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RatTatTatFoster

RatTatTatFoster

Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2019
Messages
11
Location
Maine
Hello All,

Thanks for creating such a cool space for rat enthusiasts. My name is Sammie and I volunteer at the local animal shelter. I'm fostering my first rat who was pregnant when we got her. Drea delivered 9 healthy babies and now I'm caring for a family of 10! I also have a pet dog and cat. I have had hamsters and guinea pigs as pets over my lifetime, but never rats so I'm glad to be here to learn.

Best,
Sammie
 
Welcome to the forum! Do you plan to keep a couple of babies? Rats need cagemates. You can keep a couple of the females with her after she weans. Baby rats need playmates, so it's best that you keep at least 2 baby girls. The boys should be removed from the rest of the litter at 5 weeks. The girl's could remain with the momma forever if you wanted. I'll warn you, rats are addictive. They are like potato chips, you can't just have one! LOL. Enjoy the babies. They grow super fast, and learn really fast. Make sure to handle them often, and everyday. That way they will be used to people and being held. There is a reference thread, you may find helpful, but I don't have it. Haha. Also www.joinrats.com and www.ratguide.com has a ton of useful information! I think you will love owning rats! They are such loving and intelligent animals!
 
Hi Dena,

Nice to e-meet you! Thanks for the resources, I will check them out. Unfortunately, as I'm fostering I will have to give them all back. I do know they intend to adopt them as pairs (Drea will be paired with a female baby and the others will be paired off). It's my first experience of caring for rats and I was pleasantly surprised how socialable they are. The babies were born 2/17, so I need to sex them soon in order to prevent population explosion! Also, I was asked if these rats are 'dumbo' rats and I have no idea. I just know they are cute!

Best,
Sammie
 

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From the pic it's hard for me to tell. But that one looks like a top eared. It'll be easier to tell when their ears start to open up. If you take a pic of the under sides of a couple, we can tell you male or female. ;)
 
Hello All,

Here are some baby pictures. We would love help identifying the sex of them and wonder what rat breed they are.

Baby 1:
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Baby 2:

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Baby 3:

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The babies were born 2/17, so I think soon they will be old enough to separate the boys from the mother. I was thinking at 4 weeks... Does that seem old enough? Here is a photo of mama rat, Drea. She's a seal point color, i think.
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Baby boys need to stay with mom until 5 weeks old. They are separated from mom and their sisters at 5 weeks old, by (if possible) moving mom and their sisters to a different cage so that they will have familiar surroundings
baby girls stay with mom until at least 6 weeks old.
Babies need another baby to play with so need to be rehomed with at least one same sex sibling

Info on the Reference Thread re rehoming rats may be helpful because there are so very many dangers involved
 
Thank you for the reply. I will let them stay together longer then. I have a second slightly smaller critter aquarium set up for,boys when ready. The girls will live in the big tank with Drea. There are several boys (I think!) So they won't get lonely. My step daughter wants to build them a maze out of toilet paper tubes and shoe boxes and hide treats inside. Is that a good idea for them to play in? The kids and I handle the rats every day, so they are well socialized. Drea is a sweetie and likes to snuggle up in your sweatshirt hood or curls up against your neck. I didn't know anything about rats before fostering and I appreciate the help/info.
 
Lookit all of those beautiful babies and mom! I can't say for sure on sexing them since I've never raised rats older than eight weeks old, but they are sure adorable. Mom looks like a standard ear and standard fur.

RatTatTatFoster said:
Thank you for the reply. I will let them stay together longer then. I have a second slightly smaller critter aquarium set up for,boys when ready. The girls will live in the big tank with Drea. There are several boys (I think!) So they won't get lonely. My step daughter wants to build them a maze out of toilet paper tubes and shoe boxes and hide treats inside. Is that a good idea for them to play in? The kids and I handle the rats every day, so they are well socialized. Drea is a sweetie and likes to snuggle up in your sweatshirt hood or curls up against your neck. I didn't know anything about rats before fostering and I appreciate the help/info.
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Just some friendly advice, but aquarium tanks are not good homes for rats. Rats have very sensitive respiratory systems and lack of ventilation, as seen with aquariums, can cause a lot of physical unwellness. Most are too small as well. If money is an issue and you don't want to get the Midwest Double Critter Nation, Petsmart has an off-brand version of this for less than $250USD. They also sell Midwest's single-unit cages for less than $200USD (I believe it's, like, $150USD on their website).
The maze sounds like a good idea, so long as the rats can turn around or fit properly. Shadow the Rat and the Rat Guru on Youtube have fantastic DIY rat toys as well. I've made a number of things out of toilet paper tubes, paper towel tubes, paper towel, and whatever else my rats seem fond of.
 
Thanks for the info. The aquariums were what I got from the animal shelter to house them in because they were concerned about the babies slipping through/getting stuck in the bars. The adult rats are housed in the 2 or 3 story wire cages with ramps and hammocks at the shelter, so that what they'll transition into when I bring them back. I'm just a temporary foster parent to these cuties. I do wish I could keep some, I will admit! My step daughter is definitely wanting to get a pet rat now. I will likely get her one in the future. Since we volunteer at the shelter I can keep an eye out for new litters. I will check out the YouTube channels. I love DIY stuff.
 
Ah, I see. My local Animal Humane Society has the same issue. Well, one of them at least. The other one has actual DCN cages for their small animals. I've tried giving the "bad one" advice, but I haven't see a change unfortunately.
 

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