Will they have babies eventually?

I got a breeding pair of siamese rats on 10/10/11 and on 10/11/11 I know they hooked up at least twice that night because I saw it. After that she went into her hide I watched them for a couple minutes and she didn't come out again at least while I was watching. Basically I was wondering since they only breed when the female is in heat and since I know they hooked up at least twice surely they hooked up several times during the night and into the morning and she is pregnant right?I got another female on 10/14/11. I know that they bred the one night and he bred with one or the other a few nights later and I haven't really been watching them so I don't know if they have continued to breed. They are six-eight months old. I heard from the lady I got them from that rats breed like crazy and she's never had any problems with any of her mature rats not breeding. The one you can barely see a couple nipples but the one with the slightly bigger belly you can see a few of them and I looked at pics of female rats and you can't really see them at all when they're not pregnant. She looks pregnant to me and one of my questions is even if she's not pregnant right now they're rats and they breed like crazy and i'll have babies eventually right?

It will come eventually, the female will look like a pear soon! Without looking, I believe the gestation period is 23-25 days.

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Originally Posted by rperry03

It will come eventually, the female will look like a pear soon! Without looking, I believe the gestation period is 23-25 days.

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I agree...from what Ive read! It take 21 to 25 days to be pregnant then she'll have her babies!

No worries, as long as your male is doing his thing you'll have a nest full of babies give or two to the three weeks. :3

Okay so now i'm almost positive that she is pregnant. Their hide gets moved to the middle of the tank by the end of the day and the other two stays in that while she was curled up by herself in the corner like it's her nest. Also she's hoarding food which is a sign that she's pregnant. I crumbled some Cheez-its for them as a treat and she's the ONLY one who basically attacked them, grabbed like six pieces and ran off to eat them.

Cheezits are not good rat treats. Give her some scrambled eggs, boiled lean chicken or beef, or a spoonful of plain, organic yogurt, instead.

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Originally Posted by Rhasputin

Cheezits are not good rat treats. Give her some scrambled eggs, boiled lean chicken or beef, or a spoonful of plain, organic yogurt, instead.

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Okay thanks for the advice :)

You're welcome! Those are all things that will help mother rats bring up healthy babies, too. ;)

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Originally Posted by Rhasputin

You're welcome! Those are all things that will help mother rats bring up healthy babies, too. ;)

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Can I give the females cat food for protein to reduce cannibalism? Is so how much and how often?

You can give them cat food in addition to regular rat chow. What are you feeding them regularly? Blocks?

Cat food is a fine addition, just be sure it's given in moderation, and be sure to get something that's corn and soy free, with a high protein value for best results! If you feed too much, the protein can damage the liver, and cause the rats to get fat, or have greasy coats, which you don't want. A heaping large table spoon full per day added to their blocks would be good for them. :)

Also giving pregnant mothers a dandelion leaf each day before they give birth for about the last week of pregnancy, can help increase milk production, resulting in healthy fat pups! :)

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Originally Posted by Rhasputin

You can give them cat food in addition to regular rat chow. What are you feeding them regularly? Blocks?

Cat food is a fine addition, just be sure it's given in moderation, and be sure to get something that's corn and soy free, with a high protein value for best results! If you feed too much, the protein can damage the liver, and cause the rats to get fat, or have greasy coats, which you don't want. A heaping large table spoon full per day added to their blocks would be good for them. :)

Also giving pregnant mothers a dandelion leaf each day before they give birth for about the last week of pregnancy, can help increase milk production, resulting in healthy fat pups! :)

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Great stuff. Well I just feed them rabbit food. The lady I got them from has lots of rats and she says they do fine on rabbit food. But I also give them some parrot food about every other day for more complete nutrition, as the rat food I saw at Wal-mart looks a lot like parrot food. Also I don't have any dandelions in my yard, all my land used to be cow fields so it's mostly clover and short grass. Anything I can use for a substitute?

Take them off of the rabbit food! Rabbits are not rodents and have completely different dietary needs than rodents. Go to a feed store and get some lab block! Or some hog grower! :(

Rabbits eat mostly hay and grass, which is what their foo is made of.
Rodents eat mostly grains and seeds, which is what their food is made of.

Rabbit food is an awful substitute for rodent food, nowhere near complete nutrition. :(

If you want them to breed and be healthy and happy, you'll need to get them some real food.:)

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Originally Posted by Rhasputin

Take them off of the rabbit food! Rabbits are not rodents and have completely different dietary needs than rodents. Go to a feed store and get some lab block! Or some hog grower! :(

Rabbits eat mostly hay and grass, which is what their foo is made of.
Rodents eat mostly grains and seeds, which is what their food is made of.

Rabbit food is an awful substitute for rodent food, nowhere near complete nutrition. :(

If you want them to breed and be healthy and happy, you'll need to get them some real food.:)

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Rabbit food high in fiber. Which not ok for rodents. At all. Calcium is also another high factor in rabbit food.

Rabbit food is like $8 for 25 pounds, where can I get rodent block for around the same price or pretty cheap? Anyone know a place local to Knoxville, TN area? Or is it better to buy online in bulk?

Try any feed store. They should be able to order it for you.

agrifeed can order 50 pound bags for you for $33. Thats where i get mine. Its on middlebrook pike.

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Originally Posted by RaltsXIV

agrifeed can order 50 pound bags for you for $33. Thats where i get mine. Its on middlebrook pike.

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Double the price but it will be worth it for complete nutrition. Thank you.

Oh and id love to take a few siameses off your hands when they do finally breed for you. ;)

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Originally Posted by RaltsXIV

Oh and id love to take a few siameses off your hands when they do finally breed for you. ;)

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Well i'd love to take a bumble bee off your hands if you ever decide to breed your pastel and spider ;)

Thats the plan lol

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Originally Posted by RaltsXIV

Thats the plan lol

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Are they adults? And how much will you be selling them for?