What to do with stupid breeders

Batdad · 04-26-04, 07:41 PM

I have 5 colonies of rats I am breeding (1:2). One colony seems to be remarkably stupid or something. They have had a couple of litters now and all they do is bury them and forget them. I have seen the burying thing before, but mommy always goes back and takes care of them. While cleaning yesterday I found five dead pups and five live one, barely. I put them in with another mother who had only five last litter, although the original five are bigger these new guys probably stand a better chance than with the original parents. Question is should I try splitting this colony and putting them each with a good mom or turn them into lunch?

Thanks for help
Bruce

Lisa · 04-26-04, 07:47 PM

feed them off. restart that colony from your other colonies

justinO · 04-26-04, 09:34 PM

you know what to do....

:hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer:

he he he

no really, kill them off, they are of no use to you.

as for the 5 pups left, cycle them with the bigger ones.... you are lucky you have a wet nurse!

beth wallbank · 04-26-04, 09:59 PM

Dont waste your time Bruce. Bonk them now and save yourself the headache.

Auskan · 04-27-04, 09:37 AM

I also have a rat who just isn't interested in being a mommy. Its surprising really because she comes from a great mother and is still in with her own mother. This rat had 13 in her first litter and just didn't want anything to do with them. That was ok at the time because I have a lot of cornsnakes who were about the right size to eat rat pinkies, and it didn't seem to bother the mother if I took her babies away, so I didn't have to fight her. Her second litter she only had two, and she actually took very good care of those two, and was a very attentive mother, so I thought she had just been scared and inexperienced the first time around. However her third litter she again ignored. There was no other lactating female in the colony that time around, and the poor things were so weak and small that they didn't stand a chance. Several of them died and were eaten before I realized it, and I was only able to take 3 of them to feed off.

Lisa · 04-27-04, 05:00 PM

auskan: thats why it's good to have snakes of all sizes to take food.

annieb_mice · 04-27-04, 07:54 PM

Kill them and feed them off. They will not be good breeders and you're not only wasting your time and effort but also money by feeding them. Sorry to sound so callous... but you don't want these in your breeding colony.
Hold back a few more females and feed these ones off. I would also recommend culling their babies as well.
Good luck...
Annie B. <:3 )~~