rat breeding question

[Stewart_Reptiles]

whats the average size of a litter of rats? should i be expecting a large litter? both females are from the same litter and are almost eight months old and im not exactly sure of the males age.

The average is 6 to 12 however if you have a good colony you should average 12 to 16 without issues while female are in their prime.

8 months old is getting up there in age if this is their first litter.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Also, and I read this about mice but I read that males will help to take care of the babies if housed with the female. Is the same true about rats?

Yes however with communal breeding / nursing (which means all females have babies about the same times) babies get injured as females like to take each other's babies to place them in their own nest, they do not voluntary injure the babies but it happens as their skin is very fragile, and this leads to more losses.

I have been producing a few thousand of rats each year for the past 9 years and tried several methods and the one that yeld the best results (max production) is separating the pregnant females and let them nurse their babies individually for the first 5 to 7 days before putting them in communal tubs. At 5 to 7 days their skin is not as fragile and they do not get injured as easily.