# Three Possible Pregnancies. Omgosh.



## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Hello, I have a bit of a situation on hand. I went out of town for a week because my grandmother needed my assistance. Well, I come home to find a shocking sight. My mother cleaned their cages but put one of my males in with my three females. Before I left I made sure to tell her who was who but I guess she forgot. I am not sure why she did not call me because I call daily to check up on them and her. I asked how long they have been caged together and she said about five days. Needless to say I almost fainted. I don't have the heart to be upset with her but I am feeling overwhelmed with kidos and college. So how do I go about the situation? I am actually moving in with my grandmother soon to help her out. She said I can take my kidos with me. Only thing is its a very very small town and rehoming babies is going to be difficult. Not to mention I just inherited a elderly ferret from a family member.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Some random questions:
Should I separate my females when they are close to term? 
What should they eat during pregnancy?
Should their be a rehoming fee when babies are ready?
What kind of babies should I be expecting? (Male is a Blue Berkshire dumbo, My females are a mink berkshire dumbo, black capped dumbo and a black berkshire rex standard)


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## kriminologie (Mar 16, 2012)

I've heard some suggest this, but could you take them in to be spayed? Not sure of the fees or age of the females, but it seems like you could have upwards of 30 baby rats on your hands.


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## Maltey (Jun 26, 2011)

E-spays are still perfectly viable at this point (dependant on health and age) and despite the initial cost will probably end up saving you a lot of money a) with raising the litters because they cost a BOMB and b) they have such great health benefits you'll be less likely to be down the vets paying out hundreds for tumour removals etc.
If you do decide to go ahead with the litters:
Some random questions:
Should I separate my females when they are close to term? 
Yes. Females have been known to play tug of war with the babies and let's just say it's not pretty.
What should they eat during pregnancy?
Mum will need extra protein to feed her growing babies. Egg, meat, kale etc are all great.
Should their be a rehoming fee when babies are ready?
I would suggest putting up a rehoming fee to ward off unwanted snake owners.


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## echoskybound (Apr 24, 2012)

I'm not sure if you could get them spayed while pregnant... that sounds likely to end with complications, but it's worth asking a vet. Is there an animal rescue anywhere near you that would take the baby rats? Where are you located? Maybe some of us could help you find homes for the babies.

I wish I could tell you more about how to care for pregnant rats, but I think that they're supposed to be separated when they come to term, because a protective rat mom can get aggressive and prefer to be alone with their babies. I would get a few maternity tanks for birthing, then maybe move them into a cage when the babies are big enough that they won't fall through the cage bars. I think females need more protein and calcium while they're pregnant and nursing. Baby rats need to be separated by sex at about 4 weeks.

As for having a fee... I'm not sure, but I imagine having a fee that's at least more than feeder rats will ensure that they don't become snake food. Or instead of a fee, you could ask a few questions of the potential adopters to make sure that the babies go to good homes.


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## Maltey (Jun 26, 2011)

You can get them spayed whilst pregnant, which is an emergency spay (e-spay), but you don't have too long and I would only trust a very competent vet.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

If you do not decide to have an emergency spay done on your females and you do end up with an unknown amount of babies, it would be nearly impossible to tell you what to expect. The only exception to this is if you bought your rats from a breeder, in which case you should contact them immediately.

Colors, ears, and coat types can hide for many generations and when rats of unknown pedigrees breed without any specific pairings in mind. Now, there are recessive and dominant genes, so there are some things that you could not get unless both parents had the traits, but I'm not very well-learned in those specific things.

Think of it as a mystery grab bag!


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

You should separate them when they are close to giving birth, its best to use modified plastic bins or tanks instead of wire cages just because baby rats can get out, and it helps make sure they stay warm enough. though when they are older like around 2 1/2 to 3 weeks you can put them all together if you can tell them apart. they need extra protein so like meal worms or some cooked eggs or a good quality dog food would be fine to add. do put an adoption fee, of maybe $10 to keep people away from "free snake food" and also insures that they go to a good home. Also make sure to interview the potential adopters. If you need help I'm sure you can find a responsible breeder in your area who might help "advertise" the pups. A few breeders though they don't take in rescues, they typically will advertise it. its worth a try.

Now this is what you should expect, do remember that they could carry genes that we don't know of, and just because something has a chance of happening doesn't mean it will pop up.
With your mink berkshire girl, will be all dumbos, most likely all black with the chance of blue and mink, but all offspring will carry blue and mink at the very lease. expect Selfs, Berkshires, and Hoodeds.
With your black capped dumbo, expect all dumbos, most likely all black with the chance of blue. not sure on patterns though, I would say expect berkshire and hooded, along with bareback and capped.
With your black berkshire, expect all blacks with chance of blue. Selfs, Berkshires, and hoodeds. most likely half rex and half standard fur. expect manly standard/fancy/top eared rats, but Dumbo is a possibility.
With all these litters beige (ruby eyed) and champaign (pink eyed) can happen. Along with other types. Also most of the selfs will most likely have white paws or white tail tips.

You Can get an E-spay, spaying does have a lot of benefits, personally, I would rather deal with the rat pups, Unless one of your females happens to be over a year or under 4 months, then I would do the spay either after she had the pups or an E-spay. between these ages, I wouldn't worry too much. if this is their first litter expect around 8 to maybe 12, its rare for first time litters to be large, but it Does happen, so be aware of that. females under 4 months and females over a year tend to have smaller litters due to their size ad age, this isn't a benefit as it actually puts a lot of stress on their bodies and you have a higher chance of losing the mom and pups. Just make sure that if you do an E-spay on one or more of your girls, that you get a good experienced vet with a good history of survival rates. 
However I might suggest neutering your male, that way this can't happen again, and neutering has a lower risk of death then a spay.
Good luck.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Hey friends, apparently no vet in my area spays rats. There is one that sees pocket critters about 1 hr away but does not spay. So it looks like the litters are Thunder Cats are Go. I am feeling very worried. There is no pet store around where I am moving to. The closet one is two hours away. I went to the feed store in that town and asked for ratty food but they sent me to rat poison, I asked again and they gave me the weirdest looks so needless to say they had no food. My only option for food is making it myself or ordering. I was also talking with my grandmother and she said I can keep as many pets as I would like as long as they are caged and adopted out at a reasonable age. Only thing is all these critters go into my small room. It’s going to be a cluster of tanks and cages. I’m in over my head. There is a wildlife rescue that takes in domestic rats and mice for animal rehabilitation. What are your thoughts on that? This is such a hard choice. My uncle mentioned making a trailer into my animal zone, maybe if that gets done fast I have a place for them. It would be nice to keep a few. Oh and I plan to rehome my males with a family member. I don't care for the risk, even though I am confident it will not happen again. I love my kidos so much.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

I'm actually located in the Panhandle of Florida but moving to Alabama just over the state line. If interested in adopting in the future please drop me a line. I will try and update this thread and hopefully add some photos. It's been about 1wk sense then. One of my ladies stomach is plump and areas are erect. However, it is no where near tennis ball size because I assume its to early.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Making a homemade fresh mix is easy. just remember between 16 to 18% protein (since they are pregnant a little bit higher for them and their babies) around 5% fat, very low calcium and vitamin C. Vitamin K is also important. My main "mix" for my guys are made up of Carrots, Broccoli/cabbage, Blueberries (and other berries that we have) Celery, and oats. we always add in other stuff like mushrooms, celery, spinach, cooked eggs, healthy cereals (though my guys are very picky with grains, so most of their diet is made up of fruits and vegetables) and added nuts and sunflower seeds for treats. They also love Apples, bananas, herbs, and cherries, and of coarse other good stuff for them. you can get a good vegetarian dog food, simply because they have less fillers and bad stuff then carnivore dog foods, and a good wild seed mix (Dove and Quail seed mixes are the best for rats I've found) and use that stuff as the base and in a bunch of fresh foods.
Wild life centers sometimes won't give back your rats, or sometimes will even sell them for snake food. its rare, but does happen. if you have a spare room or walk in closet you can put them in there. They don't all have to be in the same room (though it would be nice). if you have time and the money you could always build a shed, but I don't think you have time for that. your grandma sounds like a nice person at lease.
Oh if you want a good sized tub for a nursery the 66 quart sterilite tubs (tops cut out and along the tops of the sides that way they have good air flow) are big enough for them to walk around with ease and get away from their pups, but not too big that the pups can get lost in the bedding (it does happen, sad, but does happen). They also have much more room then and ventilation then most tanks, and you can easily stack them, except if you do this you have to cut out most of the front part to make a homemade door (use 1/4 mesh to keep little rat pups inside). its like $10 for the tub, about $20 for a big roll of 1/4 to 1/2 mesh, and $5 to $20 for a soldering Iron or cutting knife, and a few more dollars for zip ties and that stuff. might be a little bit more expensive, but unlike tanks you can use these for quarantining new rats easier and for travel. Might help keep the room a little bit more organized.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

