What to feed a mother rat

Question
My rat, Suzie, had 11 babies- unexpectedly- yesterday.  I was wondering what I should feed her to keep her in the best of health and make her babies strong.  She is still young, around 6-8 weeks old, and this is her first litter.  I am currently feeding her a diet of lab blocks, fresh veggies and fruits, and the occasional yogi, a strawberry  flavored yogurt treat that Suzie loves.  Is her diet OK, or should I be feeding her something else?

Answer

Wow she is young for babies.  I hate this for her. I figure she was purchased from a pet store and came to you pregnant?

You can feed your new mother some scrambled eggs as well as soy milk (human grade) and also, if your not sure how to handle babies and new mothers, be sure that you handle the new babies right away so they are used to people or they wont be social at all and will be scared of people.

Also, you need to be sure she is nursing them ok and has milk.  Check each pup and be sure you see the milk band in their bellies.  If you are unsure as to what that is, let me know.  Its pretty simple, really.  Their skin is very thin so you can actually see their tummies full of milk.  It looks like a tiny light is lit up in their tummies and its white. Thats their bellies full of milk!   Hold them, take them out and put them on a soft towel every day from now on. If mom tries to bite you, move her from the cage so you can hold the pups.

Also be sure that the boys are removed by the time they are 5 weeks old and the mother can get pregnant right away from any male, so if you have males, do not let her near any males.

Also, what kind of bedding do you use?