Breeding rats

Skits · 03-06-12, 08:54 PM

I might have to start breeding rats, it's not something I was looking into doing but paying almost 2$ for a small frozen rat at the petstore is killing me with the five snakes I have. So I wanted to know how I can go about doing it, I've never had rats before. I've had/have rabbits, hamsters, mice, etc though so I'm not new to rodents.

Can I keep 2 females in a cage with a male and have them breed or would I have to remove the male? Would he eat the babies or stress the mothers out?

And my other question is what's the most humane way to put them to sleep? My dad suggested putting them in a really small, closed container and told me it was painless for them but it sounds wrong to do that.

exwizard · 03-06-12, 09:04 PM

The following link explains a lot about what is normally done with mouse and rat breeding; what each of us do and why. Its a really good read if you are interested in getting into rats.

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/food-...mice-roll.html

Let me know what you think and if you have any other questions concerning this I will be happy to answer that as well.

infernalis · 03-06-12, 09:04 PM

for 5 snakes, one pair of rats is enough, two females would produce more than you will need, unless you have larger snakes, then two would work at first.

a small container would be cruel, a small container and C02 gas is the most humane way.

A paintball cannister will put down quite a few rats between fills.

Skits · 03-06-12, 09:11 PM

Thanks for the link, I'll check it out now.

And sounds good, I have a boa constrictor but she eats really large rats. I'm not sure how I would be able to breed rats for her as well. I'm planning on getting a couple of more snakes soon though which is why I thought it would be best to start breeding my own food supply.

Edit: Also where would I get C02? How do I use that?

KORBIN5895 · 03-06-12, 09:14 PM

Actually breaking their necks is the most humane. We argued this In another thread.

Skits · 03-06-12, 09:17 PM

I was just looking at the euthanasia thread if that's the one you are talking about. I'm not sure if I would be capable of doing that though.

KORBIN5895 · 03-06-12, 09:22 PM

I understand skits. I just got a breeding pair of rats and 11fuzzy/Hopper rats for 10 frozen mice because the man couldn't do it either. Good luck with your breeding.

Skits · 03-06-12, 09:38 PM

Thanks

I'm more nervous about taking the babies away from their mother. When my rabbit gave birth, our temperatures dropped in our basement and her babies froze and died. She freaked out.

Which reminds me we still have the babies in our freezer downstairs..hmm.

Snakefood · 03-07-12, 09:10 AM

I do feed pinky rabbits to my bigger corns.

mamma rats don't make a big fuss about taking her babies away, I've had one try to take it back from me. but while she was putting that one back in the nest, I grabbed a sifferent one. Also if your looking for small adult rats, they will be weaned and separated from mamma by that time anyways. (rats are weaned at 4 weeks old.

I agree with Korbin that breaking the necks is the most humane way to kill them, but I also have a hubby willing to do it. if I didn't, I would go the CO2 route.

female rats have a 5 day estrus cycle, so if you have the male with the female for 7 days, your almost garaunteed a pregnancy

insignia100 · 03-07-12, 10:34 AM

Are there no companies like Rodent Pro that you could order frozen rats from in bulk? Even buying one 100 count bag for $20 of hoppers and paying $44 shipping, the price is still less than half of what I would pay at the pet store. If you're considering breeding rats, especially if you need to get them big, I would suggest just investing in a small chest freezer and order rats online. With just feeding 5 snakes, I think it will be cheaper in the long run to buy frozen and invest in a small freezer. It might be different if you had, say, 20 snakes...

KORBIN5895 · 03-07-12, 10:38 AM

Actually there aren't very many Canadian companies that are selling frozen rodents at a decent price. As a matter of fact I can order from rodentpro and resale them to the pet store cheaper than they can get them from their major suppliers.

Also if $2 bucks for a small rat is too expensive for him keep in mind that rodentpro sells small rats for a buck plus shipping. I have looked at several different suppliers and rodentpro is the cheapest I have found.

insignia100 · 03-07-12, 10:49 AM

Yea, I wish the local pet shop would order from Rodent Pro themselves. I paid over a dollar for a rat pinky when I was trying to get my hognoses to eat. The big thing is getting over the psychological barrier of shipping and investing a big chunk of money in an order. Just gotta tell yourself that you won't have to buy anything for the next 6 months!

Skits · 03-07-12, 11:40 AM

I could probably order online, it would be a lot easier for me. Only problem is finding somewhere that they ship to canada, I looked a while back and most only shipped to the states.

jarich · 03-07-12, 01:08 PM

Hmmmm Im not sure that I would recommend keeping rats frozen for 6 months or more. Fat goes rancid in that amount of time, Vit E is completely destroyed and the lengthened migration of the ice crystals will damage everything on a cellular level. I think vacuum sealing would help, and quite frankly maybe Im just being too picky and should shut up.

Ill just say this, fresh killed seems quite a bit more nutritious, but whether its a big enough deal to make a difference is unknown.

exwizard · 03-07-12, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by insignia100

Are there no companies like Rodent Pro that you could order frozen rats from in bulk? Even buying one 100 count bag for $20 of hoppers and paying $44 shipping, the price is still less than half of what I would pay at the pet store. If you're considering breeding rats, especially if you need to get them big, I would suggest just investing in a small chest freezer and order rats online. With just feeding 5 snakes, I think it will be cheaper in the long run to buy frozen and invest in a small freezer. It might be different if you had, say, 20 snakes...

The problem with having your order shipped from Rodentpro, is that the cost of shipping negates the savings incurred on the feeders themselves. I do have a snake friend who goes to Kansas City every other month when they have their reptile show and Rodentpro always has a huge amount of frozen feeders right on site so he picks up a bunch in bulk and resells what he doesnt need to other snake people in the metro.