Rat birth

Question
I believe my rat Sugar, is pregnant, if she is what is the best way to tell? I set up a cage for her but I would like to know what kind of bedding and things I should include. When she gives birth, how long will the babies feed off her? and what do I feed the babies after this? Thank You, I would really like some help

Answer
Hi Kate

SOrry for the delay.  I keep telling everyone today I am sorry for taking so long to get back to them. I have had a swarm of messages lately and try to answer the most critical ones first (emergencies such as breathing problems etc..)

As for Sugar (I had a Sugar once, sweet white rat with pink eyes, also called a PEW I guess is the lingo...lol) Anyhow, your Sugar, if pregnant, will show about a week before birth. Usually gestation is 21 days, 23 max. They take the shape of a pear and the hair around the nipples thins out preparing the area so the pups can suckle better.
You should move her to a cage with close bar spacing so when the pups age they cant escape.  If she is pregnant, she may have a change in her personality too and become a bit aggressive, but this is only temporary and it is due to hormones.

Provide her with soft white paper towels and an igloo or even a birthing box is good. These have a threshold so the pups cant roll out of it easily like they would an igloo with no "lip" to protect them from rolling out.
You can use either aspen or hemp by litter mate for the bedding and also up her protein a bit, adding scrambled eggs, soy formula and even canned oysters are good, to her diet.  The babies will usually nurse as long as mom lets them but the males MUST be weaned and removed from the girls cage right before 5 weeks of age or they will become sexually reproductive and get the female ratlets who also are sexually reproductive around 5 weeks old and even mother can get pregnant after giving birth, just hours later.  As the pups age, they will be curious about food mom eats so be sure she is on a good rat diet, none of the nasty seed mixes from the local pet store. Not sure what you feed your girl now but check out my site for approved rat diets which include a good quality rat block.

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/ratsandahealthydiet.htm

You can moisten the blocks to get them soft but the pups usually eat them fine. With the diets on my site and also from other sites and using other peoples recipes, these foods are all fine for a ratlet to eat and they can chew it just fine. Soft peas are a smash hit with ratlets too.
Anyhow, the big deal is socializing the pups. They must be handled right after birth. Give mom a day to settle in and nurse the pups. Be sure she is nursing them by checking for milk band. This is a white transparency you will see in their tummies. Someone (a reader from here) best described it as seeing a little light brite bulb lit up in the bellies. This means they are eating good!  Be sure to handle the pups daily, and by the time eyes are open at 2 weeks they will not run when you try to hold them. Hand raising is the best way to make a social rat and a happy well adjusted trusting rat.  Alot of pet store rats have so many "issues" and are often on the border of being a bit neurotic, paranoid and down right petrified of their new owner till the rat owner seeks help on how to trust train their rats, which is what I also help people do.  I doubt you will need me for that just as long as you start early with the pups. Dont worry, you wont smoosh them.

Here is a link with LOADS of accurate and professional advice about everything you need to know about rats and pregnancy, including complications and what to look for and when to seek help from a vet if there are problems with the birth etc...some rats need a c section or they may not live and may even kill the pups, so reading this is a good idea.
Here is the URL

http://ratguide.com/breeding/pregnancy/

HOpe this helps and let me know if she does have babies!  Good luck!