Through the bars? Seriously?

[ratlets]

How likely is mating through the bars to happen? The boys managed to open their cage door today... I usually have a lock on it, but I left it off overnight with no issues so never tossed it back on. I don't know if I forgot to close the door or if the boys did it, but the loose door was open and lil McDreamy was hanging out on the bookshelf behind the cage. The big cage with the in-tact girls is next to the boys.

I have no idea if either of the boys made a visit, but I imagine if they did, Devil would have munched off their toes (he is not friendly toward them at this point). McSteamy was hanging out inside his cage, and, like I said, McDreamy was behind it on the bookshelf sleeping.

Grr. The boys are scheduled for neuter on Thursday. Sheepster, Ushi, and Bandit are all in-tact. Bandit shows no interest while Sheeps and Ush are almost always plastered to the sides of the cage trying to smell the boys.

 

[user 78]

It depends on the cage, if the females are able to get out of the cage, etc.. If the spacing is large enough for a female to get out, it's plausible. If you have a scale, you need to be weighing the possible rats daily, or get spays done. Not sure if a vet would charge E Spay fees for something so early on..

Honestly, though, if you're going to keep unaltered sexes in the same house, the same room, you really should be more careful. I don't get how the boys could have opened their cage door, but if you felt they were capable of that, then you should never have stopped using the lock. If you had left it open, that seems pretty irresponsible since you know what the possible outcome could be. Even if they hadn't tried mating, they each could have seriously injured the others through the bars. Toe and tail amputations are not fun.

 

[jorats]

Rats can not mate through bars! But, males can squeeze in or females can squeeze out.
Males need to mount and trigger the female into lordosis. Without her arched back, males can't perform.

 

[ratlets]

Thanks! The girls are in a martin's with the 1"x.5" spacing.

And I don't need a lecture, as I am already fully aware of the consequences. The boys have been scheduled for neuter since I brought them home. The cage door which I found open doesn't latch as securely as the other two on the cage, but I never realized it could actually be opened by the rats. The lock was for my paranoia... which is apparently justified!

 

[SQ]

Really?
Good to know.

I have heard stories of rats getting pregnant through the cage bars ...

 

[user 78]

There's no way a male can fully mount a female through the bars. Also, females 'jump' forward to entice the male, not back up into them. If someone says the female was mated through the bars, either the female got out, the male got in, or there was an Oops and they don't won't to take the blame for it.

And ratlets, it's because I know that you're aware of all the possible outcomes that I'm not understanding how it happened in the first place. The boys have been scheduled for their neuter, which is fantastic, but they're currently unaltered. Which, IMO, means you should be just as diligent as if you hadn't been planning on getting them neutered.

 

[ratlets]

I explained the situation.

 

[Moon]

If the girls were locked away in the Martins then you are *probably* safe, but best to be careful for the next while. If you can, weigh the girls to track weight gain and if someone is gaining in leaps and bounds, consider an e-spay.