# Is she pregnant?



## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Hi there,

We recently (2 weeks ago) bought two female rats from the pet store for our children. They are both such loving rats and the kids absolutely adore them.

For the 1st couple of days I noticed they were fighting a bit in the cage but after doing some research I soon understood that this was normal as they are establishing dominance and it died down not long after. The bigger female was clearly the "alpha" in the cage and all was well after that.

Over the past 4-5 days I have noticed some drastic changes. Suddenly the roles have reversed and the smaller rat is now A LOT bigger than her cagemate and has become very aggressive. I am concerned that maybe she was pregnant when we got her. 

Her fur seems to be a lot scruffier than usual and her stomach is noticeably bigger. She used to be very placid but now she bites when you put your fingers through the cage and tries to run away when you are holding her. She is very greedy - constantly stealing food from her cagemate or stopping her from eating by hovering over all the food.

I'm very new to all this so any help would be much appreciated. Thanks so much in advance


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

it could well be that she's pregnant, could you get a photo of her? Also what country are you based in, here in the UK if the petshop sold them to you pregnant they have to support you through the litter.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

I'm in Australia. Can post a photo of her tomorrow. The man at the pet store said he was happy to have her back with the babies if she did turn out to be pregnant. He couldn't guarantee that she hadn't come in contact with a male. E was dry kind.It's late now but will try and get a photo of her in morn, she barely sits still now though so might be a bit difficult.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Even some of my very experienced friends have brought home pregnant adult female rats. And yes some do tend to become more agressive or at least sensative to rough handling.

Depending on the ages of your kids and available cage space she might make for an interesting "biology project" assuming you have a way to adopt out the babies. I let my daughter have a pregnant white mouse and it turned into a remarkable learning experience. So where do babies come from? They magically appear in a pregnant mouse's (or rat's) nest one fine morning. So it's not all bad. Yippie, one difficult parenting conversation postponed. I'm pretty sure that my wife filled in the details with the mouse must have been married at the pet shop, but I'm not going there. Handling and playing with the babies was also great fun for my daughter.

All in all, rats have rather fast pregnancies and after you adopt out the pups, you have the advantage that your momma rattie is less likely to have mamary tumors and other health problems having delivered a litter which makes for another up side.

So, not to panic, things may not be as bad as they seem...


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Here are some photos. I wasn't 100% sure what position/angle you were looking for so took a few














































Hope these help.

My kids are quite young.. 3 and 1. My 3 year old might really get something out of it as she has been a bit confused about the fact that I have a baby in my belly. I told her that her rat may also have some babies in her belly 

I am not stressing out in anyway, I would just like to be prepared.

Another question, if she is pregnant, should I take her friend out of the cage? I don't really have anywhere to put her but i'm sure i could figure something out


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## sherriwat (Oct 7, 2012)

no expert here, but she looks like my big mama did when i brought big mama home and she had 13 babies the day after i brought her home. though she could just be chunky.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

she was half this size two weeks ago when we got her lol. I don't know if she is just being super greedy with the food or if there are babies in there.


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## sherriwat (Oct 7, 2012)

ok if she was mine i would say she is preggo especially if she gained weight fast over a short time. now if i had just bought her and she come to me like that id have no clue id just assume she is fat lol. i would venture to say she is preggo as her belly looks exactly like big mamas did. though again no expert


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

She is definally pregnant. 

As for her friend, it depends. for some rats its ok, the other female will help taking care of the young by keeping them warm while mom gets food. Some though will harass the female and scatter the babies due to hormones. Most will seperate them at lease in till they are 2 to 3 weeks old. 

Make sure to put mom into a Tank or converted plastic tub, even day old pups are known to get out (or be kicked out) of a wire cage and die.

Since one of your kids is 3 let her know that you most likely won't see the birth, rats can get stressed out by people watching but they normally give birth around 12 to 5 AM. Also let her know that not all the babies are guarantee to survive, some will be still born and some will die in the 1st week (not always but its not uncommon for still born or to die at a day or two old). She may be young but if she is good with handling them let her be a part of it. Let her count the babies every day and when they are bigger handle them. Little kids typically are more mature then you think, well most are. Just make sure that if anything happens you don't lie to her.

