How many rats does a rat give birth to?

The unique fertility of rats is amazing: depending on the species, one female gives birth to 25–80 babies per year. These rodents breed all year round; they are not even afraid of the cold - the population size can only decrease due to natural disasters or epidemics. Let's find out how a rat's pregnancy goes, how long it lasts, and how many rats it gives birth to at one time.

Unique Fertility

In the Russian Federation the following types are most often found:

Gray or pasyuk;
Black;
Turkestan (red).

Pasyuk Black rat Turkestan rat

One can only wonder why nature awarded rats with such amazingly productive fertility. They live and breed all over the world, not paying attention to either cold or hot climates, and their activity lasts all round. And only unforeseen natural disasters or any mass diseases can temporarily reduce their numbers.

Scientists believe that it was humans who contributed to changes in the behavior and survival of rats. Living next to a person, eating the products that he produces, these rodents live freely and comfortably. After all, food is always available, and all the traps prepared by people can be avoided. And if one rat was poisoned, the others will no longer approach such food. These animals have a fairly high intelligence. It is assumed that they have the makings of abstract thinking, which helps them navigate and stay alive in an unfamiliar place. All these skills are adopted by subsequent generations.

And considering how rats reproduce, all that remains is to start fighting them in time, because their activity in this case can take on catastrophic proportions.

How to tell if your guinea pig is pregnant

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to determine the pregnancy of a pet in the early stages. A simple amateur is unlikely to be able to do this. However, as the gestation period increases, the guinea pig begins to show some peculiarities in behavior and habits. In the second month of pregnancy, any owner of a guinea pig will be able to identify it, since the appearance of the pet will change significantly

But there are still a number of features that are worth paying attention to if you think that the pig is expecting offspring

Increased appetite of a small animal

A pregnant guinea pig will drink much more water than usual. Accordingly, the female will eat more. Make sure there is always clean water and enough food in the cage. Be careful not to overfeed the animal, this can have unpleasant consequences.

No heat

In guinea pigs, estrus occurs quite often - once every 2 weeks. It is quite easy to notice this period: the pig will arch its back and purr when stroked. The female's vagina becomes moist and swollen. This will not happen during pregnancy.

Behavior change

The guinea pig becomes less mobile. The female begins to hide in a cage, build a house or bury herself in the hay. May not eat previously favorite foods. Becomes very aggressive towards the male.

Abdominal enlargement

Only starting from the 3rd week can you see a change in the size of the female’s abdomen. At this time, the stomach quickly increases in volume. From about 7 weeks you will be able to observe active movements in the female’s tummy. At the same time, you can count the number of cubs.

Toilet

The guinea pig will relieve itself more often. This occurs because the bladder and intestines are compressed. At this stage, you should clean your guinea pig's home more often.

Animal weight gain

The female will quickly gain weight. By the time a guinea pig gives birth, it doubles its pre-pregnancy weight.

It is important to keep a record of changes in the animal's weight. This is to make sure everything is going according to plan.

You need to weigh the pig carefully so as not to accidentally damage the cubs.

Aggression towards relatives

Despite the fact that guinea pigs are very kind animals, during pregnancy females change their behavior greatly. A pregnant pig is extremely aggressive towards the male and other females. This happens because the pig protects future offspring.

A pregnant woman should be kept separately from her relatives

Productive offspring all year round

Rats' minks are always clean and well-groomed. Having found shelter, they make additional passages and then deftly navigate through them. They find refuge for themselves:

Digging a hole yourself;
Having captured a hole already made by another small animal;
By occupying a nest made by a bird or animal;
Using any convenient building structures.

They live not only in families, there are also loners. Rats united in colonies pose a particular danger to people, since this form of organization can exceed the number of more than 1000 individuals. Of course, they also need a very large territory. In addition, they guard it very actively. Colonies are found primarily in large cities. Sometimes their number is equal to the population!

If you study the birth statistics of rats, you may get the impression that they are only busy reproducing. With the exception of northern populations, these animals reproduce throughout the year, but the number of pups born varies for each individual. For example, if this:

The gray rat, on average, can give birth to up to 9 cubs in one litter, but sometimes their number reaches 20;
The Australian species is distinguished by a smaller number of births - from 3 to 15;
The Malayan species produces from 3 to 6 cubs in one litter.

