# HELP! Found alot of babyrats dead with mom all eaten up..



## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

Hello.. so if youve seen my other forum i announced that my mother rat had babys a while ago. So i just started cleaning their cage today and putting fresh water in and i was suprised that my rats didnt jump towards my cage door because the mother that died was always very exited about everything. I than looked into their houses to see my rat dead with two babys lying next to her one half eaten up. So i was crying for about an hour and i than got myself to check the rest of the cage. I found 5 rats still alive. The moms sister, and her baby who is almost grown up. And 3 babys from the dead mom, one very sick and liveless shes laying on my chest now and i bathed her but i dont think shes gonna make it.. the other ones seem healthy for now and ill clean the cage in a few hours. The alive rats are in a separete cage right now.. i also found just an entire bone set of rats with feet meaning they got all eaten up. I dont know what went wrong because yesterday they were all fine. Does anyone knoe what couldve happened or can anyone give me tips. Im really stressing over here... als my 4 males are completely fine since their in another cage.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

This is the very sick baby.. hes breathing but he refuses to eat so when my mom gets home were gonna give him some water with a bit off sugar in a injection thing idk how to call it in english. To maybe give her a bit more energy.. i dont think that shes gonna make it but im trying..


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

First of all, I am so so sorry. That is so awful. The mother's sister could have maybe eaten the babies? I am kinda just guessing possible scenarios here. Although, Why did you bathe the baby?


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Please don't bathe the babies. It will lower their body temperature which is not what they need right now.

Try getting malt paste/Nutrical made for puppies and kittens and try feeding it that. It is a calorie-dense paste that helps baby animals put on weight. If you can't get that, try giving it cooked scrambled eggs or cooked chicken meat.


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## _dizzy_ (Mar 28, 2018)

This is terrible! I suggest getting the sick one to a vet and have blood work done and see if maybe this could be an illness that already, that's what it sounds like it could be to me.
Just so you know for the future, don't bathe rats. Just wipe them gently with a damp cloth only if they really need it. Baths stress them out...


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

ratmom! said:


> First of all, I am so so sorry. That is so awful. The mother's sister could have maybe eaten the babies? I am kinda just guessing possible scenarios here. Although, Why did you bathe the baby?


I bathed the baby because she was laying inbetween the dead baby rats and was bit covered in blood so i thought that would be a good thing im sorry.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

_dizzy_ said:


> This is terrible! I suggest getting the sick one to a vet and have blood work done and see if maybe this could be an illness that already, that's what it sounds like it could be to me.
> Just so you know for the future, don't bathe rats. Just wipe them gently with a damp cloth only if they really need it.
> I dont have the money for a vet right now were in the middle of moving to another house. Also the baby wasent stressed while bathing she was very relaxed. Also shes starting to eat a little.


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Its ok you dont need to be sorry but for the future you can just wipe her with a damp cloth. Ah that is so sad and unfortunate. Just to clear the air... You had a female rat who had babies. They were all living together with another adult female rat. You found the mommy and a few babies dead.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

ratmom! said:


> Its ok you dont need to be sorry but for the future you can just wipe her with a damp cloth. Ah that is so sad and unfortunate. Just to clear the air... You had a female rat who had babies. They were all living together with another adult female rat. You found the mommy and a few babies dead.


Yes, also the other adult female rat once had a nest so her baby who is already grown up. Is still alive and 3 babys of the dead mom are still alive. One very unstable, i gave her some sugar water since my mom said that would help with gaining the baby some energy. And i gave her a tiny piece of cucumber since its soft and easy to eat. Shes now asleep and she ate a bit.
I feeol so irresponsible i didnt know anything like this would happen. I also have a feeling of how they got sick, my sister entered my room a week ago and all my baby rats were let lose and i lost them underneath my bed we than started catching a few so like a day later they were all caught. I have a feeling they ate something from underneath my bed making them sick. I also have anxiety so im really freaking out here i didnt mean for this to happen im so sorry.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

Odie&Mo said:


> Yes, also the other adult female rat once had a nest so her baby who is already grown up. Is still alive and 3 babys of the dead mom are still alive. One very unstable, i gave her some sugar water since my mom said that would help with gaining the baby some energy. And i gave her a tiny piece of cucumber since its soft and easy to eat. Shes now asleep and she ate a bit.
> I feeol so irresponsible i didnt know anything like this would happen. I also have a feeling of how they got sick, my sister entered my room a week ago and all my baby rats were let lose and i lost them underneath my bed we than started catching a few so like a day later they were all caught. I have a feeling they ate something from underneath my bed making them sick. I also have anxiety so im really freaking out here i didnt mean for this to happen im so sorry.


