What do you do with non-productive rats?

I bought a male and 2 females rats like 2 months ago to start breeding. One of the females is about ready to pop, she's huge. I've been watching and weighting the 2nd one but it hasn't changed at all. She hasn't gotten pregnant at all.

What do you guys do with non-productive or broken rats like that? I just euthenized it but I felt a little bad because she was a good girl, just wasn't helping me at all.

feed it to a snake...perhaps?

I would have but it was wayyy too big. Right now rat pups are the right size

Doesn't seem like you gave her very long. Hopefully you did it humanely.

How old and how much did these females weigh when they went in with the male?

When I have non-productive rats, I feed them to my monitor. Moggie can eat the jumbo rats. If I have too many, I have a friend with large snakes.
I DO euthanize all rodents before feeding my monitor. I just don't feel she kills quickly enough to be humane.
I have some rats, well.. I just like them, and keep them even when they aren't productive, but mostly, I try to keep only producing rats.
I'd have given her longer than that to see if she started producing, but that's just me. The ones I'm getting rid of right now are older rats.
Wolfy

As for that female, I would have given her longer too. I got a big girl from Petco last year, and I was told that she looked old and probably wouldn't breed. She takes longer than any of my other rats to get pregnant, but the two litters she's had for me, the first litter was 15, the second litter was 19. She has more than made up for the weight in her numbers. I'm giving her one more try this go around, and if she has a smaller litter or just doesn't seem to get pregnant, she'll be kept back as a companion for resting females.


I also have two other females that are close to retiring. I'm considering trying to find a good pet home for two females together, as I am very attached to my breeders. I understand there's a practical side to breeding for food production and some people can't keep all their retired breeders, real estate is just to precious (I'm becoming real estate challenged myself), so I can understand the need if one isn't particularly attached to their breeders to feed them off to a larger snake (or monitor).

For myself, I'm not to the point that I can separate the emotional side of me from them, so that is not an option for me. Either they'll live out their natural life here as nanny or favorite uncle to the weaners, or I'll find really good pet homes for them.

Really depends on the situation. If it's a younger female that has cycled a few times with a proven male and isn't "catching" then I'm likely to feed her off or sell her off to a friend with a large snake as prey. If it's an older female that produced for me well all her breeding life, her reward is a retirement here until she naturally passes (they have "jobs" in the rat colony until their death). Those long term breeders do get names. If it's a female that has produced but for no good reason either kills her litter or refuses to mother them, that one would be fed off as well. If it's a female that shows a tendency to be very nasty tempered, that one becomes an f/t feeder (I won't feed overly aggressive live rats to any snake).

All retired breeder and just bad breeding rats here are feeders. I don't have enough space and supplies to keep around large number of rats that don't benefit me or my collection. Thats just my personal feeling about it

I hope when you euthanized her that you froze her or gave her to a friend with larger snakes, just throwing them in the trash because you can't use them is so wasteful. A little over a year ago, I got some Burms that were kind of an accidental rescue. They've taken care of all of my retired breeders since then. I've been trying to find homes for a couple of the burms but I'll be keeping at least one as a rodent retirement home. Before that, I would send the retired breeders to a friend who had boas. Even rats that die from natural causes and are partly eaten get bagged and frozen. I give these to a friend who has monitors.

Mark

I agree with the others, time is key. Just because a female rodent may look like the appropriate size to breed it may in fact not be ready. It cannot also be assumed that because one of the females took that both did.

Eh; I could not have put-down an otherwise healthy rat just because it didn't get pregnant fast enough. I would probably take it to a pet store and see if they needed it for feeding a larger snake, or even if they wanted to put it up for adoption, or even sale, for a pet. It doesn't sit well with me to put-down an animal because it won't breed. If there were a purpose, suchas feeding a snake, that would be fine.. but I just don't feel it is something I would have done. At the least I would freeze it and make sure that someone can use it for feeding.

I don't know anyone with an animal that could take a big rat, so that wouldn' work. What about just letting it go outside? Is that a bad idea?

I highly doubt a pet store would ever buy or take any pet from a person and re-sell it, probably a big liability issue.

Well, euthanizing it is not ideal.. bt it is leaps and bounds better than letting the rat go. A domesticated rat that's used to bagged feed and shaving bedding is going to be dead within hours of being released, I'd bet.
Pet stores in my neck of the woods are happy to take in animals. Even Petco has the odd lizard or guinea pig that someone brought in, for adoption.

Releasing a domestic rat is no better than dumping a dog IMO.
Never release. Check around to see if anyone near you keeps larger snakes or monitors, and the local pet stores. Rescues? Wildlife rescue, who might need feeders for raptors.
Wolfy

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Originally Posted by Snikt228

I don't know anyone with an animal that could take a big rat, so that wouldn' work. What about just letting it go outside? Is that a bad idea?

I highly doubt a pet store would ever buy or take any pet from a person and re-sell it, probably a big liability issue.

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Yes it's a very bad idea! You'd be releasing an animal used to captivity into a wild environment, you'd be contributing to the problem of rats in the wild...it's the wrong solution. When you decide to breed any animal you become responsible for that breeding animal and to the offspring you get it to produce and this does include feeder animals. You don't have to retire older breeder rats but you must do something with them that does not include dumping them out the back door.

Check into private pet stores, herp clubs, herp and raptor rescues that might be able to use a larger size rat. Euthanize humanely if that's your choice and there's no other use for the rat but taking the easy route out and dumping an animal is never the right decision as far as I'm concerned.

im in the same situation, but i put mines on CL to a too good potiential owner...Hope this might give you some better ideas..