# * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store... (Born 09/28/09)



## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

And I ended up coming home with a ready-to-pop girl.

To give you a bit of the back story... I work at a pet store and there are two stores in my town that sell live animals.. mine and a more exotic one. I live near the exotic one so I often go through to browse.. though the conditions they keep their animals in are terrible. Anyway I was in this pet store today.. when I saw a single female hairless in with 8 other males in a 20 gall long tank. Four of them were obviously her babies and I was told the adults were her brothers. Apparently she had quite a few bubs but many were sold as "snake food". She is clearly pregnant and i knew that if left at the store.. she would remain in the tank with her brothers and have a third litter.. back to back. So I bought her. I know... Bad. I hate supporting terrible pet stores but I couldn't leave her. At least with the only female gone, she won't be replenishing their supply. 

The only experience I've had with babies occured when I brought home a surprise litter from my store as we had no room for them. But even then, they were already 3 weeks when they came home with me. As it is.. I don't like babies too much. I much prefer my squishy boys  One of those girls was missing an eye and she and her sister ended up living with LilSpaz which I couldn't have been happier about .. the rest went to a wonderful rescue to be re-homed.

Anyway.. not to get off topic. I would say that she is going to have them within the next few days. The only food I have is Oxbow which is insufficient for nursing females. Give her oxbow and supplement with egg, oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, veggies? Or is there something better to feed her? I have her in a small cage suitable for 1.5 rats at the moment but a few days after she has had her babies I am going to move her into a large plastic rabbit cage I have. The rabbit cage is too big to keep in my room so I figured It would be better to keep her in a small cage and close for the time being. Will toys still interest her? And I have to make sure she has tons of nesting material right? 

Will this being her 2nd consecutive litter greatly affect the birth? What are some of the complications I should watch out for? Any thing I should avoid in terms of bedding, food, out time? Is it ok for her to have a hammock? 
Anything that you could pass on will be a great help  I am doing research and digging up old threads so I have the whole time frame of when their eyes open and how to sex them..

And she still doesn't have a name 





































These were taken moments after she got home.. I'm planning on adding a better hiding hut and toys and will post the pics after I get her place renovated.


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*










This is her cage at the moment. She`s munching on a piece of chicken


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## Gabrielle B (Jan 16, 2009)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

The cage looks great  But I would suggest a nesting box which is a bit darker so she doesnt get to stressed


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## maddy (Jul 27, 2009)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

let us know how she gets on and how many she has


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

I decided on the name Eve 

and she gave birth to 12 little bubies last night!
All are well and I'll post some baby pics tomorrow


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

... and here they are 



















*As far as I can tell there are 4 girls and 8 boys*










*The runt next to his brother*



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*Snuggled Up*



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*Making a break for it*










*Eve feasting on cheerios*










*The nest... I offered her a solid box but she chose to have her babies in the chinchilla hut instead*


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## chiklet1503 (Jun 12, 2009)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

awww cute babies!!!!! Good Momma Eve!


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## teresaisaacs (Jul 31, 2009)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

well done eve! hope all goes well for her brood xxx


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

*Re: * sigh* So, today I was at a local pet store...*

I would remove the chinchilla hut. I have heard stories of momma rats bumping up the plastic house and it lands on a wee baby, trapping and injuring/killing it 

I prefer nice light boxes (no bottoms) or just a lot of paper towel to make a nest. Most of my mom's preferred the nests only 

Cute little eepers 

The cage is perfect as a maternity cage..I would leave her there until the bubs open their eyes and start to motor around. The rabbit cage, is it meshed to prevent babies slipping through the bars?


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

You were right about the dangers of the hut.. Eve ended up squishing three of her babies Sunday night. I was amazed at how attached I'd gotten in just a few days.. It was heartbreaking finding them like that </3 It was two of the baby girls and the runt, who was a little boy.

Here are the 9 remaining little bubies


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

RIP little ones  the post about the hut was just a little too late. Hope the others continue to do well.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Were the babies just dead or were they actually under the hut and crushed?

I am sorry about your wee ones, I cried over my little Zotz who died within 24 hours of birth. She seemed incapable of nursing or processing food...


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

They were in the hut but it looked as though they had been crushed under her weight. I don't think there was enough room for them to spread out in the bottom, to avoid taking the full brunt of her weight?

And the rabbit cage is similar to this one
http://www.guineapigcages.com/images/zoozonelg.jpg.. 

The babies are starting to grow their fur so new pics soon  I've also been around to the local exotic vet clinics to post some advertisements about them and I've had some interest in them from some of my friends.. The adoption process will soon be in full swing


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## maddy (Jul 27, 2009)

aw, that's great that you'll be able to get them adopted ok

r i p little baby's that didn't make it
congratulations to eve for giving birth to them with no problems


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## shinzo-chan (Apr 2, 2008)

It's so sad when things like this happen, but well done for rescuing her, she's such a beautiful girl! Sorry about the babies that died, that must be awful  I helped raise a litter of mice babies when my old mouse, Horo, got preggers (we thought she was male), we couldnt find any rescues or homes nearby and my folks made us take them to the nearest pet shop... I cried so much leaving them there, I couldnt even watch them be put into their new cages  My point is that it suprises you how much you get attached to the little things ^^''

I'm glad that you are finding homes for the babies to go to, will you be keeping Eve?


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## elizabethrae. (Dec 24, 2008)

The bubies now have their eyes open! And they are getting much more active









Eve & Bubs


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Aladdin & Dimitri









Leo









Leo









Avalon









Nixon & Aladdin


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Ariel




































Nixon









Alexander









Steve & Nixon









Alexander, Leo & Ariel









Ariel is lost 


















Eve









Eve


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## shinzo-chan (Apr 2, 2008)

omg they're SOOOO cute! >o< I wants one! >w< I bet Eves a good mummy rattty =3 Shes just as cute as her babies, lol. I'd love a nakie but I'd probably freak over the little cuts they can get just from scratching themselves - let alone fighting/playing.. they seem so fragile (skin wise)  Plus my partner thinks they're gross, lmao. (He's so wrong!! >w<)

Great job on raising the babies =3 I hope they all find their forever homes n____n


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