question about rat breeding

[TeaNinja]

lol the rats love each other <3 sometimes they both sleep in a rat pile in the corner outside of the hide. i just gave them each a piece of banana and they were stoked lol

and nice rack jen ( take that how you want )

[infernalis]

They are almost as much fun to observe as the snakes are.

[TeaNinja]

Originally Posted by infernalis

They are almost as much fun to observe as the snakes are.

both my snakes are in the shedding process so i've been leaving them alone and messing with the rats for the past week lol.

[NennaMeerkat]

Originally Posted by infernalis

They are almost as much fun to observe as the snakes are.

Rats are great to watch! I have mine situated in my living room so I can watch them from across the room. One will be sitting on the platform munching away and the other will full on tackle her sending out a squeal of excitement and a wrestling match. When they were younger they used to play "tag". Rats are true characters, and underestimated as a pet in general.

[TeaNinja]

the little girl loves to climb, whenever i take off the top of the cage, she scales the wall and climbs onto my hand.

[TeaNinja]

for some more questions, what are some warning signs of a pregnant rat?
should i pull the male away from the female when she's going to give birth so he can't impregnate her again?
do i need to do anything for baby rats except keep mom and dads food and water full and clean?

[NennaMeerkat]

Oh yeah my two girls will start begging to be let out or to have a treat anytime I go to their aquarium. Most of the time they are correct cause I can't resist letting them out and about scurrying around. Or giving them a flavored cracker of some sort. Those two are just spoiled rotten.

[NennaMeerkat]

Originally Posted by TeaNinja

for some more questions, what are some warning signs of a pregnant rat?
should i pull the male away from the female when she's going to give birth so he can't impregnate her again?
do i need to do anything for baby rats except keep mom and dads food and water full and clean?

I know when my mice were pregnant the females would beat up on the males, and harass them any time they came close. When I saw that I would separate them. Also another sign is when the female starts making a nest away from others, sometimes they will pull out their fur when doing this as well (keep in mind this is all what my mice did).

As for the baby rats you want to give the mom plenty of really soft nesting material that will hold in warmth and generally soak up pee. I usually give shredded old rags or socks with a mixture of tissue and paper towels. Also I would suggest giving the mom an option of at least 2 separate hides because (at least with mice) it was not uncommon for the mom to move the babies every so often. All hides should really be on the bottom of the cage that have babies in them, just to avoid falling injuries.

Extra food and water isn't really an issue just keep an eye on everything. And check hiding spots for food if your girl does hide her food away.

[kinggill]

Originally Posted by TeaNinja

for some more questions, what are some warning signs of a pregnant rat?
should i pull the male away from the female when she's going to give birth so he can't impregnate her again?
do i need to do anything for baby rats except keep mom and dads food and water full and clean?

Its pretty obvious when they are pregnant.....mice are the funniest..they get HUGE!!!!

Sometimes i left mine together,if i had room i pulled the female,the only problem with that is when you introduce her after her pups are weaned the pecking order starts all over again and they will fight

nope rat pups will be cared for by the mother

[TeaNinja]

Originally Posted by kinggill

Its pretty obvious when they are pregnant.....mice are the funniest..they get HUGE!!!!

Sometimes i left mine together,if i had room i pulled the female,the only problem with that is when you introduce her after her pups are weaned the pecking order starts all over again and they will fight

nope rat pups will be cared for by the mother

alright, thanks.

[infernalis]

one word of advice, that big rat that I covertly photographed while running loose in my house was a small juvi that had just been weaned and he squeezed right between the bars of a cage exactly like that one.

He was thriving by sneaking out at night and eating dry dog food and drinking from the dogs dish.

The very first time I took his pic, I was sitting in front of the TV set, it was like 3:00 am and I saw him chowing down.

The camera flash only spooked him the first few times, after that the cheeky booger didn't even care.

Now I exclusively use 55 gallon fish tanks with mesh reptile screen covers on them.

It guarantees that no rats will escape, I even see them hanging upside down with their little toes in the mesh.

The can and will jump straight up some 10-20 inches.

[TeaNinja]

Originally Posted by infernalis

one word of advice, that big rat that I covertly photographed while running loose in my house was a small juvi that had just been weaned and he squeezed right between the bars of a cage exactly like that one.

He was thriving by sneaking out at night and eating dry dog food and drinking from the dogs dish.

The very first time I took his pic, I was sitting in front of the TV set, it was like 3:00 am and I saw him chowing down.

The camera flash only spooked him the first few times, after that the cheeky booger didn't even care.

Now I exclusively use 55 gallon fish tanks with mesh reptile screen covers on them.

It guarantees that no rats will escape, I even see them hanging upside down with their little toes in the mesh.

The can and will jump straight up some 10-20 inches.

yea, they can jump like savages.
i was thinking of getting another birdcage from someone then i could either stack them on top of each other so they have somewhere to climb to, or im going to put both birdcages together with the front doors open, so they can go from the left cage to the right.

[NennaMeerkat]

Originally Posted by infernalis

one word of advice, that big rat that I covertly photographed while running loose in my house was a small juvi that had just been weaned and he squeezed right between the bars of a cage exactly like that one.

He was thriving by sneaking out at night and eating dry dog food and drinking from the dogs dish.

The very first time I took his pic, I was sitting in front of the TV set, it was like 3:00 am and I saw him chowing down.

The camera flash only spooked him the first few times, after that the cheeky booger didn't even care.

Now I exclusively use 55 gallon fish tanks with mesh reptile screen covers on them.

It guarantees that no rats will escape, I even see them hanging upside down with their little toes in the mesh.

The can and will jump straight up some 10-20 inches.

Yup I do the same thing Infernalis Though mine are now far to large to be hanging upside down. They now just sort of scratch at the lid to get my attention. I think mine is in a 40 gallon since I don't have the space for a 55 or larger right now. But I clean it often and give them a good amount of time everyday out and about.

[NennaMeerkat]

I would be cautious about any "home rigging" of rat cages. If their head can fit through a hole then their body will be able to follow. Rats can chew through cement, asphalt, wood, and some metals. If they can find a weakness in your setup they will exploit it. I would just be cautious.

[TeaNinja]

that's why i was thinking of connecting 2 bird cages, they couldn't get out of that.