However, rats also have enemies who happily eat them, helping people reduce the spread of dangerous rodents.

Childbirth in a rat - video

Is it worth raising rats? Professional breeders of these rodents answer unequivocally - no.

Remember, the birth of babies is preceded by childbirth - a dangerous process for a rat. Especially if the owner is far from understanding how this happens and how he can help the animal if something goes wrong. Moreover, if the brood turns out to be huge (20 pieces), where should the kids be put? Should I take them to a store where a snakekeeper will probably buy them for food? Is this the same fate you wish for affectionate furballs?

What is the difference between rat reproduction?

In good conditions, a female rat can mate with several males at once. In the same way, males can find several females at once. Pregnancy lasts quite a bit: after three weeks, babies appear. They are still completely naked, blind and deaf, since the ear canals are closed. After two weeks, the eyes begin to open, and the pups begin to explore the surrounding space. The male does not take part in upbringing.

If there are weak individuals in the litter, sick, with pathologies, the mother mercilessly eats them. In this way, healthy offspring are regulated.

In just a month and a half, the rat will be able to feed itself independently, and is fully mature for adulthood. Young females at the age of 6 months are already ready to bear offspring.

And the mother’s body, a few days after giving birth, is already ready for new mating and bearing new pups. It so happens that she feeds some, while others are pregnant at the same time. Therefore, it is not surprising that the number of these rodents in some large cities is equal to the number of inhabitants.

Rats are especially productive if they are accompanied by very favorable conditions:

Constant supply of food and water. They always want to eat. That is why it is so important for rats that their shelter is located near a food source in the form of a garbage dump, garbage chute, or food service unit;
When there is a lot of vegetation around. These can be cultivated fields, grain farming, orchards and vegetable gardens. Many rodents prefer small invertebrates, insects, and young poultry;
Warm weather conditions with high humidity.

If such favorable circumstances last for several seasons, the population increases markedly.

In general, rats live up to three years. And the older the female becomes, the greater the number of offspring she has. And she bears cubs 14 times a year, constantly looking for a new convenient place for the next nesting. And the problem often arises - how to get rid of rats in a barn, home, or enterprise, especially when more and more of them appear.

Once it has discovered a power source, the rat will clearly remember the way to it, and will also take care of its relatives, leaving a mark and thereby showing them the right path. And good food in large quantities helps to increase the number of offspring, and instead of the planned 7–9, 15–18 may appear.

Rats avoid contact with humans. They see very poorly, but they smell people. That is why, if you need to get rid of rats and mice in a barn, house, or local area, it is not recommended to make baits with unprotected hands. For these purposes, it is better to use rubber gloves.

The most popular methods of exterminating rats:

Traps;
Lures;
Ultrasonic repellers;
Folk methods.

The difficulty is how to get rats out of the barn using folk remedies, but such effective methods can greatly reduce the number of individuals.

Rats, like any living creature on earth, strive to give birth to their own kind. Some animals eat frequently and abundantly, some slowly and little. Rats, being rodents, reproduce very quickly. And that is why problems arise with their removal. In this article you will learn at what age rats can reproduce, how often they do it, how many rat pups are born in one litter, and much more.

How do rats give birth?

Many owners who dream of seeing rat pups born do not realize that the process itself is unattractive and painful for the animal. Moreover, it is better to leave the rat alone - put it in a room where people rarely appear, in a secluded place, providing it with food and water.

Shortly after the spotting appears, contractions begin. The female's body is stretched out, while the sides are drawn in to the limit. This happens several times. As soon as the rat senses that the baby is on the way, it sits down and helps it out, after which it gnaws the umbilical cord, licks the baby, and then eats the afterbirth.

Good to know. If the baby rat does not squeak or move, its mother will most likely eat it too.

Pathological birth

Some rat breeders believe that if the first rat pup is born, then the rest should be born without problems. This statement is partly true, but this does not always happen. The owner should be alerted by the mother’s inappropriate behavior:

she puts aside the born rat pups and does not show attention to them - if the birth is successful, the rat must gather the babies into a pile and start feeding them;
contractions continue for more than 2 hours, and the next baby does not appear;
the female looks tired, hid in a corner, disheveled, licking the genitals, from which blood is released.

