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KMR LINE   Scruffy~n~sage   SkinnyPigs   Frankykeno  
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 #1683158


KMR LINE
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 Weaning Rats?!?!

Hey Guys,

I don’t think I have psoted on this side of the forum before, but I need some help. I will be soon starting out breeding rats. I need help with weaning them. WHat are your methods, such as when to stop weaning...etc...

Many Thanks.
03/31/08  01:17am

 #1683234


Scruffy~n~sage
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   Message To: KMR LINE   In reference to Message Id: 1683158


 Weaning Rats?!?!

Well here’s how I wean:
Remove from mother at three weeks or when they eat solid food, whichever is first.

Welcome to the boards and feel welcome to ask whatever questions you have- No question is stupid, we are here to give help to anyone who needs it.

I normally breed one male to two females, usually in the same cage. That’s the only other bit I could offer besides to introduce the rats to each other slowly- don’t just put the breeders in a cage and leave them w/ each other for the whole time.

You should leave the male in the cage until you know for sure the female is pregnant. That could be two weeks or more. Try to find homes for the pups before you breed or you may end up with too many to deal with.



03/31/08  05:11am

 #1688394


SkinnyPigs
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   Message To: Scruffy~n~sage   In reference to Message Id: 1683234


 Weaning Rats?!?!

I agree with the pp but would like to add one more thing... If you want to leave the girls in with mom and just take out boys you can.... Mom will wean the girls herself.... eventually she will get tired of it and wean them... :) but definately get the boys out around 4wks... I usually depend it on the size of the litters... smaller litters are more likely to be ready by 3wks while larger litters tend to take more time... but I wouldnt leave boys in longer than 4-5wks... GL!
04/03/08  09:43pm

 #1701126


Frankykeno
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   Message To: SkinnyPigs   In reference to Message Id: 1688394


 Weaning Rats?!?!

We usually remove the offspring at about 4 weeks of age. Females to one tub, males to another. We put the adult female in a third tub with other resting breeder females. If you leave any young with her, even the females, they will continue to harrass her for nursing well beyond the point that they need it from her and continue to drain her resources when she should be building back up for another breeding. In the wild, rat mothers simply abandon their nest when it’s time to wean their young but in a captive breeding situation they can’t get away from their young like that so I think it’s best to just pull them from her and let her take a break from their constant leeching off her for milk.
04/13/08  08:21am


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