Make sure to handle the babies as soon as possible, it will make them nice towards humans. rats will not eat their young if they are handled by you. Actually some females will actually try to hand you their babies because they see you as a member of their colony so expect you to act like one and baby sit for them. Though most females will want to be near their babies but will typically let you handle them and while you do they will go and get a drink and something to eat.

Lovely girl by the way  I love albinos.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Honestly I am feeling a little excited now that I have heard your feedback. 

Ok so guess the next step is preparing for birth right? I'm guessing she will go into labour within the next week sometime. 

Tips please!!  Should i be changing her diet anything in the cage? I honestly wouldn't know the 1st thing about looking after baby rats. I'm guessing mumma will do most of the work but is there anything i should know? Do they need to be kept in a certain temp room or something?


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Increase protein and fat by adding in seeds, nuts, insects, and cooked eggs.

You would want to move her to a tank/converted plastic tub.

Mom will do most of the work, but you will want to make sure she has plenty of nesting material, like fleece scraps or newspaper (they will rip it up themselves). Some will provide a box or simply cover the tank/tub with a large blanket. Most prefer the second because you can see the babies easier and it keeps heat in. Mom will keep the temperature in the nest the right temp. so no need to worry about that.

Babies are weaned between 4 and 5 weeks old. If you search online or even on here (the Accidental litters section) you can find a lot of information on this.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Here is a pic of the both of them. As you can see ****** is a lot bigger. 2 weeks ago she was a lot smaller than Stripey. 











Also wanted to share this photo of ****** from when we first got her.. SO CUTE!!


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Ok thanks for that. Should I move her into the tub on her own? The two of them haven't been getting along so well the past few days. It's mostly at feeding time that ****** becomes very aggressive and chases poor Stripey around the cage trying to steal her food.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Yeah I would separate her.

Aw she is so adorable. This is just making me want an Albino more and more.

Curious, what type of cage are they in? Sorry it just looks odd.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

At the moment they are in an old bird cage that we have put beds and things to climb on. 

Looking into getting them a proper rat cage over the next couple of weeks. Had a look at some of the houses people have posted on this forum and it has sparked the creative side in me


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

ohh and i'm in the middle of cleaning all their stuff so we have temp newspaper liner and plastic bowls lol


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Oh, ok. nothing wrong with bird cages. If your looking for bigger cages Craigslist and sometimes even Hoobly is your friend.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

I want something around the same size as what I have now but with levels in it. Maybe even look into making levels in the one they are using now. Had a look on eBay but haven't seen anything that has really caught my eye yet.. Besides all those HUGE cages which is a bit out of our price range


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Making levels is easy, Pieces of Coroplast (you can get it at a sign shop) can be cut to size and zip-tied. an 18 inch by 2 ft here is I want to say $10? Plus you can get it in colors. 4 ft by 8 ft is $25 if you ever needed that much. Wire can also be cut to size and hung up but will need fleece over it, even plastic tubs or litter boxes are hung up in the larger cages for levels And digging/litter boxes since some rats like to be on litter more then on stuff like fleece.

You could also get a similar cage, take out the bottom pan and the top wire part of your cage and make it one big cage, or put them together side ways by taking out the side grids. Just suggestions.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Oooo you're full of good ideas. I think I'll have to look into all that before considering buying a brand new cage. Thanks


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

HAHAHAHA there is no denying this is one VERY pregnant female. I just looked in their cage to find her laying on her back - legs spread, boobies popping out- Very lady like. LOL i feel like joining her. Bubby in my tummy starting to take up lots of room too so I'm feeling her exhaustion


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

As to a breeding home for your girls there are two easy methods, first an old aquarium with a heavy mesh top (window screen is too flimsey), cracked glass or leaker is ok and cheap or free from the curb and the second is a tupperware type tub with air holes and / or a hatch added to the top. Both will provide better shelter for the pups than an open bar cage... 

