# Yuna the littlest runt



## moonkissed

Little Yuna is my little miracle so far.... I keep praying for her every day afraid that I will find her gone and always so happily amazed that she is still here fighting!

She was the runt that ended up kicked out of her nest. Her mom didn't kick her out it was an accident with a very young new mom. So little Yuna was not in the best shape with her new found life.

While her siblings were showing pigment and then soon after fuzz, poor Yuna still looked like a little pinkie!

I was having to supplement her on my own as well as rotate her sibs out so she could get a full belly. She always was super active, my little fighter.

She is now 16 days old. It is a miracle she has made it this long and the fight is not over. She has gotten her pigment, her fuzz and now furr. Her little eyes are even open now. She is still much smaller then the rest but just as active!


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## Marie5656

Aww-those little feets. Hope she does well for you!!


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## moonkissed

To update.... Yuna is still going strong  She turned 6 weeks old on Tuesday 10-20-15. I was so afraid she wouldn't make it but she did!

She is still itty bitty tiny. Her weight the other day was 2.05oz which is pretty tiny for her age and compared to her siblings. One of her brothers was 5.25oz, and her sisters were 4.2oz & 3.7oz, which is quite a difference in so little sizes.

She is very healthy physically & mentally so far. She doesnt realize that she is a tiny baby and keeps right up with everyone else. She has even been a bratty little escape artist, testing my rat proofing skills with her tiny size. 
There is still a worry about her having health issues in the future but she is a fighter so I am feeling good about her!

I just love her to pieces 

23days:










6 weeks:


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## gin

Awww she's so cute! I'm glad she's doing well, she's got a great human mum looking after her


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## moonkissed

gin said:


> Awww she's so cute! I'm glad she's doing well, she's got a great human mum looking after her


aww thanks!


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## RattyTriplet

The cutest thing ever!! I fell in love with her just from this post so I can only imagine how special she is to you! Keep those updates and pics coming


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## Ratloved

Awwwwwww! She is the cutest thing. I love the last picture, she is posing for us. "Look how cute I am", lol


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## moonkissed

My favorite thing is that my girls all pile in one hammock to sleep and she will just be this little ball on top of them all.  It is truly adorable.

Everytime you come near the cage she climbs to the very top to get close to you.


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## Augustine

Oh gosh, what a little cutie! I love her colors.

She sounds so sweet.


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## Love My Rats

aww what a cute  are you keeping her?


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## moonkissed

Augustine said:


> Oh gosh, what a little cutie! I love her colors.
> 
> She sounds so sweet.


She is Russian Blue. I am quite fond as well. I love her spattering of markings. 



Love My Rats said:


> aww what a cute  are you keeping her?


Yep I am keeping her  After all this I had to keep her! Plus I just couldnt sell a rat that isn't perfectly healthy and while she seems fine she may have issues in the future and is soooo tiny still she does need some extra care.


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## Luuucy

Any updates on Yuna?


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## moonkissed

She is great! I am so in love with her. She doesn't really enjoy free range time, which is probably best for me she is so tiny! 

She is ultra hyper. She just bounces around nonstop. She bounces off all my other girls, and they all just let her lol Her new favorite thing is climbing to the very top of the cage, hanging upside down and then letting go... thank god for hammocks lol She also likes to take flying leaps off shoulders. She thinks she is part flying squirrel perhaps!!

She has gotten bigger but is still tiny she weighs about 80-100g I need to reweigh her as she was not in the mood to sit still lol She is just this tiny little thing. It is precious though seeing her sleeping on top of all the girls or snuggled under them!

Ignore the poop lol

















In about 3 weeks I am getting a female dwarf, so she will have a friend close to her size lol!
The black one


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## moonkissed

Size comparisons 

with Sansa (9 months) & Charlie









With her mom Charlie (4 months old)


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## Luuucy

Aww. She's so cute. So are your other rats!


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## moonkissed

Luuucy said:


> Aww. She's so cute. So are your other rats!


Thanks!


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## JustAGirlAndHerRats

She's so cute!! Hope the little darling is still doing good.


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## Fraido

Curious as to how she's more at risk for health issues when she gets older just because she was the runt? Or is there another reason?


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## moonkissed

Fraido said:


> Curious as to how she's more at risk for health issues when she gets older just because she was the runt? Or is there another reason?


It isn't so much her being the runt, like she wasn't a normal runt. She was kicked out of the nest at 2 days old for a large chunk of time, over night. It is literally a huge miracle that she lived. In general being a runt, if just smaller, may just mean they are not quite as strong as the others, as they didn't get as much milk but there may be no noticeable difference. In her case, it is a bit more extreme. She was far behind not only in size but also development. 

But because of that she missed out on alot of nutrition and warmth during an important period of development, it could have huge lasting impacts on her health that is unseen. Her body could be far weaker & even underdeveloped. She could have had serious mental issues, but I do not believe she does luckily! If she for example got a URI there is a real chance that she would not survive even with treatment because her body would not be strong enough to fight it off. And she is at risk to live a shorter life.

I wanna say I was very lucky with her. It helped that her mom came from a good line and was strong & healthy (even as a very young and new mom) and didnt have a very large litter. And that I worked hard to keep her alive with additional feedings and rotating the babies out. In most cases runts will not survive. Actually when I had this litter, I knew quite a few people with litters and runts, and all of the runts passed except Yuna. I would say some people would probably have let her go & one could argue if I did the right thing or not in that moment. At the time she was looking at being a failure to thrive and it could have been a very sad way for her to go. But even as that tiny baby, right away she was a fighter and she was very active and seemed strong. so I did all I could for her. 

I also knew I would be able to keep her as a pet and cover any health issues she ever has. 

But honestly I have a good feeling about her. She is doing very well. She is super active and strong. I wouldn't say I have no worries, because I do. But I have a good feeling that she is going to be fine now.


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## InuLing

This gives me hope for my little runt. She's only 5 days old but not gaining any weight at all. She's showing pigment and her ears are opening at the same rate as her siblings though. It's making me worry for her. Your story gives me a little extra hope that she'll make it. Thank you so much for sharing.


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## moonkissed

InuLing said:


> This gives me hope for my little runt. She's only 5 days old but not gaining any weight at all. She's showing pigment and her ears are opening at the same rate as her siblings though. It's making me worry for her. Your story gives me a little extra hope that she'll make it. Thank you so much for sharing.


I wish her the best!

It is so hard seeing runts like this and I won't lie most do not make it, by far  And it can be heartbreaking.

But there is hope! I suggest feeding her formula on her own to help & also you can rotate the babies so remove the others and let her have alittle bit of time with mom alone to feed so no one pushes her out of the way. Sometimes babies will just be a little behind and then boom they seem to hit a growth spurt! 

I will keep her in my thoughts!


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