# Mama Rat is not nursing??



## RattyFriend (May 15, 2012)

I have a question. Is it normal for mama ratty to want to get away from babies? She seems more and more eager to get away from them. We let her outside for exercise but when its time to go back to her cage she tries to stay out. The babies are already eating solid foods and drinking water. She is not aggressive to her children but does not seem to want to nurse often. Should I be concerned? The babies are 24 days old.


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

She has weaned them at the right age. But they still need her to learn appropriate ratty behavior until they are about 5 weeks old, after which they become fertile. Every drop of milk they can steal is a bonus for them.


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## RattyFriend (May 15, 2012)

So it would be wrong to separate her from her babies for a long period of time? And how old should they be when officially ready for adoption?


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## Keelyrawr (Mar 7, 2012)

She's just weaning them. Be sure to offers a variety of fruits and veggies for the little ratties to try and make sure to separate the Males/Females once they're like 4 1/2 weeks, and try to have homes for all of them by 5 - 5 1/2 weeks.


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## RattyFriend (May 15, 2012)

So far I have homes for five of them set up. There are ten babies in all. However, I am having trouble finding the rest homes. I'm thinking about keeping two.


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