That sounds like a solid diet plan. Right now they are eating Mazuri, so I am going to slowly get them off it into a homemade diet. It is a good feed but hard to come by locally. As for tubs, that is a nice idea. I may have to do it. At the moment I only have three decent size cages and 1 tank.
--
Someone earlier wondered my rat’s history. I got my three girls from pet smart, and my males from a breeder. I know some don’t like the idea of adopting from pet stores but they were too cute to pass up. My girls actually was a birthday present. =)


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

The wildlife rescue will either feed these rats live to animals they are trying to get back to releasing in the wild or they will kill and freeze them as food for same animals.

Have you joined the florida rat list on either facebook or the actual forum, they might have a better idea of a vet who can help you.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

No not yet, I need to join it now. Tnx!


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

I think I found the Florida rat list forum but could not find the facebook. I am hoping they can guide me in the right direction too. I have learned very quickly not to trust yahoo answers. Someone told me to cull all the litters but I found that sad. I really want to raise the litters and adopt them out if I cannot get my girls spayed asap.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Please don't cull, sorry, I just find that morally wrong. I feel the same way with the E-spay, but not as badly as with culling when a litter is born. Don't worry all of my guys so far have come from petsmart, the same one to be exact. the rat lady there was so nice, she even admitted to playing with the animals during her breaks. explains why my Soda was so used to humans when I got him, the second I put my hand in that tank he jumped up my arm and started boggling in my ear. Now he just keeps boggling to the beat of his drummer. you say you got your males from a breeder? you should probably let that breeder know what has happened, they might be able to help (wait, we are talking about a responsible breeder right?) as these rats are part of their lines. they might also help you find homes for them.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

I'm not going to cull, a few people just suggested it but I feel very uneasy about it. I would rather raise and care for the litters. Ironically, I did contact the breeder via email and she suggested I do the same. The breeder practices culling and said she would do it for me but I said no way. Right now my option is raising the litters and adopting them out. If I cannot adopt them out it looks like I have a zoo, so hopefully my uncle can fix up that trailer soon so I can have space in my room. I think the only thing that needs to be done in the trailer is air conditioning. So if everything goes smoothly I adopt out most or all of the litters. If not I will still raise and love them but I will be officially Willard or Rat Lady. Oh my!


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

UPDATE: I just moved my kidos to Alabama. I should have two weeks left before birth if they are pregnant. I know the chances of pregnancy are high. I'm currently saving for another tank or tub. I also called some pet stores in Florida that said they would take in the babies. However, they also said there would be no guarantee they would be sold as pets so that worries me. Good thing I have been brain storming! I have come up with an adopting out plan. There is an auction held on certain days 30 minutes away and a lot of people go to it. I could make a stand and adopt them out. Not many people may be interested but its worth a shot in finding homes. Ironically, when I was younger my first two rats was adopted at a yard sale so finding a quality home is plausible. Moreover, I also plan to make adoption fliers for them and post around town. Any other ideas or advice? I really want to do the right thing.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Strawberry said:


> I think I found the Florida rat list forum but could not find the facebook. I am hoping they can guide me in the right direction too. I have learned very quickly not to trust yahoo answers. Someone told me to cull all the litters but I found that sad. I really want to raise the litters and adopt them out if I cannot get my girls spayed asap.


http://www.facebook.com/groups/68750268905/


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Uh? bad breeder then, she obviously does not care about her lines as she now has holes in her line. I wouldn't adopt from her no matter what. I wouldn't trust the auction, just makes me kind of wary, buts thats just me. I would put up fliers in your town, stating the parents, when they will be ready to go home, the fee, and how to contact you. make sure you question the new adopters to make sure that they will take good care of your rats and its not just someone who wants feeder breeders or free feeders. you can try posting ads online, might not work the best, but worth a shot. Where do you live? maybe another breeder, not the one who bred your male, might be willing to help out. They might not take them in unless they see promise in potential breeders (which is a good thing with responsible breeders, but don't expect it) or just want a pet only rat, but they might be willing to put up an "ad" on their website about the litters. its worth a shot. you're going to be having a lot of rat pups, so anything can help.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

