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I've been breeding mice for months now. I finally decided it was time to breed rats. I built myself a new rack that holds mice and rat tubs. Here is the first litter. I know there are only two, small litter. A day later there were about thirty. Later, Chris

The Animalman's Website

With Mom...

The Animalman's Website

With Mom...

The Animalman's Website

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"i have a mortal wound!"
"where? where does it hurt?"
"oh, pretty much around the big bloody spot"
"come inside. ill get the neosporin. da na na na na - NEO! ba na na na na na na - SPORIN! blee nee nee......."

Hi, Chris:

They'll do very well. I always cull my new litters down to eight or less babies immediately after they're all cleaned up by their mommas. Then, I cut them back about a week or so later, to five or less. By the time they're two-to-three weeks old, they're whittled down some more, so that my mommas only have two or three left by weaning time. This ensures that all babies get well-fed, without competition. It also makes life much easier on the momma, so she's in good shape to rebreed immediately after the pups are weaned, or sooner if it should happen that way (if she and poppa are still sharing living space).

Often, when I mention that rats occasionally DO have very small litters, I see it being questioned. In most cases, even though she only had a small litter the first time, a momma will go on to produce a large litter the next time around. Even if she doesn't, it doesn't mean that her daughters won't be prolific. I've seen very little evidence that prolificacy is an inherited trait.

Good luck with your project.
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tricia