Just a side note about the hairless Mommies. My Fluffy is a great Mommie but she did have trouble with lactation or at least I think this is whats happening. She had a very small litter, only 5. She has been great with them. On day 19 I found one that had passed & we have no idea why because there was no sign of illness.
I'm still not convinced that the baby starved since they were nibbling food & showing interest in the water bottle but something is happening that is not quite right with Fluffy's milk production. I always wash my hands prior to handling the babies. That morning I discovered one wasn't moving I reached in right away while my hands were still wet... I hadn't stop to dry them because I was in such a hurry... the other four were on me like lightning, licking the moisture from my hand. They were definitely thirsty.
I continued giving them water & they drank like crazy. I immediately put 2 & 2 together... they were suckling but I think Mom was not producing, at least not producing enough. I have been supplementing with esbilac ever since. My routine is to dribble some on my fingers & hand & reach in & let the babies come to me. They gang pile on my hand & I bring each one out, one at a time & feed them with the tiniest eye dropper I could find. They are doing great. Mom even drinks a dropper full from time to time.
Its a lot of work but in the end it is worth it & the benefit is that they will be much more bonded to their human Mommy.
So as a little advice to anyone with female hairless that think they may have a litter (for that matter, have it on hand for any expectant litter)... be preparred, get a can of esbilac, a tiny eyedropper & have it on hand just in case. Also take into consideration that the babies need to be feed every 2 to 3 hours. (especially within the first couple weeks)
I asked around & you can freeze the esbilac into small cubes & take out just what you plan to use. If you keep it in the liquid form it only last 72 hours & that means a LOT of waste. At 5 dollars a can, you don't want to waste it. I froze what I didn't immediately use it into very small cubes. When I thaw it I mix it 50/50 with water. I do this now but started off with a tad bit more water than formula for the first couple of feedings. Lastly, feed them slow because rats can't burp.