# Just had babies last night



## Mene (Mar 13, 2015)

My girl, Flash, who was supposed to be a boy, had babies last night ( we saw that she was a female after bringing her home with her male cagemate from Petco). We usually adopt from rat rescues, but they looked so miserable, and I couldn't resist. So, currently, she has built a nest of fleece and the babies are in there with her. I'm afraid to disturb the nest in any way, but I want to check on them to make sure that they are all alive and to count them. Should I wait a few days? A few hours? Do I really need to move them into a bin, or is there cage fine? Thanks.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

Handling them is really not an issue; I will usually check litters a few hours after I'm sure the mother is no longer giving birth and has had time to nurse. I suggest luring mom away with a treat and putting her some place safe while you handle the pups (moms can be very aggressive if they think their babies are in danger). Check for milk bands (a white stripe on the belly) and remove any pups that may not have survived. Put them back and let them sit in the nest for several minutes before putting mom back in that way your scent isn't too strong on them (this may be overly cautious, but it's just something I've always done). The nest will get extremely stinky, so you'll want to clean it fairly regularly. To do this, just keep a small handful of old soiled bedding from the nest and replace the rest with fresh bedding. Moving the pups to a different style cage really depends on what type of cage you have. If it's something with a really deep base and less than 1/2 inch bar spacing then you're probably ok. If the base is shallow, the bar spacing is wide or she tries to start moving them to an upper level, I would strongly suggest a bin type cage.


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## Emma13 (Aug 8, 2015)

One thing that I found really helpful with my litter was having them in a clear bin type cage - it allowed me to check on the babies from underneath without having to worry about disturbing the nest, because I could see them right through the plastic.


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## Mene (Mar 13, 2015)

Thanks for the info. I am so overwhelmed and I'm so worried that I'm going to do something or not do something that will be harmful. Since I've only had the mama for a week, she is not very comfortable with me and so I'm having trouble seeing the babies. Tomorrow, I will try to lure her away and take a peek and also change some of the nest. I hear babies squeaking, so I suppose they are ok. Mama keeps moving the nest around the cage and I'm never there when she does it. Thanks again.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

She might be moving it because she feels insecure considering it's such a new environment for her. For moms that are new in my home, I try to drape an old towel or blanket over an area of the tank/cage that way they don't feel like I'm always watching them. If you decide to do this, just make sure it's something you don't mind being torn up because she will likely try to pull it through the bars.


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## Mene (Mar 13, 2015)

That's exactly what happened. The corner of the cage is next to the drapes and my other rats have free range in my bedroom...primarily, living in their dresser. Well, they have been climbing the drapes that are next to their dresser and running across the windowsill (we call it "the rat highway") to the drapes on the other end which are by mama's cage. My older girls have just been curious, but of course mama isn't happy about the snoopers, so she has been pulling the drapes through the bars of the cage and furiously chewing them up. This morning, I took the drapes off of their hooks and have left them hanging over the edge of the cage. One more question, if you don't mind. I had the boy rat, Spidey- who is the dad, neutered last week. When can he share the same cage with mama? When will he be safe to be introduced to my older girls, who were spayed 8 months ago?


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## Binky (Nov 15, 2014)

It's recommended to wait 10 days after the neuter until you put the male in with any unspayed females. Some people like to be super safe and wait a full two weeks. I would not put him in with mama-rat while she is nursing her babies.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

I'd say two weeks minimum before introductions to females. I would not try to put him back with mom and the babies. Males can sometimes be aggressive towards babies and considering he'll still be quite "frisky" even after his neuter, mom might not be very happy with the intrusion and could get aggressive towards him. I would definitely keep giving mom time with your other females and your boy once his two weeks are up but in an area away from the pups. You can start carefully introducing pups to adults at around 4-5 weeks (others may have different opinions on this, but this is just what I've done based on how active my pups are) and remember that 6 weeks is the absolute final deadline for removing males from mom.


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## cookiebear<3 (Aug 2, 2013)

I'd do a bin cage or an aquarium with a wire mesh lid if she keeps moving them to prevent any babies squirming accidentally through cage bars or falling off a shelf because momma thought moving them higher would be a good idea. And for the male there would also be the possibility of the momma becoming protective of her babies towards him and hurting him, so definitely don't introduce them yet.


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## Mene (Mar 13, 2015)

Thanks everyone for your words of wisdom.


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