You can help the animal by gently massaging the belly, but such manipulation rarely helps. It is best to call a veterinarian-ratologist at home to perform a caesarean section.

Another option for abnormal labor is described above (see discharge from the genitals). From the moment contractions begin until the appearance of the last baby, an average of 2 hours passes; in case of multiple pregnancy, more is possible. If the rat is “squashed” for longer, but the pups do not appear, the animal develops shock. Only an experienced ratologist can help in such a situation.

On a note. The uterus in rats has the shape of the Latin letter “Y”. The baby rat can get stuck in the septum or directly in the birth canal, which often happens in females who give birth for the first time after the age of 8 months.

If labor continues for a long time, the cubs may be born in a “shirt,” but the mother rat may no longer have the strength to free them and gnaw the umbilical cord. The owner’s task is to help her with this:

Wash your hands and treat them with alcohol or vodka.
Take nail scissors, treat them with chlorhexidine, or better yet, put them directly into the antiseptic solution.
Cut a piece of sterile bandage, wrap it around the first and index fingers of your left hand and take the little rat with it.
Using nail scissors, carefully pierce the amniotic sac and then make an incision. Act with extreme precision so as not to accidentally injure the newborn.
Free the baby rat from the amniotic sac and clean his mouth of mucus with a piece of bandage. He should take a deep breath, which indicates the opening of the lungs.
Cut the umbilical cord at a distance of approximately 3-4 mm from the body, treat the stump with chlorhexidine.
Now soak your fingers in sea buckthorn oil and gently massage the baby. Imitate the movements of the mother's tongue - it should turn pink and squeak.

How many rat pups are there in a litter?

It all depends on the animal. A rat can give birth to 2 or 22 babies. The average number of rat pups is 12-14, maximum 25.

The larger the offspring, the more difficult it is for the mother to feed them. Rats have 12 nipples. If the animal cannot cope and it is clearly noticeable that some babies eat well - they have full bellies with a thick white stripe (stomach filled with milk), while others are stunted, lethargic, with wrinkled skin, you will have to help them and the rat:

Count the number of pups in the litter and divide the result in half.
Leave the mother one part - the part where the cubs are malnourished, and place the other on a mountain of soft napkins in a closed carrier with holes and place it next to something warm, for example, a radiator or a bottle of hot water. But be careful not to overheat the kids.
After 4 hours, change the positions of the pups.
Do this until the weak are equal in stature to the strong. In the future, you can try to leave the rat with the entire litter, but observe how it copes with feeding.

How many Rats did your pet give birth to?

Wild conditions

The mating season for rats begins in the spring, both domestic and wild, i.e. Everyone has the same time to produce offspring. However, there are further differences.

In nature, the reproduction rate of rats is low. They mate only in spring and summer. This happens due to living conditions. If the region in which the population is located is cold and wet, mating rarely occurs. Usually this can be in the Far North, taiga, jungle, and so on. The opposite situation occurs if rodents live in a warm climate.

During mating, the male hunts for several females at once, after which each becomes pregnant in turn. The pregnancy itself lasts only a month, sometimes less. Before giving birth, the female arranges a nest for the future offspring: she collects straw, leaves, branches, digs a hole and lays out the collected materials there. Then he brings food there, the reserves of which should be enough for the first weeks of the little rats’ lives. Usually about ten or fifteen babies are born at a time.

The cubs themselves are born completely naked, blind and incapacitated. Many functions of their body do not work, for example, digestive, which is why the mother licks their bellies so that all metabolic processes are normalized. But a little time passes, the pups grow fur, after seven days their eyes and ears open, after another week their teeth erupt, and towards the end of the month they can already move around calmly on their own. By this time, the pups turn into real adult rats and are able to live independently, separately from their parents, but they reach the size of an adult only after a year.

Puberty in adult rats occurs when the processes of growth of the body and organism have not yet been completed. In fact, at the age of several months, a rat can reproduce peacefully.

Appearance and habitats

Rats have a dense build and a rounded-elongated body shape. Depending on the specific species, an adult animal can reach a length of 10 to 30 centimeters.

The rodent's muzzle is sharp and has medium-sized ears and eyes. Almost all individuals have a long tail, seemingly naked, but in fact covered with special scales. Only occasionally can you find a small amount of fur on it. The exception is the black rodent, which has a thick tail of the same color.

