# I need help!!!



## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

sorry this is so long, i just wanted to make sure i got everything i could think of that would help get me the answers i need

I have a problem. One of my friends and myself got a new rat a little over a month ago. To be exact it was June 7th. When i first got her my father and myself guessed she was about 3 to 4 weeks old. the pet store i got her from had them separated but im not sure when they had been separated, if it was just that morning that i got her or a week before it.

anyway, we got her home and got her all set up in her cage, except 2 days later i noticed that she had not been drinking her water, and that she was barely eating, and that she looked really skinny and unhealthy looking. I showed her where the water was again and she drank for about 5 minutes straight (she acted like she didnt even know it was in the cage with her) i went back to the store and got her the same lab blocks that she got when she was there and she started eating right too, and bulked up and got healthy looking again.

then friday night (the 11th) i was taking her out to play with her and i noticed she was being extra skittish (she was skittish when we first got her, then as she grew used to me she got a little better about not running to a corner of the cage) to the point where i had to keep my hand in the cage for 5 minutes before she would come out of her box and allow me to touch her. i also noticed that she was bigger than she had been 2 days before when i had her out (i was painting my room and had to take her out and keep her in my sisters room, which also meant no play time for a couple days  ). i also noticed that she was starting to make nests all around her cage. 

i talked to my father, and he told me she might be pregnant. i was shocked, and did some research on it. the only thing that doesnt make sense to me is that it has been too long, if she was she should have had the babies by now, right? and also that she hasnt really gotten a whole lot bigger from when i noticed it friday, she has just gotten a firmer belly.

so could she be pregnant and be having complications, or did she just go through a growth spurt, and i have nothing to worry?

i will also try to get pictures of her up put i dont know how to yet


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## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

If you got her June 7th and you have no male rats in the household it's highly unlikely she's pregnant (it would take a wild rat...). Rats are only pregnant for about 3 weeks.

Rats like to redecorate their homes even when they aren't pregnant and the little ones put on weight fast.

However, if you think there's a chance that she got with a male inside your home, I'd start keeping track of her weight.


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

pictures would help because if she is not pregnant we can help you better determine what may be going on


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

Thank you for your help

like i said i was re-doing my room, and i seem to have lost my camera in the process

as soon as i find it i will get pictures up


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

how do put pictures on here?


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## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

Pictures must be uploaded to an online gallery like photobucket, imageshack, tinypic, etc. That site will then give you a code that starts with and you can use that to post the picture. Please keep in mind picture size when posting pictures... approximately 600 pixels wide/tall is a good size for many screen resolutions.

You could also try uploading them to coppermine... Go to 'My account' (under your avatar on the left side of the screen) and then 'My gallery' and upload them there. 

Hope that helps some.


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

Yup, thanks

This is Molly:


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## Neverstrayed (Jun 16, 2008)

Going off what my pregnant female looked like she looks fine, Pandora only started showing about a week before she had them (o:


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

Did you say you have had her with you for 5 or 6 weeks now?

I'm not seeing pregnant & if she has not been around any males nor has any wild males made contact with her, she couldn't be pregnant.

Are there any other males in the house? Wild rats getting in?

I dunno, what makes you think she may be pregnant?


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

ive had her for 5 weeks now

I guess all the behavioral things were what made me thing she might be, and the very noticeable growth. She has started laying in her little nests she made like she is ready to strike anything, and when she isnt doing that she is either working on the nest or sleeping in her box

I know she hasnt gotten out of her cage unless i have taken her out, so it couldnt be a wild male.
and my parents are refusing to let me get her a cage mate, so she is the only rat i have.


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## Indigo_Paradox (Jul 10, 2008)

She looks healthy to me, and not pregnant. She's a pretty color! She'll make nests in her cage whether she's pregnant or not. It's just a ratty thing to do.

Do keep trying to convince your parents about a cagemate for her though...

-Rozaylia


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## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

Now that she's healthy she may just have more energy that she wants to get out decorating or being a bit snappish... How often is she out/handled?

Doesn't look preggers to me.


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

I try to take her out for about an hour a day, depending on how long i have to work that day its more or less

like i said i was re-painting my room last week, so i had to move her to my sister's room, and didnt get much time to play with her, maybe 20 minutes a day at most.

thanks for the advice =]

and i am still trying for the cage mate

oh! I have molly in a 25 gallon aquarium right now (i know most people dont like to use them, but i make sure i clean it at least once a week or more if needed) would it be okay to add another rat in with her, or would i have to get a bigger cage?


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

get a bigger cage


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## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

Yes, you would. Aquariums aren't really good cages for rats in the first place, and a 25 gallon would be too small for two rats. It's only just barely big enough for one, and that's if you utilizing all the space you have available to you.


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## begoodtoanimals (Dec 6, 2007)

Time will tell. :wink:


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## casey (Jul 15, 2008)

As soon as my friend gets home from his trip we will go and get her a different cage, and hopefully a cagemate =]


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