Building a Colony - A few questions

[Jay_Bunny]

I found some tubs at work that are only $5. They are 56q tubs. I was wondering how many female rats I could house in a tub that size comfortably. How many mice? I need 11 rats every week, of varying sizes. How many breeding females should I have then if I wanted to produce enough to cover that. I did some math and came up with 18 breeding females, getting 2 litters every week. I might end up some some surplus but I'd rather have too many than not enough.

Also, I might be able to get Mazuri lab block ordered in at a local pet store. I can get it online/delivered for $55 but I'm going to see if I can get it any cheaper here since they already order it in for their own rodents. I'm supposed to know tomorrow how much I can get it for. How long will 50lbs last 18 rodents. Give me an idea of how much a rat eats in a day (in grams). I just need to know what my feeding bills are going to be like.

[suzuki4life]

build a real rack 6 tubs high..use mortar tubs.

Check out feed and grain stores for mazuri, Zeigler, Sand Valley or Kent


Produce as many as you can....offer excess on craigslist or offer them to the local pet shop for store credit.

[sassy-pants]

I found some tubs at work that are only $5. They are 56q tubs. I was wondering how many female rats I could house in a tub that size comfortably. How many mice? I need 11 rats every week, of varying sizes. How many breeding females should I have then if I wanted to produce enough to cover that. I did some math and came up with 18 breeding females, getting 2 litters every week. I might end up some some surplus but I'd rather have too many than not enough.

I have the mortar tub racks 6 tubs high with 3 females/tub. This produces roughly 40 rats/month, so that should be about right for what you need, it sounds. You'll want to have somewhere to grow out your pups too, if you need any larger than weanling size. Do make sure you separate at least the males from mom before they hit about 5 to 6 weeks old, they'll impregnate their mother and your schedule will be thrown off.

Mice are different, and I'm not very knowledgeable about those, so I'll let someone else take over there. Make sure that you use 1/3 inch or smaller hardware wire for the tops because they can squeeze through the 1/2 inch when they're juveniles.

Also, I might be able to get Mazuri lab block ordered in at a local pet store. I can get it online/delivered for $55 but I'm going to see if I can get it any cheaper here since they already order it in for their own rodents. I'm supposed to know tomorrow how much I can get it for. How long will 50lbs last 18 rodents. Give me an idea of how much a rat eats in a day (in grams). I just need to know what my feeding bills are going to be like.

Do you have a feed and tack store near you? Check and see if they are a Purina dealer. If so, they can order in the Mazuri for you. I get mine at $17/50 lb sack. I use 2 per month and I have quite a few breeding rats. Just make sure you're using a hopper. 1 sack should last you probably 6 or so weeks with just 18 females. Possibly even longer.

One thing I like to do for our rats is when I'm making something in the kitchen using veggies or fruits, I'll take the scraps down and give them to pregnant and nursing momma rats. Things like carrot peels, apple cores (careful with seeds), celery tops and other such food remnants are great for them. I find I get healthier, larger babies when they get something fresh to supplement their diet. Check online to see what is safe/not safe.

[suzuki4life]

If the male is with the female at time of birth, female will be pregnant again within a week while nursing.

If you have 18 females and only getting 40 offspring, something is very wrong.

[sassy-pants]

If you have 18 females and only getting 40 offspring, something is very wrong.

I get 40/month with my rack on a 12 week cycle. The male is in each tub 2 weeks before being moved into the next one. I'm averaging 7-10 pups per female (often times well into the teens), and for calculations sake I use 7 pups x 3 females per tub = 21 pups every 2 weeks, so if 1 month is 4 weeks, I get about 42 pups dropped in the rack each month. That's how I landed at my number of 40/month.

I obviously get much more than 40 rats out of 18 females, but I give my females time to rest between breedings. 2 weeks estrus, 3 weeks gestation, 4 weeks nursing, and 3 weeks rest between breedings. I have several racks going on this cycle, it is a very common one, and I have been very successful with it.

[suzuki4life]

I get 40/month with my rack on a 12 week cycle. The male is in each tub 2 weeks before being moved into the next one. I'm averaging 7-10 pups per female (often times well into the teens), and for calculations sake I use 7 pups x 3 females per tub = 21 pups every 2 weeks, so if 1 month is 4 weeks, I get about 42 pups dropped in the rack each month. That's how I landed at my number of 40/month.

I obviously get much more than 40 rats out of 18 females, but I give my females time to rest between breedings. 2 weeks estrus, 3 weeks gestation, 4 weeks nursing, and 3 weeks rest between breedings. I have several racks going on this cycle, it is a very common one, and I have been very successful with it.

so how many litter so you get before you retire your rat?

[sassy-pants]

Between 4 and 6. I always make sure to have the next breeders ready when the old ones are done weaning so I can stay on schedule. Usually one of the females will have a small litter, and that's when I know to replace them. They get sold or fed off when they're done with that litter to make room for the new girls.

[Jay_Bunny]

I won't be using a rack, as I have no tools with which to build it and my first/last attempt at building one failed miserably. These tubs will be stand alone, with hard wire mesh sides and I will stack them. I made a smaller version for some mice, so I hope to see what I can do for these and house rats in them. I plan on doing a 12 week cycle, giving females 3 weeks to rest between litters. I miscalculated. I believe I will need 24 females, since I need to be getting 2 litters per week and if everyone is one a 12 week cycle, having 24 females will keep the litters coming without skipping a week.

I plan on supplementing with fresh foods. There is a tractor supply store about 45 min from me but I have not called them yet to see what their prices would be. I'm supposed to get a call from the pet store tomorrow to see what their prices are so hopefully it won't be that bad. If its any less than $50, I'm all for it.

At first I was planning on selling any extras I produce, but have decided to use them as feeders for my ferrets. It will help me save money on their food bill, which is currently $60 a month. Feeding them a few rats a week might shave off $10 month or so.

But how many rats can comfortably live in a 56qt tub? I was thinking 2-3. Four might be a bit much, so maybe 2 would be good. That way I can have 12 tubs, stacked 4X3, and then I will use either glass tanks or get a few more tubs as female feeders, male feeders, and holdbacks.

[suzuki4life]

Between 4 and 6. I always make sure to have the next breeders ready when the old ones are done weaning so I can stay on schedule. Usually one of the females will have a small litter, and that's when I know to replace them. They get sold or fed off when they're done with that litter to make room for the new girls.

so a 12 week cycle times 6 litters puts your rat at 18 months old...Initially, 4 months old they can breed easily...that is 22 months old.

So how many rats have you had come to full cycle and been retired?

[Oxylepy]

Where do you get these mortar tubs?