The wool is quite dense and harsh. Its color can be different and depends on the type of rodent.

The animal's fingers are mobile, which allows it to live not only on the ground, but also in trees, where it can easily settle in hollows. These are very mobile rodents that can move at speeds of up to 10 km/h. Every day a rat can run up to 16 km. These are excellent swimmers who can fish and live in water for 3 days, and the water does not affect their health in any way.

Rats have poor vision. They see the world in gray colors, which cannot be said about their sense of smell and hearing, which are excellently developed.

These animals do not live long. For example, black rats live about a year, and gray rats live up to one and a half years. As for laboratory rats, their life expectancy is 2 times longer. The oldest rat was 7 years old at the time of death.

Rats live all over the world

These are the most common animals that live in almost every corner of the world:

America (North, South);
Russia;
Europe;
Australia;
Asia.

Home conditions

The difference between domestic rats and wild rats is small, but their reproductive processes still proceed differently. The main difference is the habitat. A rat in the wild is constantly exposed to environmental changes. Frequent rains, winds, frosts, long and difficult winters, droughts, heat, all this affects the health of the rodent, as a result of which fertility decreases and various complications arise.

Although rats are able to live in almost any conditions, even in radiation-contaminated areas, harsh conditions force rodents to rebuild their bodies to suit them, as a result of which some of its functions begin to work differently. Domestic rats are not susceptible to this.

The domestic rat reaches sexual maturity after thirty to forty days from birth. If you breed rats, then many males, just like in the wild, will hunt for females, taking turns mating with them. If you have one rat in the cage with which you placed a male, then nothing like this will happen.

Once a rat becomes pregnant, it must have access to all the materials it needs to build nests. She has no nutritional deficiencies, so the pregnancy is proceeding smoothly. Childbirth occurs on the twentieth day after fertilization. Newborn rat pups of domesticated rats are no different from wild rats; they develop in the same amount of time and go through all stages of growth. And it’s quite difficult to distinguish them from mice, except perhaps by size. Read about the difference between baby rats and mice.

If some pups are stillborn, the mother eats them. Sometimes the living suffer the same fate. This is explained by the fact that there are too many individuals in the population or there is a serious danger nearby. This feature is inherent in all rats, both domestic and wild.

How long does pregnancy last

To thoroughly prepare for childbirth, you need to calculate the approximate date of the exciting event. On average, a rat's pregnancy lasts 3 weeks from the moment of fertilization. However, the timing may vary depending on the number of babies.

Rats carrying 6-7 pups can give birth earlier - on the 19-20th day. And if 17-20 rat pups are planning to be born, delivery may be delayed until 22-23 days. Carrying offspring for more than 24 days is a reason to contact a veterinarian. Prolonged pregnancy in rats often signals problems.

Factors affecting reproduction

Despite the fact that rats breed a lot and often, there are a number of factors that have a serious impact on the reproductive functions of the rodent body.

Environment

The environment plays a huge role in the life of any living creature. A person is able to cope with this by building warm homes, creating clothes and other things to protect himself from the influence of the environment. Rats can't do that, so they've learned to adapt.

These rodents adapt perfectly to any climate, but the climate itself changes the rodents so that they do not die. So, if the population happens to live in frosty areas, the number of cubs that the female will give birth to will sharply decrease. The quality of the offspring will also suffer, as many pups will be stillborn.

Poor nutrition affects adult rats. Pet rodents always have access to healthy and tasty food, so they are full of energy and always healthy. Wild rats eat what they find under their feet, and this is not always food that is healthy for their body. Quite often, a rat can eat some kind of poison, but not die and suffer poisoning, but its body will already be seriously harmed. Read more about rat poisons in this article.

Living conditions

A hostile environment is often the main factor that disrupts the reproduction process. In a stressful state, when there are either traps set up or predators everywhere, female rats have a hard time with pregnancy, miscarriages often occur and dead rat pups are born. Just as mentioned above, due to the constant danger, rats may eat live young ones to protect them from predators. By carrying live rat pups from place to place, the female often exposes them to danger. Naked babies simply freeze while their mother carries them in her teeth.

