• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

breeding tameing rats

A

aiden_punx

New member
Is it easy to breed rats than mice?I just brought two rats yesterday they look nice the only trouble is the female keeps trying to take my fingers off,Can they be tamed down how often do they produce? What size litter do they produce? thanks in advance :cheers:
 
My rats have actually produced MORE pinkies than my mice. To me, I've found that rats are just as easy to care for than mice, and even better, they don't stink as much. The female is aggressive because she doesn't know you yet. I would handle her outside of her cage in a neutral setting, like on your bed or in a chair or something. When you stick your fingers in her home, her instinct is to protect it. Later on when she knows you it won't matter as much. Is she pregnant now? That could also be it too. Some females get kind of mean when they are pregnant or nursing and aren't familiar with you. As far as poduction goes. A heatlhy rat will produce anywhere from 12 to 17 pinkies a month for you. They give birth roughly every 23 to 25 days. And go into heat within hours of giving birth, so there is no downtime between litters. While one is growing on the outside, another is growing inside too! Hope the info helps. :)
 
cheers bobo's mama i don't know if she is preg now i asked them if they could get me one that was but she looks the same as the male with out the bits lol i will post some pix in a minute i need to find them
 
<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d92/aiden_punx/Picture079.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"></a> female

Picture077.jpg
male
 
Do you have any hides for them? You don't need anything fancy, just an old cardboard box or something. They like hides to sleep in, and the moms like to have the babies where you can't see them. You could also throw some paper towels in there for them. They make better nest material than newspaper. You can throw whole sheets in there and they will tear them up how they want them. The male is beautiful! I love his grey back. They look full grown, so you should see mating behaviour soon hopefully.
 
i will be putting a box in there they seem to be eatting everything at the moment,i am having real trouble with the water any idea on how to make a holder to stick the glass its in a cut down bottle at the moment and the keep knocking it over
 
Nice looking male! Looks like he is a roan, where he loses most if not all pigment in his fur. He will probably be mostly white when this molt finishes and as he ages. I dont have anything else to add, Becky covered it all :)

In case your interested in more roaning info: http://www.nfrs.org/types.php?type=marked scroll down to Roan (Husky)
 
cheers for that he is a stunner i was shocked when i saw them because i asked the petstore to order me some and was expectin a black or brown but these are even better
 
Do you have pictures of the water bottle? I'm not sure what you mean. I got mine one that just hangs over the edge of the tank and the weight of the screen lid keeps it from moving too much.
 
its a standard mouse bottle bigger size but i have had to sit it in a cut in half coke 1liter bottle because they are in a 3ftx 1 1/2 ft by 2ft viv so there is no where to put it
 
ok i put a shoe box in with a whole cut in.But they decided that they will run to the other side and sleep stupid things
 
Boy I wish I didn't come here today....
I have kept rats as pets for just over 3 years now. They are probably the best pets I've ever had and I've had everything (dogs,cats,rabbits,guinea pigs,snakes,birds...you name it). Your girl is probably nippy because she is pregnant. She wants to protect her babies and sees you as a threat (poor thing). Pregnant girls need alot of protein and a really good diet because making babies takes an awful lot out of them. They should be given a break between litters because back to back breeding is bad for their health. Pine bedding contains toxins and should never be used even though its cheap.

I personally have found rats to be super intelligent, clean and affectionate. They form strong bonds of friendship to both humans and other rats (when properly introduced) and will actually mourn the death of a cagemate. The more time you spend with them, the better pets they become. My 2 favorite animals in the world are cornsnakes and rats and I plan to keep them the rest of my life. I buy frozen mice for the snakes. :)
 
frozen mice are to expencive here!They are 3euros for a fuzzy..i don't think its a pine bedding it doesn't smell like pine and there is no other type of bedding available in the pet shops here.If she is pregnant i don't want to stress her out the male is ok i got him out today he peeded on me that was all.BUt was really good they was kinda fighting last nite so she could be pregnant because it looked like she was turning him down.
 
Don't laugh, but if he peed on you, it's a GOOD thing! If a rat likes you he will "mark" you to let the other rats know that you "belong" to him. Males usually mark more than females do. Also the "fighting" could be playing or establishing dominance. My 2 girls LOVE each other and are constantly flipping and "powergrooming" each other.
Have you looked into frozen food online? There are alot of frozen rodent companies in the USA.
 
i have googled and every thing there is no suppliers in spain. so it means i have to breed, i have them in the glass set up is because even though the young ones will be used as food.The adults can be pets.
 
If it is possible try to find the largest wire cage you can for them. Rats have very delicate lungs and the ammonia buildup from their pee isn't good. A wire cage allows more airflow. If you can't get a wire cage then you should clean the tank alot. Sorry if I sound like a pain, I'm just thinking about all the troubles you could have in future and am trying to help both you and the ratties.
 
While most pine is bad ... not all of it is. A kiln dried and sifted pine is equivalent to aspen and 1/3 of the price. The real secret to pine is get something that people use for horse stalls. Horses will also get Ri's from their bedding if its too dusty. Kiln drying removes the majority of the aromatics and oils. You should look for a flake that is on average about the size of a US dime or larger.

Any rat that sinks their teeth all the way into you should be culled. Nips are normal but a full fledged bite is usually an indicator of rat aggression. Rat aggression is believed to be a genetic problem.

You do need to feed a good food. High end dog foods are ok ... look for something that has 14-18% protein ... You will normally find this protein level in dog foods intended for seniors. Also make sure the first ingredient listed is not corn. Corn as the first ingredient is a good indicator that it is not a high quality dog food. Same goes for lab block (lab block is usually designed to be fed to rodents).

As far as water goes ... they need to have a constant supply. if you get a bottle that hangs from the top of the enclosure you can use a piece of stiff wire to customize a length so that it is at about shoulder level to the rat.

Glass enclosures aren't the best option ... but it looks like a large cage. The dimensions you give make it about 55 gallons. That is more than ample for 2 rats ... But they do need good airflow. Placing a fan to blow over the top will ensure that (just get a cheap little $2 plug in fan).

Rats do make good pets. One of my lines will manicure and clean my hand every time i need to reach in. Its a bit odd to watch ... but soon everyone wants one ::grins::.

I realize that you are not in the US so you may need to adapt this info to fit what you have available. US feeders wouldn't be able to ship to you due to travel time involved.

A good source to get lab block, bedding, and good rats is a local college or university. Most of them have some program that involves mice or rats or may be able to direct you to the right contacts.

Bryan
 
cheers every one i am trying to find a wire cage,Just need to sort out funds i have found ferret and rabbit indoor cages for 70euros about90 us dollars tonight i am going to pick up some big steriltes(sp) for them for now they are really finding it hard in the tank i might have to find some thing to put in there,Hehe and the rat feed i have is 17% protein is that enough the doog food i feed my dogs is 23% protein. thanks again for all the advise aiden....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top