Well my names Amber Im 13 and I own 4 rats. Swiss, Cheese, Brian, and Stewie. On april fools day Cheese got out of her cage and was running around my room then Brian got out with her. Then Swiss got out of her cage and went in the boys cage with Stewie. So Cheese and Brian where running around the room while Swiss and Stewie where in the cage together. From what I've read it's pretty much impossible for them not to be pregnant but I can't tell. If they are pregnant then they are due this weekend (april 21, 22, 23, 2007). I live at my moms and my rats are at my dads and I'm trying to talk my mom into letting me bring them to her house for 5 weeks so I can take care of the babies but no luck so far. I've been reading up on breeding rats and the care but I havn't really found a site that actually helps me. I'm hopeing that some breeders on here would help me out and tell me what to do. By the way I'm not what you would first think of when you think of a 13 year old. I'm very responsable and I usually don't have any support or help from my parents. They havn't really been the best but anyway so if you reply to this don't say "ask your mom or dad this" or anything because they won't. Please reply I don't want to hurt these babies because I didn't know what to do. Thank you
MY RATS ARE PREGNANT!! I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!!!
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Here's what you need to do:
1) separate the boy and girls, permanently. they need to be in another room, or you need to have the girls spayed or boys neutered.
2) an aquarium is too small for one rat, much less two. get bigger cages! however, an aquarium is okay for your rats to give birth in. you should have one female in each cage, as pregnant & new mommies are very territorial. also, the male rats should not be in the same cage as the mothers.
3) fabric bedding works well for a rat giving birth. tissues, paper towels, aspen, carefresh, etc. will get stuck to the pinkies.
4) you should have a vet lined up in case there are problems.
to be continued later...
1) separate the boy and girls, permanently. they need to be in another room, or you need to have the girls spayed or boys neutered.
2) an aquarium is too small for one rat, much less two. get bigger cages! however, an aquarium is okay for your rats to give birth in. you should have one female in each cage, as pregnant & new mommies are very territorial. also, the male rats should not be in the same cage as the mothers.
3) fabric bedding works well for a rat giving birth. tissues, paper towels, aspen, carefresh, etc. will get stuck to the pinkies.
4) you should have a vet lined up in case there are problems.
to be continued later...
20 gallons still aren't that big and it is really bad for their respitory problems rats are already prone to. I had three boys in a HUGE aquarium witha mesh top and i still cleaned it out like three times a day. The aquarium is one of those like 150 /200 gallon things has a stand and all
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When I first got my baby Jay he was in a 50 gal then when I got him a friend (Bob) I made a three story topper for it. You may want to consider making or buying those and making a cage for your males. 
Its acually pretty easy and there are lots of thread on here to give you some ideas. Cages are very easy to clean and much more fun than tanks.
Its acually pretty easy and there are lots of thread on here to give you some ideas. Cages are very easy to clean and much more fun than tanks.I don't know where you live, but there are some other options for getting cages other than building. Google "Craig's List" and your city, and look for cages. Freecycle is another option - that's the URL for the listing of groups, so you could join your local one and post a request for a cage. Also, my friends and I have gotten some very nice large birdcages at our local thrift store for under $10. They usually need a good cleaning and a new pan (rubbermaid bins from WalMart or Target work well).ambernd said:
Does your dad take care of them, play with them and feed them while you are gone for such a long time? D: I know when I had hardly visited my dad and had animals at his place, it never went well. Iguanas that escaped and a cameleon that died. I don't really think it's possible to take care of animals from afar especially if the parents aren't willing to help out as you claim.
And I think if you ask enough and are demanding enough they are likely to give in if they know it's that important to you >_> I've had to do a TON of complaining with my parents to win at the issues that really matter when I was a kid, because they weren't very supportive as well. It works if they know your heart is really set on the animals.
And I think if you ask enough and are demanding enough they are likely to give in if they know it's that important to you >_> I've had to do a TON of complaining with my parents to win at the issues that really matter when I was a kid, because they weren't very supportive as well. It works if they know your heart is really set on the animals.
do the female rats get along well? you can leave the females in the cage together as females that get along will often take care of each others' babies. see if you can get tank toppers for the tanks, they run about $30 each online (although 20gal toppers are harder to find than 10gal, i know martin's cages has some). the females don't need a topper right away, keep them in a single level cage so they don't feel like they need to drag their babies up and down ramps.
i've only ever had hamster babies, but i've done lots of random reading on rat babies, and it's pretty much the same. get your females a place to hide their babies, like a couple igloos. klennex boxes (i.e. the cardboard inside) might get stuck to the wet little newborns which will hurt them very badly. get fleece (good call on the frayed towels idea, vixie) and make strips of it so they can move it around. scrap fleece and stuff is often sold at walmart, joanns, hobby lobby,etc for a couple bucks. start feeding your mommas some higher protein foods like a slice of hardboiled egg or a sliver of deli meat.
you can start handling the babies pretty much right away although i'd give her a couple days, especially if having babies makes them edgy. continue to give momma the same love and attention she usually gets, and if she does have babies, keep doing it, but stay close to her cage so she doesn't worry. try finding homes for them as soon as they are born (usually you'd find homes before they're born, but if you're not sure anyway...) on craigslist.com or other rat forums. separate the boys from the girls at 5 weeks of age (you can leave the girls with mom).
good luck! hope your parents aren't mad at you for all this, lol. i know mine would be.
i've only ever had hamster babies, but i've done lots of random reading on rat babies, and it's pretty much the same. get your females a place to hide their babies, like a couple igloos. klennex boxes (i.e. the cardboard inside) might get stuck to the wet little newborns which will hurt them very badly. get fleece (good call on the frayed towels idea, vixie) and make strips of it so they can move it around. scrap fleece and stuff is often sold at walmart, joanns, hobby lobby,etc for a couple bucks. start feeding your mommas some higher protein foods like a slice of hardboiled egg or a sliver of deli meat.
you can start handling the babies pretty much right away although i'd give her a couple days, especially if having babies makes them edgy. continue to give momma the same love and attention she usually gets, and if she does have babies, keep doing it, but stay close to her cage so she doesn't worry. try finding homes for them as soon as they are born (usually you'd find homes before they're born, but if you're not sure anyway...) on craigslist.com or other rat forums. separate the boys from the girls at 5 weeks of age (you can leave the girls with mom).
good luck!
hope your parents aren't mad at you for all this, lol. i know mine would be.well my dad feeds and waters them when im gone but he's scared to touch them. So they don't get played with but once a week and every other weekend. But eveytime I go over there they are as friendly as ever. Well I REALLY REALLY want to take them to my moms so I can take care of the babies and watch them grow but I'm scared to ask my mom again because she got really mad when I asked her last time. (By the way I live in Greenwood Indiana if anyone has a cage they can sell me.)
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Don't leave the females together, they should each have a seperate tank for the duration of their pregnancy. Females have been known to get VERY agressive while they have a litter, and I have heard on more than one occasion of a female killing her cagemate (both had litters).
Rats should get atleast an hour out of their cage a day, once or twice a week isn't cutting it, especially as they're in an aquarium. Is there any chance you could get over to your dad's more often?
Rats should get atleast an hour out of their cage a day, once or twice a week isn't cutting it, especially as they're in an aquarium. Is there any chance you could get over to your dad's more often?
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You should still seperate them, there are many hormone changes they go through when they give birth and even the friendliest rat can change temporarily.
How many days ago did they get to the males? They should give birth about 23 days after that.
How many days ago did they get to the males? They should give birth about 23 days after that.
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