Ecology

Chemical emissions into the atmosphere, radiation, and contaminated soil also have a detrimental effect on the health of rats. If poisoning can affect several individuals, then constant presence in the contaminated area affects the entire population. Childbirth is difficult, pregnancy is also difficult, mutations and the absence of the reproductive system in general are observed. The population begins to degenerate.

Answer from Peacemaker With a Bazooka It is interesting to note that the ability to reproduce in a rat begins at the age of three months. Life expectancy is 2 - 3 years. The rat's fertility is high and under good conditions it reproduces all year round. Rats can produce offspring in almost any environment. One female can give up to 2 - 8 litters during the year, and the offspring from one pair of individuals can reach 800 pieces. The fertility of rats sharply decreases during cold weather and insufficient nutrition, as well as during drought. Rats breed year-round, with two peaks when the number of pregnant females increases sharply in spring (April) and fall (September). Pregnancy lasts 21 days and 5 to 8 individuals are born. One of the main reasons for the survival of rat tribes is their unusually high fertility. Rats are only 3 months old and begin to reproduce. After 3-4 weeks they have 6-10, sometimes 12-18 rat pups. A female who has just become a mother can become pregnant again in just a few hours. At the age of one month, the pups begin to live independently, and their mothers immediately give birth to a new generation. Theoretically, the offspring of a pair of rats in a year would amount to several hundred individuals. High mortality practically reduces this figure tenfold, but at the same time the fertility of the rat is simply enormous.

Pathologies of pregnancy in dogs

The pathological course of pregnancy in dogs can be caused by many factors:

diseases;
helminthiasis;
abnormalities of internal organs;
age characteristics;
stress;
incompatibility with a male dog.

Such pathologies include false, frozen and ectopic pregnancy.

False pregnancy in dogs

6-8 weeks after estrus, your dog may show signs of a false pregnancy:

increased appetite and thirst;
swelling of the nipples, appearance of colostrum;
nausea and vomiting;
apathy, drowsiness.

During a false pregnancy, dogs may show an increased interest in soft toys.
The pet may show an increased interest in soft toys, “caring” for them.

False pregnancy poses a certain danger to the physical and mental health of the dog. Among its consequences are tumors of the mammary glands, cancer of the appendages and uterus, infectious diseases of the genitourinary organs, and mental disorders. If the animal exhibits the above symptoms, the owner should take the bitch to the clinic for an ultrasound as soon as possible.

Treatment of false pregnancy at the beginning of the development of pathology consists of changing the dog’s living conditions. The frequency of feedings is reduced to once a day, while significantly limiting liquid, dairy and meat dishes. All objects that remind the dog of its “motherhood” must be removed. The amount of time allotted for a walk is increased to the maximum possible, trying to stimulate the pet's physical activity in all available ways.

If after 3-4 days the situation has not changed, and even more so has become more serious, they begin drug treatment. Hormone-based medications and homeopathic remedies are indicated as therapy. If there is no result, surgery is performed.

Frozen pregnancy in dogs

This pathology is characterized by the death of embryos (all or partially). Stopping the development of embryos can occur for various reasons. What to do in this case depends on how the dog’s body reacts to what happened.

If all embryos die, you should wait until a miscarriage occurs. If you wait for a long time, it is stimulated artificially, since frozen embryos can mummify and begin to decompose.
If live embryos are preserved (ultrasound is required), the pregnancy is preserved. During childbirth, the dead embryos will be released along with the newborns. After birth, a control ultrasound examination of the animal is carried out: if there are dead remains in the uterine cavity, they are disposed of by stimulating contraction of the walls of the organ. If there is no result, the dog is sterilized.

There are other options for the development of events. For example, a partial miscarriage of dead embryos may occur with the preservation of normal or all embryos (both dead and living), purulent inflammation may begin or there will be no symptoms at all, and so on. The owner must be extremely attentive to the dog and contact the clinic at the slightest change in the animal’s condition.

Ectopic pregnancy in dogs

Ectopic pregnancies can also occur in dogs. It occurs due to various reasons: pathological structure of the uterus, trauma, endocrine disorders. The first signs are bloody discharge and pain (the animal may whine). Such a pregnancy is most often terminated with the help of medications, if the period is short, or surgically.

Types of breeding

In domestic rats, two types of crossbreeding are possible: selection of different breeds and purebred breeding.