Quick update on the sick baby rat she just started cleaning herself and shes gaining her strength back. And she ate the piece of cucumber all the way, shes also working on eating another piece. Also shes ij my shirt while im under a blanket so she'll stay warm.


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

glad to hear she is gaining strength


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## _dizzy_ (Mar 28, 2018)

Hmmm. Maybe later check under your bed to see what they could have eaten(though it's been a week since then so I doubt it's anything). I really couldn't tell you what happened, but I have a feeling it was some sort of parasite.

Keep an eye on the others since they may have taking a bite of the deceased.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

_dizzy_ said:


> Hmmm. Maybe later check under your bed to see what they could have eaten(though it's been a week since then so I doubt it's anything). I really couldn't tell you what happened, but I have a feeling it was some sort of parasite.
> 
> Keep an eye on the others since they may have taking a bite of the deceased.


Ive cleaned underneath my bed a few days ago and there was alot of trash and deceased food, so it couldve been a parasite yes. I will also keep them in a smaller cage for now to keep an eye on them incase they are infected with anything.


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## lfraser06 (Aug 5, 2020)

Odie&Mo said:


> I bathed the baby because she was laying inbetween the dead baby rats and was bit covered in blood so i thought that would be a good thing im sorry.


Wrap the baby in some warm fleece, it will help.
If you can't get to the vet right away, consider swapping out the sugar water for some kitten milk - even if you have to dilute it a bit for that baby to take it. 
I'm not sure if you can feed baby rats pedialyte, but that might help as well.
The vet, of course, is the best option.

I'm so sorry this happened. Good luck with the babies.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

lfraser06 said:


> Wrap the baby in some warm fleece, it will help.
> If you can't get to the vet right away, consider swapping out the sugar water for some kitten milk - even if you have to dilute it a bit for that baby to take it.
> I'm not sure if you can feed baby rats pedialyte, but that might help as well.
> The vet, of course, is the best option.
> ...


Thanks alot, the weak baby is able to walk again by the way! She fell over at first but now she started running around full speed again.


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## lfraser06 (Aug 5, 2020)

Odie&Mo said:


> Thanks alot, the weak baby is able to walk again by the way! She fell over at first but now she started running around full speed again.


That's great news! Perhaps she was just a bit shocky with everything that happened. Keep a close eye on her for a few days.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

lfraser06 said:


> That's great news! Perhaps she was just a bit shocky with everything that happened. Keep a close eye on her for a few days.


Yea probally. Shes still here with me i do not dare to put her away, shes asleep right now and i think she enjoys the warmth.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

These are the babys of the dead mom, atleast the ones who survived, there is a 4th one but shes still asleep in my sweater and shes doing quit a bit better now.






























Its also cleaned the entire cage, gave them fresh water and food so ill just hope that their gonna be ok now.


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## a1phanine (Mar 27, 2018)

Oh my god im so sorry this is a horrible read

How old were the babies? How did the mum die? I'm a bit confused by your post about what happened

i'd recommend some hammocks and soft stuff for those cages, they look pretty bare


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Basically she found the mom dead (she doesn't know how) and there were a few babies partially eaten by the mom. A few babies survived. They were all living together along with one other adult female mom and her baby. I hope that clears the air for you. 


Question for Odie&Mo- Was the mom injured?


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

a1phanine said:


> Oh my god im so sorry this is a horrible read
> 
> How old were the babies? How did the mum die? I'm a bit confused by your post about what happened
> 
> i'd recommend some hammocks and soft stuff for those cages, they look pretty bare


The babys were in between of 6 and 7 weeks old. And i have no idea on how the mom died i just found her with her babys, she was 1,5 years old and had 16 babys as a first nest. She used to be chubby and since she had a nest she lost alot of weight even though i still gave them alot of treats and food. I think it was too much for the mom.

Also my mother thinks that the white adult female attacked one of the babys because she maybe couldnt accept them as her own, causing the others to eat from that babies body making them sick? Atleast that was my moms theory. I genuinly have no idea though it happened and im very sad about it because my rats literally mean everything to me.. i hope that this wont escalate and i just hope the babies will survive.