UPDATE: My girls and boys are doing great. They are settling in nicely. I am already setting up adoptions, and a few friends of mine are interested in adopting some. I know they are good owners and have had pet rats in the past. So things are becoming less stressful. I am hoping everything goes smoothly. I am trying to pre-plan everything for the happiness of my kids.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Is this normal? One of my girls keeps wanting to fight one of my other girls. They have always got along and been caged together.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

It can be normal, some female rats when pregnant will get grouchy, just like most pregnant animals. It might be time to move her to her own cage, of coarse they might just want to play. Do you know if all of them are pregnant?


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Right now only two seemed to have gained weight. And the fighting is between one that seems heavier than before and the smallest of the three. During each fight the little one is screaming bloody murder. Then after a few minutes they get along again. It's really confusing but it sounds like screams of pain versus typical ratty play squeaks. And when they do fight the biggest girl Daisy bites at the feet of Bambi.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Sounds like just pregnant rats being grouchy, I wouldn't worry about it too much, if blood is being drawn and/or when she gets closer to her due date I would put her into her nursery cage.


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## Imaginary Evil (Jul 7, 2012)

I'm in the same situation at the moment with three of my girls accidentally pregnant. I'm really worried because a local breeder told me that there's no way that I'll cope with three litters. I don't really know what to think of that - I know that litters are a lot of work but I'm prepared.

The babies are due some time in the next 10 days (the boy was in with the girls for a week so we don't know exactly) so I'll keep you posted if you like?


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Imaginary Evil - that makes me sad, a lot of breeders due 2 to 4 litters at a time cause they would rather deal with rat politics then rat husbandry. I'm sure you'll be fine though, I would make your own threat on here to keep us updated.

Strawberry - are they still fighting?


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Bad breeders will have multiple litters, good breeders will have 2 at a time. Anyone can have lots and lots of litters, but babies take a ton of time to socialize properly, giving them a chance at being happy,confident rats and possibly staying in their forever homes that they end up in. Socializing is not just to make them adoptable, but to hopefully affect the rest of their lives in a positive way, making them friendlier and easier to handle all their lives. Three litters at a time would be very difficult even for experienced rescuers like myself.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

They were still fighting so I separated them. Daisy is in her own cage and Bambi is staying with Katie. I'm starting to feel overwhelmed again. However, either way litters are coming and I will do my best to care for them. Sometimes I even dream I am being buried by pet rats because I think about it often. I just hope I can handle it. I plan to keep updating this thread, and anyone can post and update too. I enjoy reading posts because it gives me hope. I am not sure how far along my girls are but once I get batteries in my camera I will try and post photos.


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## Imaginary Evil (Jul 7, 2012)

LightningWolf said:


> Imaginary Evil - that makes me sad, a lot of breeders due 2 to 4 litters at a time cause they would rather deal with rat politics then rat husbandry. I'm sure you'll be fine though, I would make your own threat on here to keep us updated.


Ok  I'm sorry, my intention wasn't to derail the thread, just to identify with Strawberry. I'll go make my own thread.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Strawberry,

Check out Imaginary Evil's new thread, I posted a ton of information relevant to your situation as well.


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

Hey, I checked out the info. Tnx! Also, one of my girls is not showing. I am hoping she is not pregnant. However, two of my girls do seem larger in the midsection with lower stomachs. All my kids are adjusting well to the move though.


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## Imaginary Evil (Jul 7, 2012)

Any litters yet?


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## Strawberry (Jul 19, 2012)

This is a very late post, but I have moved back to Florida. My cousin adopted my rats I had up there, so currently I have no rats. I was lucky about the suspected pregnancies. None of the girls had a litter. As much as I would love babies, I am thankful it worked out fine. Now they have a lovely home in Alabama with family. I miss them loads I must admit, sometimes I regret adopting them out to my cousin but she really loves them too. I am planning to adopt two male dumbo rex babies the first week of Feburary. I am very excited. I have not had any rat pals in my house for a few months.


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