In turn, purebred crossing is divided into the following types:

Linear crossing;
Inbreeding;
Outcrossing;
Outbreeding.

Linebreeding

Linebreeding or line breeding of rats involves crossing individuals that have a common ancestor. This method allows you to obtain viable offspring with a good genotype. In this case, homozygosity is preserved, and characteristics that do not satisfy the breeder are leveled out.

Inbreeding

To consolidate important breed qualities, the inbreeding method is chosen. Breeding rats in this way involves studying the gene pool and selecting quality sires among close relatives. With close inbreeding, a decrease in the number of viable offspring is possible - so-called inbreeding depression. To reduce the risk of such a situation, individuals for breeding are selected according to strict criteria.

Outcrossing

Outcrossing is used when it is necessary to increase the number of litters with valuable qualities. Mating uses individuals obtained by linebreeding, but without common ancestors in the fourth or fifth generation. To improve the breed, young animals that are unsuitable for a good genetic line are removed from the litter.

Outbreeding

To improve the quality of the breed and the health of the litter, outbreeding is the best option. With such crossing, individuals of a pure breed are selected, but without common ancestors. The disadvantage of this method of breeding is that there is a risk of unplanned characteristics and with frequent use, after several generations the proportions of the animal change.

Despite the different selection options that can be combined, there is still an unpredictable result. This is manifested in the color and length of the coat, the number of individuals in one litter, eye color, and level of health.

Features of feeding and care

Pregnant females need careful care and feeding. Before giving birth or lambing, sheep are shorn - near the eyes, udder, legs. This is done to simplify the birth itself, as well as to make it easier for the baby to get to the nipples and milk.

An important point in the pregnancy process is proper feeding of the animal. If there is too much nutrition, then the fetus (or several) will be too large, and labor will be more difficult and longer. If there is a lack of nutrients, both mother and baby will be weak.

If pregnancy occurs in the summer months, then the animal will have enough of what it eats while walking in the meadow. Sometimes it is advised to supplement them with minerals and bran in the evening. It is also recommended to add table salt to the feeder. Up to 15 grams per individual.

The following subparts are distinguished in sheep feed.

Juicy food. This usually includes various herbs that the animal eats themselves while walking, or they can be poured into the feeder. Clover, plantain, sweet clover, nettle, dandelions, and chamomile will be useful. It can also be weeds. However, it is advisable to carry out walking at a time when the dew has already left the leaves, as well as in dry weather, since dew and rain on the leaves or grass of plants can lead to fermentation in the stomach. It is necessary to ensure that animals do not eat a poisonous plant - hemlock, celandine or dope; even lily of the valley can lead to death.

Roughage. Animals usually receive it in the winter, when there is no more succulent food.

This includes:

Straw. A pregnant female should eat an average of half a kilogram of straw per day. You should not give your animal a lot of straw, as it contains few nutrients and beneficial substances.

Don't forget about water - it should be fresh, in sufficient quantities, at a comfortable temperature. Change it at least 2 times a day.

Juicy food accounts for the bulk - about 3 kilograms. Of course, the amount of food depends on many parameters. This includes the breed of the animal, its weight and age, the number of fetuses, gestational age, climatic and weather conditions, as well as the season.

Pet rat pregnancy

The duration of pregnancy in decorative rats ranges from 20 to 24 days. The first two weeks of pregnancy will not be noticeable - the rat does not show its condition in any way and only begins to build a nest closer to the birth.

As soon as you suspect that an individual is pregnant, you need to expand her diet to include apples, poultry and fish, cottage cheese, and nettles. Products containing protein, calcium and vitamins must be present. You should exclude grapes, lettuce, garlic, onions, tomatoes and egg yolks from your diet.

To replenish fluid there must be clean, preferably spring water. Closer to birth, you need to prepare the nest. Zoological stores sell ready-made options in the form of plastic or wooden houses larger than usual for rodents. You also need to provide the female with building material in the form of unpainted paper and pieces of natural fabric.

Breeding rats at home requires the breeder to be extremely careful and careful. Stress factors should be avoided throughout pregnancy. Such, for example, as introducing new animals into a cage and moving the female to another place.

What to do if a rat gives birth to pups

If your pet rat has given birth to pups, you need to create comfortable and safe conditions for the growth of newborns:

do not try to examine the newly born little rats; the female may eat the offspring from stress;
do not touch the female after giving birth, she may bite you, protecting her children;
remove all floors, hammocks, toys, ladders from the cage, only a tray filled with pieces of paper and a drinking bowl with a feeder should remain;
give the rat pieces of paper napkins or unscented toilet paper for newborn bedding;
you should not clean the cage and bathe the female; later you can carefully remove dirty napkins without touching the nest;
do not leave the cage open, the rat will take the babies to a secluded place where you cannot find them;
a rat that has given birth must be fed highly nutritious food with an increased content of protein and calcium to produce the required amount of milk;
Make sure that the nursing mother always has clean water in her drinking bowl.

Artificial feeding

In some cases, when the female dies after giving birth or refuses to breastfeed, you can try to feed the cubs to the child's family. Insulin syringes are used for this. Infant formula is taken in the proportion of 1 part to 50 ml of condensed milk with a high fat content of up to 12%, including half a tablet of calcium gluconate. It is acceptable to use milk replacers for cats or dogs.

Feeding should be done frequently with gradually increasing portions. It is preferable to give such cubs to another lactating female if she accepts them.

In conclusion, it should be said that breeding rats is quite a fascinating process, but do not forget that by crossing different species you can create something completely unusual.

Rat breeding

Decorative species of rats reproduce well at home. However, to obtain healthy, viable offspring, it is necessary to have at least basic knowledge about the biological characteristics of pets, the rules of feeding and keeping pregnant females and cubs.

Very often, only one animal is kept in the house as a four-legged friend and, even when having a couple of animals, as a rule, they do not set themselves the task of breeding them. Nevertheless, not only children, but also adults love to observe the life of rats, the birth and raising of offspring.

At home, white and colored varieties of rats are able to reproduce all year round.

However, breeding these animals in captivity requires certain conditions, although it does not present any particular difficulties.

Breeding new breeds of rats can be quite an exciting hobby. As a result of selection, it was possible to obtain numerous breeds and varieties of rats, therefore, when mating animals, this circumstance should be taken into account in order to preserve the breed or independently create a new variety of these animals.

The owner of a rat who decides to have offspring from it must understand that his decision is quite serious. First of all, he needs to think carefully about where the future babies will be placed. The health status of the rat is important: it should not suffer from mycoplasma and many other diseases.

You should prepare in advance for the appearance of numerous offspring, which may consist of 10-17 babies. Naturally, few people plan to keep so many rapidly maturing rats in their home. Thus, it is necessary to either take care of their new home in advance, or give it to a pet store, taking into account that most of the animals are used as food for reptiles.

In general, rats reproduce very easily, but it should be remembered that in their environment there is usually such a thing as inbreeding. Thus, based on this, upon reaching sexual maturity of animals, that is, in the 5th week of life, females are separated from males from the same litter - brothers and sisters, as well as mothers from sons.

A great effect in breeding new species and breeds of rats can be achieved by paying attention to one of the main characteristics. But unfortunately, this can lead to a deterioration to a greater or lesser extent of other qualities. Therefore, you should stick to the golden mean, improving all the positive signs.

Most often, animals of the same breed are mated; this method is called “pure breeding.” It allows you to improve animals according to basic characteristics: color, length and density of fur, size, etc.

One of the forms of purebred breeding of decorative rats is breeding along lines and family groups. A line in this case is a group of animals that has a common ancestor male, and the successors of the line are the descendant males. For successful reproduction of animals along the line, males are selected with appropriate females similar to them in basic decorative or useful characteristics.

When creating a family group, both males and females are considered carriers of the main characteristics. This method allows you to quickly improve the line.

If it is decided to create a new variety, then animals of different breeds or lines are crossed. To do this, an individual with characteristic qualities is selected and mated with an animal that has similar necessary qualities, and the offspring with the appropriate characteristics are crossed again with the founder of the breed. This method of reproduction is called absorption crossing.

Mating of close relatives is called inbreeding. Rats mate quite easily in various combinations: females and males of the same litter, descendants of the same male, etc., with the only exception being a pair of mother and son - they do not always begin to reproduce. Inbreeding is often used to create a pure line and enhance the outstanding qualities of sires in the offspring. However, with prolonged inbreeding, the offspring become less viable and ugly, since, as scientists believe, recessive genes appear in them.

