# Rescue rat... bad mama?



## Smarion0006 (Nov 13, 2014)

I have been having problems with a rescue rat and her litter. The babies are 4 days old and I notice that she isn't really feeding them. She prefers spending her time grooming herself, laying around, eating, but doesn't really go near her babies that often. I checked when they were first born and they had milk bands, but now when I check NONE of them have a milk band. It's stressing me out because they babies are so small. I have been feeding her eggs, chicken, nuts, seeds, fruits and veggies to help her with her milk production since she had 15 little ones. I'm worried since this is my first litter. Is there a way to make her more interested in her babies?


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Reduce the cage size/tank size.


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## Smarion0006 (Nov 13, 2014)

I have her in a bin type cage, I think it's 66 liters or something like that. How much smaller would you suggest?


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Some people choose a 20-gal size bin to promote nursing, then upgrade back to a big one when the kits are older.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

At 4 days it could be that their skin has thickened enough so that it's no longer transparent which means you won't see milk bands anymore. Downsize as nanashi said and see what happens. Watch your babies closely for weight loss and you might even want to mark one and weigh it on a kitchen scale daily. You should only see gain, no loss. If you haven't already, you might want to prepare yourself with infant soy formula to hand feed (if you have time to even attempt that). I think the fact that she's doesn't look stressed is a good sign and she may just be feeding them and you don't catch her at it.


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## Smarion0006 (Nov 13, 2014)

I will take your suggestions. I will be buying a smaller bin tomorrow and will begin weighing one. I did buy some infant forumla and visited the vet for some small syringes just in case. I hand fed my first rat so I am completely prepared to do that, but she was 2 weeks old when I rescued her. 4-5 days old is a whole different ball game. Is it possible to keep them alive by syringe feeding them when they are so small?


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

Possible, just difficult. I think that people have had luck with small paint brushes for feeding ones that young.


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