# Can a rat get pregnant through cage bars?!



## aqualaureena (Jun 2, 2007)

GUTTED. I think my tailless rat maybe pregnant which is v.dangerous as I've been told tailless females can't give birth cause they have deformed hips. My friends boy rat was round for a couple of days but she stayed in the cage. I checked that she couldn't get out but I've just been talking to my friend and she said it probably is possible. I feel like a complete fool cause thinking about it it probably is. She's nesting like I don't know what and drinking loads. I'm going to ring the vet but when I took her last time the vet hadn't even seen a tailless. What other signs is there that she sould be pregnant? She seems to have a brown blob sort of on her lady bits. It could be muck but I really couldn't tell. I feel like such a prat. My friend and his rat went yesterday but it could have happened up 3 days ago. Any feed back would be amazing!


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## coliekumar (Jan 21, 2009)

They can most def. get preggers through the bars. It is hard to tell so soon if she is pregnant, but keep watching her tummy and her nipples and you should probably know soon.


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## ration1802 (Sep 25, 2007)

What kind of cage do you have?

This whole preg through the bars thing is almost myth. It's very very unlikely to happen so if he was just running around the cage, maybe even climbing on it ... that's not cause for concern right away.

IF there is going to be the chance of this happening, it requires some clever acrobatics on both rats parts. If you have smaller bar spacing, again, it makes this all the less likely to have happened.


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## Soybean (Feb 11, 2009)

It is most definitely not a myth. Female rats CAN get pregnant through the bars of a cage. If you had a loose male at any point, your female was at risk of getting pregnant. I would keep an eye on her. If she got pregnant, she should start showing 1.5-2 weeks after conception (that is my experience). She will look like a pear. Either that or she has swallowed two small tennis balls.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

A female rat has to be able to perform lordosis (the arched back and raising of her nether regions for the male to grasp her and mate her...cage bars kind of prevent this. 

It is a myth unless you have some strange cage.

http://www.ratbehavior.org/WhatIsMyRatDoingFAQ.htm#Lordosis

2.3 Why does my female rat freeze and arch her back?

Female rats freeze, arch their backs downward, push their rumps upwards, and move their tails to one side when they are in heat (every 4 days or so). This position is the female mating posture, called lordosis. *Lordosis makes copulation possible*. Lordosis is a reflex that is triggered by a touch on the flanks when the female is in heat. This touch is supposed to come from a male rat as he mounts the female, but a human can trigger lordosis too by touching the female on the lower back when she is in heat..


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## aqualaureena (Jun 2, 2007)

Well I have booked her for the vets in 2 weeks time. The vet said he had had never known birthing problems with tailless but some rather graphic stuff I have looked up on the internet suggests other wise. Her cage bars are about 1 and a half cm apart. Just your bog standard rodent cage really. Because she is a rumpy (born without a tail and with a massive bum) and her arse sticks out all the time anyway I don't know whether that would make it easier?! Just have to wait and see I guess! On a very light note the dad is a dumbo so the kits could potentially be dumbo tailless, how cute! Really hope that she isn't though. Also she is 2 which could make things rather complicated.


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## ration1802 (Sep 25, 2007)

At that age it could make things incredibly complicated.

Although, luck again rests on your side being that female rats go through a form of menopause. Usually they are infertile by that age (it can begin as early as 18 months I believe) but there have been cases to the contrary.

I really don't think you have an issue, but if her strange health issues persist I would take her to the vets now rather than later as you could have another issue on your hands


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## aqualaureena (Jun 2, 2007)

I let her out today and normal service has resumed! I think what looked like nesting was just her getting all the bedding back that the boy rat had pulled through the bars. She's drinking normally again and seems relaxed. It could have just been that a strange rats scent freaked her out a bit I guess cause she is gettin on a bit now. I'm gonna keep an eye on her and then decide whether to take her to the vets still. Thanks very much for all the advice.


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