# Few Questions Regarding Abandoned Babies



## tranquil (Aug 26, 2012)

Hello everyone. I have a few questions regarding 2 baby male rats I acquired last night. First a little history: I responded to an ad on Kijiji stating a breeder had some 6 week old baby rats that needed to be rehomed. I was looking for 2 males so it seemed to be destiny. After an hour drive there, I find that the babies are way too young. I'm no expert but I think 2-3 weeks old? The mother is no where in sight and these little guys are shivering and shaking. Being the soft hearted person I am, I took them home knowing that I really shouldn't have but I couldn't say no after holding them. 

First question that I have is: roughly how old are they? (Tanner is the first one, Remy is the second)
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Second question: What should I be feeding them? I bought some infant formula and have been feeding them with an eyedropper. They have been picking at my rat food mix I have for my other rats. I have no seen them drink any water but I am unsure if they know how to drink out of a bowl or water bottle. I have a very shallow dish with water and a water bottle up now incase they use it.

Third question: Is there anything else I can do for them in terms of enrichment, socialization, exercise, personal care? They seem to be defecation on their own. They can walk but it is more like a crawl and they cling on to everything when held. They also seem to seek warmth, like my fleece blankets and sweater.

Current living arrangements: large bin, lined with fleece and fleece blankets for warmth/shelter, crushed rat food in shallow bowl, water bottle on side of bin with shallow bowl under with water. I am handfeeding them every 3-4 hours atm and handling them every few hours. Any added information would be great appreciated .


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## alida (Dec 14, 2013)

they look over 2 weeks to me. My babies at 2 weeks could drink soy formula out of a shallow dish. I would try that and just replace it 3-4 times a day. My babies also started eating cheerios, fresh veggies ect when they were just over 2 weeks.


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Look to be three weeks old, given their size an eyes. 

Soak the rat blocks in soy milk. If you have a gentle rat, he could meet them and show them behaviors they should be getting from mom. 
If not, put yogurt on the bottle / squirt them with it. 
Make sure they have extra protein, 18%. 

They need to be in a wired cage with all the furnishings a grown rat would get but with more attention given to bar spacing and fall distance. 


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## tranquil (Aug 26, 2012)

I have two 6 week old males in a modified ferret nation. Could I introduce them to these little guys? I'm hoping to get them together in the ferret nation eventually.


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Take the calmer of the two and one baby and see. It would seem so, since your boys are so young. 


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