Question for the Rat Pro's!!

[Ironhead]

I have 2 female rat's that are going to give birth within 5 days of each other. The question is, is it allright to keep them in the same cage? They have been housed together almost their entire life, but will they live harmoniously together with their young or attack and kill each others young'ns. Seperating them is no problem, but if they will do alright together, I dont want to have to set up the other cage.

[Jeanne]

I have left females in the same cage after birth many times. But there is a chance they will steal eachothers babies (baby horde). That in itself can be a problem if the females get too nasty with eachother about it, one may try to kill off all the babies. Watch them after they give birth, and if it seems they are being to rough playing the baby horde game, separate them- if you can no longer tell whose babies are whose, just take them all, make them all smell the same by handling them, then divide them up between the mothers.

[Ironhead]

Thank's Jeanne....

[Jeanne]

No Problem !!!


Let me know if there is any other Q's I can try to answer. :lol:

[Ginevive]

I think it depends on the size of the cage. If each female has enough room to make her own "territory" then they should be OK. If they are crammed into a too-small cage, though, it may cause them to get stressed, leading to baby-eating.

[steelsack]

I had a case of baby hording about a week and a half after birth. One mother didn't put up a fight, just let Amnesty take them all. 'Course I'm hoping for a baby bci this summer so I froze about 14 of the combined litter so I have a full supply of food when it gets here. Don't know what she was thinkin, there was around thirty pups with her when she had finished hording them all. That's a heck of a nipple rotation! If you get too many and hording begins you can always thin the herd a little. I always snuff a few as they grow so I have a frozen collection of multiple sized feeders cause you just never know when they will come in handy.
Also, I have always found one or two severed heads with every almost litter ever born here. Sometimes the litter is too big, could have been stillborn, or one or two are runts and unhealthy in momma's eyes. She'll then kill them and let the others benefit from less competition.

[diggy415]

Yep I hate when that happens, I leave the females together and take out the male, they should play nice with eachother, only thing is some aren't being fed and get squashed instead, I check mine once a week, take mommas out let them run in a closed room and then take off any excess ambilical cord, Ive had too many absesses if i don't. I make sure they show milk in their tummies and put everyone back. When it comes to mice, oh man there's a nasty trip, they are the worse for hoarding and eating young. I've never had a rat eaten,plenty DOA's and mommas that die while in labor and lose the whole package(watch it) but i also believe if you have tamed gentle rats you will have no problem with cannibilism either. Wild scared freaky rats are much different and i either fed them off or seperate them to have their babies. I also give my rats a variety of food,rice,mixed vege's, anything besides meat. I think a tamed rat with a variety of food is key to large healthy litters. Good luck, :lol: