>>Hi,

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>>We are breeding for pets and feeders. Are you serious about them going infertile? That would suck. I definitely was hoping to get more that 7 months of babies out of our breeding females. I appreciate the info on that. No one told me this. Many breeders have told me to kill off all my breeding females every 6 months just so I do not have to deal the infertility issues. Do you really think by waiting until they wean off their young they will all be infertile in 6 months? So are you saying that I need to get mom pregnant the same day she has her babies? Thanks for the help...

>>

>>Mark

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>>STRENGTH IN NUMBERS

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So I am gonna comment on your email here too. So if you wonder what I am talking about.....it is just me.



Good for you to have that kind of market for your rats. Here I can't get that for dumbo hairless , let alone just colors. Rats are rats here. Which is fine as I can sell as many as I want and more than break even. I used to breed the dumbo line, hairless line, badgers, hoods (of course) and everything in between. I even had a tailess line for a year. (but don't go there for anything but trouble...like manx cats with spine and neuro problems)



Were you talking separating mice or rats in grow outs? I tend not to do either 'cause then I can resupply my own breeders with those that catch early and are often very good breeders. With rats it is whether you care if you sell possibly pregnant girls. With mice it is that but also if you put all the male mice in thick population they start tearing each other to death...bloody rumps, torn off tails toes and ears. Male mice are evil to each other. Here I sell or feed off mice so quickly it isn't an issue usually of who is pregnant. And I tend to feed down the boys first.



Trouble with breeding and selling PET rats is you often get zealots that are like rabid vegans with their opinions on breeding. I have set some off when they get into irresponsible breeding and I remind them that I have been in rats siince there were only a couple colors and patterns (hoods were all the cool stuff) and GEE rats lived to be 6 or 8 years old and died of old age...not two and die of mycoplasmosis or cancer. Been there, done that.



I should breed more mice but I really don't need them except as feeders for baby snakes. Next year it will be an issue again but this year all I have is a clutch of eastern milks from a WC female that laid them in my place of business under the frig (in a boarding kennel) They will be on mouse tails for a while and then tiny pinks if I am lucky. Next year I will probably breed my old stand bys of Childrens, yellow and everglades ratsnakes, western hogs and boas. So I will need to up my mice for pinky feeders. Mice are just so smelly and touchy I have cut back some.





As to your above questions...many rats will be infertile hitting the 6 or 8 month old mark. I have found that waiting between litters does not keep this from happening and you end up with two or three litters from a doe instead of 6 . Pet rat people love to argue this point that they don't get infertile girls...but most of them only breed a doe once or twice. So there is really nothing to compare to.



You don't have to rebreed her constantly. Do what you feel is right. You could rest her and let the pups get to two weeks or whatever. I am just saying, don't be surprised if you have moms that won't breed back. Kinda like bunnies....wait too long and she won't take a rebreeding. Whether they just get fat or just stop cycling....just going on my experience.

One thing I often do is not breed initially til the doe is a good 8 to 12 weeks (depending on the line and size of her) so, basically saying I don't leave girls in with their dads or other mature males for their first breeding. I often take out young females, grown them a month past weaning, then put them in a group with a mature male...not one of her sibs as they are often not ready, but a male a couple 3 months older. That will let her get her growth in before taxing her with pregnancy. After that she is always in a group with a male.
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Sonya



I'm not mean. You're just a sissy.

Happy Bunny

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