Breeding rats for sale requires a large room, since it is impossible to keep a significant number of animals in a living room due to the specific smell of animals.

Moderate inbreeding with quick results at home can be achieved by matching one male with two females with the necessary qualities. To strengthen and consolidate the characteristics selected to create a new species, the best animals from one female are mated with the litter from another female or with their parents, and the young animals of the third litter are mated with the founders of the breed.

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It is important for those who keep rats to know everything about them.

Preparing for childbirth

Childbirth is a complex and responsible process, so you need to carefully prepare for the birth of babies. The only thing the owner can do to help a rat during delivery is to create comfortable conditions. To do this you need:

curtain the windows, creating twilight in the room; you can also shade the cage using cardboard;
eliminate even the slightest draft in the room;
take care of a comfortable air temperature of +20-21ᵒС;
Provide the cage with plenty of paper and fill the drinking bowls with water.

To prevent the rat from becoming nervous during childbirth, you should not stand over the cage and observe this intimate process. It's better to leave the room for a couple of hours. The pet itself will cope perfectly with the birth of babies.

Birth

The birth begins. One by one, the babies will move through the birth canal and be pushed out. They can be born either with the head or the back of the body. The female rat can pull out the baby with her paws and teeth, tearing off the placenta and birth sac.

She licks the membrane to clear the airways. Licking also helps oxygenate the blood. After cleaning the newborn, she will ingest the placenta and umbilical cord, membranes rich in protein. The movement and sound of the newborn will prevent the mother from swallowing it. Sometimes, when a baby rat is stillborn, the mother may swallow it after birth.

This process is repeated over and over again until the entire litter is born.

Initial care of offspring

Newborn rats are difficult to feed and must be kept warm at all times. Infants raised without their mother should be stimulated to eliminate waste (with a damp, warm Q-tip or cotton swab).

A breastfeeding foster mother will give babies a much better chance of survival. Survival rate when grown independently is very low.

Newborn rats require food and drink. The healthiest initial feeding should be colostrum, a secretion from the mammary gland produced shortly after birth. It is rich in antibodies that help keep babies healthy. Colostrum also contains a lot of carbohydra.

Features of the reproductive cycle of hamsters

At the age of 4-5 weeks, hamsters become sexually mature. At this time, the females begin their first estrus. They can already mate with males and become pregnant. However, experts are against such early matings. The body of a young hamster continues to form.

At one month of age, she is not yet ready to bear and give birth to healthy offspring. The right time for first mating and pregnancy is 3-4 months.

Estrus in hamsters occurs at intervals of 4-5 days. This is a special condition in which the female is tolerant of the male. It is at this moment that she is ready to mate and shows this with her behavior. When she sees a male hamster, she arches her back, allows him to approach her and perform sexual intercourse.

Estrus lasts from 4 to 20 hours. The most favorable time for pregnancy is considered to be the first half of estrus. As soon as it ends, the female’s attitude towards the male changes - she again shows aggression and drives him away.

Pairing

Hamsters are usually kept separately, as they do not tolerate the presence of their own kind in their territory. The exception is Campbell's hamsters. In the wild, these rodents live in groups or pairs, so at home they can always be in the same cage.

However, in this case it is impossible to control mating - the female will become pregnant too often. This will undermine her health.

The hamsters have a date on neutral territory or in the male’s cage. There should be nothing extra inside - just a feeder, a drinking bowl and a house. Hamsters mate several times at night. The sexual act itself lasts 10-30 seconds. After successful mating, the animals are seated.

Limiting factors for rat numbers

Apart from the active human activity of exterminating rats, as well as the hunting of cats as human agents, the rat population suffers from:

natural predators (weasels, stoats, snakes, birds of prey);
own aggression and cannibalism (fights with a bloody outcome, eating cubs and rivals);
underdevelopment of cubs and their dependence on the mother;
many infectious diseases.

And yet there are a lot of rats, a person has to constantly fight with them. Why? The answer is simple - they are very smart, well organized, eat everything, and are distinguished by courage and arrogance in hunting and survival. In pantries and basements they show miracles of ingenuity, opening even cans, not to mention plastic containers. So the confrontation between man and rat has the character of an eternal war.