Simple but effective small Scale breeding

[meowmeowkazoo]

I feed mine "weight control" dog food which is low in protein, and I supplement with vegetables from leftover dinner. They seem to do well on this diet, and the dog food is much cheaper.

However, Mazuri is the best brand of rat food I know of, if that's the route you wish to take.

[llovelace]

I feed 16% sunny acres hog feed to mine, and also give left over race & table scraps, my girls have litters of 14-22

[bokuza]

I really like your nest box tubs! It's great and I'll have to give it a shot.

[BrianD]

I really like your nest box tubs! It's great and I'll have to give it a shot.

Go for it. Mine use them so its not a waste of money. Also I figured would help keep them warm since tempatures will be coming down in the next coming weeks.

I also put twigs in there for them to chew on. Momma 2 had the twigs in the nest box with a elaborate nest. No babies but either tonight or next two days.

Probably going to get one for the male tub. That way they can sleep together and help warm thier selves.

[bokuza]

Go for it. Mine use them so its not a waste of money. Also I figured would help keep them warm since tempatures will be coming down in the next coming weeks.

I also put twigs in there for them to chew on. Momma 2 had the twigs in the nest box with a elaborate nest. No babies but either tonight or next two days.

Probably going to get one for the male tub. That way they can sleep together and help warm thier selves.

Very nice. Hope she has them soon. Keep us updated. Were supposed to have a double rex give birth (spotting!) but she's being a pain and waiting till we all sleep. Hopefully in the morning we will have pups. Most likely quite a few too. Shes huge lol.

[BrianD]

Very nice. Hope she has them soon. Keep us updated. Were supposed to have a double rex give birth (spotting!) but she's being a pain and waiting till we all sleep. Hopefully in the morning we will have pups. Most likely quite a few too. Shes huge lol.

I'm new to the game so rat morphs still confuse me. Lol rats are rats to me. Yeah if she is spotting then she will probably have them tonight. I can tell a difference in size with mine since yesterday. So who knows both of our rats liable to give birth tonight.

I know the research I did said that rats usually give birth at night. Well I happen to walk in/check on her but momma 1 gave birth between 2-3pm on 9/10/11. Atleast I got to witness the last half of labor. But good luck.

[bokuza]

I'm new to the game so rat morphs still confuse me. Lol rats are rats to me. Yeah if she is spotting then she will probably have them tonight. I can tell a difference in size with mine since yesterday. So who knows both of our rats liable to give birth tonight.

I know the research I did said that rats usually give birth at night. Well I happen to walk in/check on her but momma 1 gave birth between 2-3pm on 9/10/11. Atleast I got to witness the last half of labor. But good luck.

Double rex is a patchwork. You know the crazy fur with curls? If you breed two of those together you get double rex...a fake hairless rat. My girl has built herself a BURROW. Not a nest, oh no. Theres no bedding on half the cage and she even built a roof of paper towels. Her spotting is becoming heavier and I can see an expanding bulge. It's her first litter and so we don't know how great of a mom she'll be.

Wouldn't it be funny if they both gave birth tonight?

[Adam Chandler]

Not sure where you all live and what chain stores are around... But would anybody know if southern states carries stuff like this? I've got a tractor supply near by but still an hour away. Thats really the only type of feed stores that I know of around this area.

You can find a list of dealers that carry (or can special order) lab block near you by looking up your zip code on the dealer locator sections of the lab block manufacturers's websites.
Here are some good manufacturers:

Mazuri.com (Ask for 6F rodent diet)

Zeigler.com

Harlan / Native Earth (I recommend emailing tekladinfo@harlan.com for info about local dealers.)

I don't know if you attend any local reptile shows but I usually see 33-50lb bags of rodent food being sold fairly cheap at these shows. (which is were I love to get them so I can haggle them down a few more bucks )

And if all else fails PetFoodDirect.com can ship 40lb bags of Harlan / Native Earth 18% protein lab block to your door.

[satomi325]

Also I'm sure the question of food may arise.. I feed mine high protein dog food(27/15)Ferret type food(consisting of seeds,nuts,dryed fruit) I also give them table scrapes.

Questions,comments, constructive criticism are welcome.

I really like the nest boxes. Its a great idea. I may have to steal that idea from you.
Do the females share nest boxes or do they choose to go into their own separate ones?

Dog food isn't all that great. Its alright for a very brief temporary food if rat formulated food is out of stock. Other posters have already suggested rodent blocks. I agree with them as well. The blocks contain everything a rat needs and it helps litter production.

Side note: ferrets don't eat seeds, nuts, and fruit. They are strict carnivores. Their bodies cannot digest carbohydrates and fiber.
;p

Good luck with your breeding! Keep us updated and post pictures of your litters!

[BrianD]

Double rex is a patchwork. You know the crazy fur with curls? If you breed two of those together you get double rex...a fake hairless rat. My girl has built herself a BURROW. Not a nest, oh no. Theres no bedding on half the cage and she even built a roof of paper towels. Her spotting is becoming heavier and I can see an expanding bulge. It's her first litter and so we don't know how great of a mom she'll be.

Wouldn't it be funny if they both gave birth tonight?

How is your female doing? Mine gave birth last night to 7 pinkies. Thats weird both my females on their first litter gave birth to 7 babies each only 6 days apart.

I really like the nest boxes. Its a great idea. I may have to steal that idea from you.
Do the females share nest boxes or do they choose to go into their own separate ones?

Dog food isn't all that great. Its alright for a very brief temporary food if rat formulated food is out of stock. Other posters have already suggested rodent blocks. I agree with them as well. The blocks contain everything a rat needs and it helps litter production.

Side note: ferrets don't eat seeds, nuts, and fruit. They are strict carnivores. Their bodies cannot digest carbohydrates and fiber.
;p

Good luck with your breeding! Keep us updated and post pictures of your litters!

Thanks yeah I about to change thier diet again. I've called a couple feed stores around here luckly one has got the mazuri. I forgot what its actually is but it ferret food. Seeds, etc etc. Now you may have more experience than I do but why would seeds fruits be labeled for ferret food?
But between the two females each one has a nesting box of thier own.