# General advice for a 2 week old litter?



## LostKashi (Oct 22, 2021)

We found Kashi in the alley behind our apartment about 2 weeks ago. She crawled under the fence went nose-to-nose with our dog and I had a feeling she wasn't a wild rat (she is the albino kind and didn't seem to mind people) so we tracked her down and caught her. While we were looking for her we found a cardboard box that had been taped up and had a corner chewed out and it smelled kind of "ratty" so my guess is someone threw her out. 

Anyways, we decided to keep her and she had a litter of nine about a day or two after we found her. As far as I can tell (I've never had rats before) she is being a super great mom. The babies will be 2 weeks on Saturday and seem to being doing well. I wanna start handling them soon to get them used to people. Mom will come to the door (they are in a tall wire cage) to get snacks and tolerates light touch but is very protective of the babes. 

Any tips on socializing without stressing mom too much or just anything to be mindful of as they are growing up? The plan for now is to keep 2 of the girls and then keep the rest for a few weeks (months??) until we can adopt them out. I've never had rats before and I've mostly just been reading old posts so any and all advice is appreciated. Thank you!!!!


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## Mkd (Mar 24, 2021)

Don't really have any suggestions but you are a special and wonderful person for your adoption and care for this creature that had no hope until you arrived. Kharma will shine a light upon soul and the world needs more people like you.


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## LostKashi (Oct 22, 2021)

Mkd said:


> Don't really have any suggestions but you are a special and wonderful person for your adoption and care for this creature that had no hope until you arrived. Kharma will shine a light upon soul and the world needs more people like you.


Thank you so much for your kind words  I definitely feel lucky to have found her. Given all she has been through she is so sweet and I feel like we got her at just the right time.


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## TwilxghtRat (Nov 27, 2020)

Make sure that you separate the boys and girls as soon as possible. There are lots of horror stories of people ending up with 50+ rats because of a mix up. That being said, it‘s so great of you to take ownership of Kashi and it’s good that she’s doing well! It seems like you’ve got things under control, your plan seems good.


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## TwilxghtRat (Nov 27, 2020)

Forgot to add, babies should be separated by gender at 4 weeks, the age at which they can impregnate the mother.


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## RatCrazyGirl (Feb 7, 2021)

LostKashi said:


> Thank you so much for your kind words  I definitely feel lucky to have found her. Given all she has been through she is so sweet and I feel like we got her at just the right time.


We’re do you live? I’m in San Jose and looking for 2 rats!


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## LostKashi (Oct 22, 2021)

TwilxghtRat said:


> Forgot to add, babies should be separated by gender at 4 weeks, the age at which they can impregnate the mother.


Thank you for this! I was planning on separating them around then so thank you for confirming. Do you think will I be able to sex them or will a vet need to do it? I don't wanna mess up and like you said end up with 50 rat babes.


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## LostKashi (Oct 22, 2021)

RatCrazyGirl said:


> We’re do you live? I’m in San Jose and looking for 2 rats!


Ahh I wish we were closer! You seem like you'd be a perfect home. Unfortunately I'm in Columbus, OH.


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## TwilxghtRat (Nov 27, 2020)

LostKashi said:


> Thank you for this! I was planning on separating them around then so thank you for confirming. Do you think will I be able to sex them or will a vet need to do it? I don't wanna mess up and like you said end up with 50 rat babes.


You can definitely sex them yourself, just make sure that you are positive of the gender of each baby before separating them. If you have any concerns while sexing them, just post a picture on here and we will help you!


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## LostKashi (Oct 22, 2021)

Will do, thank you!!


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