Size of breeder rats . . .

Hi how big ( in grams) should a female and male rat before they can breed? would a large rat be okay thats between 201-300 grams? what about a jumbo rat thats between 301-450 grams? also what about a colossal ra thats between 450-700 grams? could a jumbo or colossal rat still be able to get pregnant and have babies?

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Originally Posted by amg20102006

Hi how big ( in grams) should a female and male rat before they can breed? would a large rat be okay thats between 201-300 grams? what about a jumbo rat thats between 301-450 grams? also what about a colossal ra thats between 450-700 grams? could a jumbo or colossal rat still be able to get pregnant and have babies?

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Andre, size has nothing to do with sexual maturity of a rat, size is well, just size. Age is what you need to worry about. A rat that is as young as 6-8 weeks may be able to get pregnant, but it is really not a good idea, because I feel that to be a bit too young, and they produce small litters when bred too young. A medium rat and up, would be able to breed, however, when you get into jumbo or colossal size as you call them, you are really unsure of the actual age of the animal, once they are 9 months, and have not been bred ever, it is really not a good idea to do so, ever, because of the problems that tend to occur. In my experience, they end up having thier babies get stuck in the birth canal, causing death to mom and babies still carried within her, which requires a c-section, and thats pretty expensive on a rat. So in a nut shell, know the age or approx. age of your breeders. It is best to get a young rat and raise it to the point you think it is ready for breeding. Most rats in a pet shop tend to be brought in at around 6 weeks old (youngest I have seen) and up, so you should not have any problems finding a suitable set of rats for breeding later. IME, you want to wait till the female is around 4-6 months, 6 months being optimal IMO.

Ok i think i will just get the mice from them and hit up a pet shop next week when they get more females in.

how old do mice have to be to breed?

Just legal age of consent for your state. :P



If memory serves I think mice can breed as early as 6 weeks or so.


I don't keep or breed them though so anyone else with more accurate info chime in.

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Originally Posted by amg20102006

how old do mice have to be to breed?

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I did a quick google search for "breeding mice" and found a TON of links, this is the first one on the list ...

http://www.snakebreeder.co.uk/html/mice.html

Seems like it will answer a lot of questions for you right off the bat. ;)

-adam

Great link Adam, thanks so much!

Yes, Smulkin you are right, mice can breed as young as 6 weeks, however it does not happen often from my experience, and even if it does, it is really not healthy to do so that young.