# Baby Rat Weight Gain



## CarolineRose (Nov 18, 2011)

First off, I hope I posted this is the correct area (I'm new here).

About a three and a half weeks ago (my how time flies with ratties) I fell head over heals for two baby rats at a local pet store. I know pet stores aren't recommended, but you didn't see the little faces glaring at me from across the store. I'm not sure what type or size they are but Willow is a dark gray and white hooded and Charlotte is mostly dark gray with a little white on her belly and paws. Their mother seemed to be a good sized rat though and an excellent mother (17 babies, oh my!) Anyway based on the size of their siblings Willow was the runt but by far the most outgoing of the bunch. I listened to their lungs in the store and they sounded clear of congestion and clicks.
They are now 8 1/2 weeks or so and I'm worried about their sizes. Willow is still a little smaller than her sister but she is slowly catching up. I just weighed them so I'll list them for you:
Today's Weights:
Willow: 175 grams
Charlotte: 178 grams
Last Week's Weights:
Willow:152 grams
Charlotte: 157 grams
Every weight chart I've found tells me that they are the size of 5 to 6 week old rats. Needless to say this worries me. They appear to be eating (Harlan Teklad 8604) well, drinking plenty of water, and are the most active I've seen them (their cage is next to my bed... why do they have to be nocturnal.) A couple weeks ago Willow started a low level wheezing sound and Charlotte became lethargic and sneezy. I took them to the vet one week ago today, she thought they had a secondary infection and prescribed Amoxicillin Thihydrate (Clavamox), 0.1 cc, every 12 hrs for 2 weeks. Its bubble gum flavor, figures I get two of the pickiest rats on earth and they won't eat it. (Extra tid bit: they like sweet potatoes and peas mixed with their medicine but not carrots, squash, donuts, bananas, or baby rice???) So after about 3 treatments Willow stopped wheezing completely and Charlotte perked up quite a bit (she still sneezes, I'm thinking she either has myco or is allergic to something in my house, any ideas? PS: They use fleece bedding, washed in dreft baby soap, and Yesturday's News in the litter pan, no one in my family smokes or sprays other chemicals like air fresheners in the air).

The main question I have is:  Is their current weight acceptable for their age, if not what foods or supplements can I give them to help give them a boost(like Pedisure or something)?

Sorry this is so long, I had a lot of built up commentary to get out.

Oh and I will be adding a couple pictures of my rats so you can see their sizes overall.


----------



## CarolineRose (Nov 18, 2011)

Charlotte's really nervous being out on the bed without Willow, can you tell?

I apologize for the poor lighting, my room was completely dark before I tried to take these pictures and I didn't want to shock their eyes with a flask or bright lights. And I included a ruler for a size reference


Here's a quick video of them on my bed. Sorry for the creepy hand gestures I was trying to find out where my hand was in the frame, hehe ^-^


----------



## Birds_Will_Fly (Dec 7, 2011)

My rattie only weighed 61g at 9weeks. He then went upto 92g at 10weeks so compared to mine yours seem to be doing quite well as far as weight gain goes!


----------



## Bright.Side (Dec 19, 2011)

If you really want to give them a boost, I can tell you what I've done with my babies. I was worried that their mom was going to die and they were only half weaned. 

Canned veggies and kitten formula. The veggies tend to be super soft for them and they go INSANE over them. My girls do, I mean. Add in a nice warm bottle of tastiness, and they flip. The kitten formula was suggested to me by my vet, though I know that some of the folk on here will suggest certain infant formulas and such like that(I've never tried them, so can't personally recommend). My girls are healthy and shot up like little bean sprouts. Fat little bean sprouts. 

And on the other note... Yours are adoreable! Soooo cute.


----------



## Maltey (Jun 26, 2011)

I reckon their weight's pretty good. My two babies were supposedly 9 weeks, and only weighed 115g when I got them- they were tiny little things. I tried to bulk them up but they seem stuck being really small 
One thing though- is the sweet potato cooked? Because they can't have it raw.
Other than that, they seem very sweet


----------

