I Got Too Many Dang Babies!

LOL! Oh Jo, that is just priceless! I found my male sleeping like that, and thought oh no he died!!! Then he jumps up and scampers away. Gave me a good scare, that's for sure.

Read on one of the rat sites that they have to do that in the heat because they sweat through their feet. Mine have almost all been sleeping on their sides or backs, but with their feet in the air.


Congrats on the huuuuge-o litter! :clap:

When she's nursing that many, how do U keep her from losing TOO much weight??? Is there anything special or "extra" that you feed her to help her keep up w/all those babies nursing?

I need to put some extra wt. back on Peek, since I've had to graft some of Peachy's litter again.

R.

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Originally Posted by sweety314

Read on one of the rat sites that they have to do that in the heat because they sweat through their feet. Mine have almost all been sleeping on their sides or backs, but with their feet in the air.

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I was under the impression that rats and mice had no sweat glands ... however with their feet having no hair it probably escapes fastest that way. On their backs, splayed out, they can expose more surface area to cool off faster. But with my new meds I tend to remember the wrong stuff in the wrong order ::grins:: .

If you could use the pinkies I would pull half the litter ... this will keep your dam in better condition and the babies will normally grow better with less competition (there is only so much milk produced daily, regardless of teats and/or siblings). 8 is my magic number to split litters at ... one for each teat.

Bryan

Unfortunately I have nothing in the house that really eats f/t rats that small so I don't want to euthanize and freeze pinks needlessly. My next female to deliver is looking big too so I doubt when she drops her litter likely tomorrow that she'll have room for some of Alita's pinks. So far all the pinks are growing reasonably well for a larger litter though I don't expect them to be the biggest weanlings we've ever produced.

Sweety I'm lucky with this female in that she's a quite large female to begin with so I think that is part of why she carries larger litters and does well with them. I also don't breed back to back litters. The females have at least 2 weeks if not a month to do nothing but laze about, eat and hang out with other females between litters. By the time they go back in with the breeder male they are nice and chubby (and dang relaxed too I bet LOL).

While she's nursing so many I just try to make sure her water is changed more often as it takes a lot of water intake to pump out that much milk. I make sure she gets extras of dry mix plus bones, egg, pasta, meat, mixed greens....just kitchen scraps like they all get but nursing females get the choice bits and more of it. Seems to work out okay. All of my females produce a minimum of 12 pups, most usually produce 14 or 15 each litter. Other than the occasional runt we rarely lose any at birth or thereafter.

Got too many? ...umm.can i have them? LOL. jk. great pic made me laugh:sweeet:

Heck Bernie if you lived close you'd be welcome to come take some rats of various sizes off my hands. I've got a bit too many in the small to medium size range so may have to for the first time in my rat breeding colony, have to euthanize and freeze some of my feeders. :(

hey Jo when i have extras or when my extras get to big i take them to a local pet shop i deal with and get in store credit it save me buying bedding and feed

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Originally Posted by gncz73

hey Jo when i have extras or when my extras get to big i take them to a local pet shop i deal with and get in store credit it save me buying bedding and feed

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Thats a good idea.

We've been thinking about that Eugene. Our favorite private pet store up in Michigan would do that but the only private pet store close to us is not very good. There's no way my nice feeders will ever end up in their care. I know they are meant for feeders but overcrowding them like that pet store does is just inhumane in my mind. We're hoping to find a better private pet store that we could strike a deal with like that.

yeah i deal with three stores around here