Meet Golana (Momma to be)

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dspch911

dspch911

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2012
Messages
7,963
Location
Chicago, IL
Picked this little girl up Monday afternoon from hopefloats. Poor girl traveled from Ohio to Indiana and is now home in Chicago where we'll be standing by on baby watch. She is so little and just hides out in a corner under a box I gave her. I feel so bad just giving her a box, paper towels, and bowls of food. She does let me hold her some and she really likes to have the top of her head rubbed. This morning she even showed some interest in me as I was getting ready for work - she came out from under the box and was looking around the cage watching me.

I have done some reading up (ratguide.com), have gotten advise from Peggy, and some from my vet - so I have some idea what to expect, but anything anyone else would like to add, that would be helpful, go right ahead.

Monday 241g (I think, forgot to write down)
Tuesday 251g

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lilspaz68 said:
Are they all dark-eyed or is it a mix of light and dark?

She's a darling little thing! Glad everything went well.

Everyone has nice milk bellies now?
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I didn't look at the eyes - I will do that tomorrow. They are all chunky, warm, and pink. She buries them when she leaves the nest - which she prefers to do for daddy. He had to give her some litter today to make the nest she had no idea what to do with the paper towels. She doesn't shred them and was just putting the paper on top of them. They felt cool to me last night so we put fleece under the paper towels and towels over the cage - she chewed the towel on the cage and brought pieces of it to the nest. We took that out and gave her the litter. She always seems to be nursing them when I check on her and if she isn't with them and they start to cry - she goes right to them.

Should we start handling them daily or wait a bit? They all seem to be about the same size.
 
We handle them daily from day one. Take momma out, give her a little out time and some treats and love on babies. I never miss a day with babies, you get to start watching the coloring appear on them, it starts after a few days. when they look like they have cradle cap or dandruff the babies are getting their fur in so that is totally normal. Moms stay with their babies more when they are pinkies. Once they get fur in they will venture out a little bit more and sleep out side of the nest.
She is making her nest right, that is how they do it, they just pull them in the box entrance so they are protected and they usually make a wall with the paper towels. She knows what she is doing and she is doing it right! The babies do tend to feel a little colder when moms not around, that is why I keep them out for a few minutes just long enough to clean the cage out and give her new bedding which I do daily. Once they turn into the little chubs with hair they will hold their heat in a little better <3
 
hopefloats said:
I never miss a day with babies, you get to start watching the coloring appear on them, it starts after a few days. when they look like they have cradle cap or dandruff the babies are getting their fur in so that is totally normal.
She is making her nest right, that is how they do it, they just pull them in the box entrance so they are protected and they usually make a wall with the paper towels.
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No, she really didn't make a nest - she just pulled the paper towel across the cage (it was on the bottom) until it covered the front of the box (she has an actual box now - like your's). We had to give her litter inside the box and she buries the babies in there when she leaves OR I come to talk to her. Daddy she just loves .... WTH, he only meet her once before she gave birth. Although he is the guy that bring the good food - Apparently, the food I gave her for three days made me chop liver..and she loves to hang out on his shoulder. She still lets me get her out when she is out of the nest. Today I talked to her and tried to get her out of the nest - I lifted the box up and she stood up with all babies attached to her nipples and gave me the look of "I'm a little busy right now lady" I just cleaned her cage and went through everything - twice just to make sure #8 wasn't in there. I think the cage cleaning made her mad .. when I put her back in she climbed the bars and stomped on the roof of the box .. she seemed to have a bit of an attitude, but she got over it.
 
Sadly today we only have seven babies.... :-( Looked every where #8 is nowhere to be found. :flowers2::heart: RIP #8

So, we have markings .... two have dark heads, two have dark heads and stripe/broken strip it look like, and the other three I have no idea. The four with markings have dark eyes - the other three I'm not sure, they are dark, but not as dark as the other four.... There is one slightly smaller than the rest, but he has a milk band so he's eating. There they are on day two...

There's always one in the group that has to be different!


Dark heads

Dark head & stripes

Light eyes? Markings - don't really see any yet

Milk band
 
They look like dark eyed except for two possibly. You can see the difference on the two on the right here. But you can usually tell by markings, light eye you wont see the dark markings one but maybe a faint one that will be hard to see till the fur comes in a little. Like with the litter we have that has fur already. most of Bella's babies are light eye rats so they may be mink or beiges. There seems to be a few of those. but minks eyes may appear darker it is hard to say LOL

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hopefloats said:
They look like dark eyed except for two possibly. You can see the difference on the two on the right here. But you can usually tell by markings, light eye you wont see the dark markings one but maybe a faint one that will be hard to see till the fur comes in a little. Like with the litter we have that has fur already. most of Bella's babies are light eye rats so they may be mink or beiges. There seems to be a few of those. but minks eyes may appear darker it is hard to say LOL


Then I think all mine are dark eyes - I don't have any that light - maybe two, but I think they are darker
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Day three - alittle less cooperative during pictures - very squirmy until they settle in. Think I have one light eyed. I &#9825; these babies....
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