I hate to admit it, but the tupperware breeder is likely the best if not the only good thing that BYB's ever gave the hobby. It provides privacy, cuts drafts and prevents babys from getting lost aside for being cheap temporary housing.


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

I personally use a low narrow bar spaced cage for birthing and for the first few weeks. It's fairly common here in the UK to use them, but we have pretty steady weather here (average weather in summer and winter seems to be mild with rain...). Here's a pic for ideas if you can't get hold of a tub;










If you go this route bar spacing needs to be less than 1cm (around 1/4 inch or less) and try and get one with several doors, they will be useful later. The advantage of a birthing cage over a tank is you can add things later when the babies first start being mobile. It's also better ventalated, but you do have to put it in a draft proof place.

Also it can be worth adding some sort of shelter, I've got a child's plastic stool in this one which is easy to remove to check babies and open enough not to overheat the babies. I tend to use a towel draped over one end now though, it gives some cover and shade but allows for maximum nest building space.

She looks ready to pop, the nipples get prominant right before birth. If its any help I have a doe here on day 21 who is about to move into her birthing cage, she doesn't yet have obvious nipples. Most rats give birth on day 23, though day 22 and 24 are also common. You'll know she's close to giving birth when she starts nest building and wants to stay there. Leave her alone then, just keep an ear open. After a while you may here chirping noises, this is the babies calling for food. It's worth popping in and checking on them but leave them be if mum can't be tempted off the nest as she may not have finished. A few hours afterwards you can have a quick check. I would tempt mum off the nest and have a quick check over of the babies, typically looking for nice clear milkbands and if there's time sexing them provisionally. Then leave them be overnight. 

Make sure that mum has some yummy wet food available, cat food, bird egg food, scrambled egg and such are really useful. Offering her some puppy or kitten milk in a bottle is often appreciated too. She probably won't eat loads in the first 24 hours. She will eat the placenta and that's a good meal. If there are any babies still born (which does happen occasionally, especially in big litters) you can leave them and mum will clear them up, often people prefer to remove them though.

Best of luck, and I hope its a nice small litter.


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## 18snickers (Sep 4, 2012)

She looks how my little girl did about 5 days before she had her babies


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm getting excited. She is all set up in her box.. Now just to play the waiting game


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

I feel sorry for stripey though. I can tell she misses her already


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

A day or two after she’s had the babies you can let them play together for a little while each day. I take my mums out for a bit of time to play with their sisters a couple times a day. At first she can’t (and won’t want to) be off the nest for long, 10-15 minutes max, but as they get older, especially once they get fur then she can spend longer times away. I normally take her out and let her pop in and visit her cagemates whilst I check on the babies and handle them a little. If she appears stressed and desperate to get back then you’ll have to limit this time to being very short, however if she’s happy and the babies are furred you can give her a few times a day to keep her sister company. If she has a fair number then by the time there eyes are open and there starting to want to explore she’ll be deperate for a bit of peace and quiet lol. One of my friends had a litter of 15 once and mum would shoot out of the cage as soon as the door was open. You couldn’t blame her, at that stage as soon as she was put back in the cage she had 15 little terrors chasing her round the cage looking to feed.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

UPDATE: Mumma had her babies last night. She is doing really well. I can count about 15 but didn't want to disturb her too much. Just wanted to make sure she was ok. Will leave her alone for the next 24 hours so she can bond with her new gorgeous little babies. Wow! So glad I found this site in time lol. So happy and excited


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Congrats 

Now you just need to post pictures of them as soon as possible


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Congratulations, and I agree with the photos, definitly required.


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## lissy (Oct 11, 2012)

I've put up a photo in meet my rats. Thread is called "meet our 16 new family members" they are toooooo cute


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## Rat-1- (Jul 22, 2012)

Yeah i saw them they're so cute


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