoption include: Please remember to ask lots of questions of your adopters. Questions you may want to ask include: Give your new little family lots of love, and don't be intimidated! It will be a lot of work raising these babies, a lot of cleaning and a lot of socialization time.If you are ever feeling overwhelmed or have absolutely any questions, please feel free to message me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.How long after nesting do rats give birth?The gestation period in rats is just three weeks and pregnancy is normally almost undetectable until the final week. If you suspect your rat is pregnant, look for weight gain, the most obvious indicator. In the last week, she'll lose some hair around her nipples.
How long does rat labor last?Oxytocin-parturient rats had a mean labor duration of 30 ± 4 min, which was significantly shorter than the labor duration of the saline-parturient rats (127 ± 31 min; P < 0.001).
Can rats get pregnant at 5 weeks?Rats can be sexually mature before six weeks of age, so if your female rat was not separated at around five weeks old from all male rats, including family members, she may be pregnant.
Can rats get pregnant at 4 weeks?First Weeks
Puberty for rats occurs at around 50 to 50 days of age, and you should consider your new litter sexually mature by their 4th to 6th week but this will vary. Some rats have been able to breed by 4 weeks of age and others wait until they are over 8 weeks of age.
|