My mom also bought food with extra protïen for them. And yea sorry i removed all their hammocks for a second because i thought u would be able to watch them better. Ill put some up again tomorrow though, their in the washing machine rn.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

Th


ratmom! said:


> Basically she found the mom dead (she doesn't know how) and there were a few babies partially eaten by the mom. A few babies survived. They were all living together along with one other adult female mom and her baby. I hope that clears the air for you.
> 
> 
> Question for Odie&Mo- Was the mom injured?


The mom was not injured and yesterday i was playing with her everything. It really is all very complicated and confusing.


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## a1phanine (Mar 27, 2018)

You shouldn't have two adults mixed with babies, as soon as she gave birth they should have been housed separately until later, there could have been a massive fight over the babies, I don't know though if the mum wasnt injured, this is all so odd


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

a1phanine said:


> You shouldn't have two adults mixed with babies, as soon as she gave birth they should have been housed separately until later, there could have been a massive fight over the babies, I don't know though if the mum wasnt injured, this is all so odd


I mixed the babies with the adults together when the babies were about 4 weeks old, i searched it up and they said it would be fine. I guess not sorry for being mistaken. And yes im also very confused on how the mom died, it all happened while i was asleep because i didnt hear anything suspicious


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## Tinytoes (Dec 23, 2020)

Oh my, you have my deepest empathy for this terrible event. What happened is not as important as taking care of the survivors. You may never know what caused this situation. Focus on the ones who will survive this, and make sure they are healthy and safe. You are doing a great job of this, so please give yourself a pat on the back for making it through a very difficult situation.

The only way we get through this kind of tragedy is by reminding ourselves we did all we could, and the circumstances were beyond our control. Do not fault yourself, nature is something we will never truly understand.


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

Tinytoes said:


> Oh my, you have my deepest empathy for this terrible event. What happened is not as important as taking care of the survivors. You may never know what caused this situation. Focus on the ones who will survive this, and make sure they are healthy and safe. You are doing a great job of this, so please give yourself a pat on the back for making it through a very difficult situation.
> 
> The only way we get through this kind of tragedy is by reminding ourselves we did all we could, and the circumstances were beyond our control. Do not fault yourself, nature is something we will never truly understand.


Thanks alot! I blamed myself at first but i couldnt have known that this would happen. I am indeed focussing on the survivors right now, they seem healthy and their eatinf and drinking ect. Also the very weak one is doing way better now too! But sometimes she suddenly bounces up, or loses balance but thats probally because she was on the verge of death and she fought with all she had. Very proud of this little one and of myself for not giving up on them.

I burried the dead mom and her babies together in s box by the way, it was hard saying goodbye to then since i really bond with my pets in general because their kinda my "mental health support" and they relieve anxiety so saying goodbye to the grown rat was the hardest since she was really loved in this family. Even my mom cried about it, her and the poor babies wont be forgotten though!


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## Tinytoes (Dec 23, 2020)

Odie&Mo said:


> Thanks alot! I blamed myself at first but i couldnt have known that this would happen. I am indeed focussing on the survivors right now, they seem healthy and their eatinf and drinking ect. Also the very weak one is doing way better now too! But sometimes she suddenly bounces up, or loses balance but thats probally because she was on the verge of death and she fought with all she had. Very proud of this little one and of myself for not giving up on them.
> 
> I burried the dead mom and her babies together in s box by the way, it was hard saying goodbye to then since i really bond with my pets in general because their kinda my "mental health support" and they relieve anxiety so saying goodbye to the grown rat was the hardest since she was really loved in this family. Even my mom cried about it, her and the poor babies wont be forgotten though!


We love our animals, all of them. It's awful and terrible and we learn so much from each event. Just so you know, I have kept koi for many years, and every one had a name, and every one had a burial with their name on a popsicle cross. Rest in peace, all my finned friends. The learning curve was brutal, but I became an expert koi keeper.


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Hello! How is everything doing? Can we have an update on the baby?


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## Odie&Mo (Jan 18, 2021)

ratmom! said:


> Hello! How is everything doing? Can we have an update on the baby?


Hii! So far everyone is doing good, no one appears to be sick and the baby is completely back to its old self!


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Oh I’m so glad!


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