Rat/ Mice co-existing

Question
QUESTION: Hi!
I recently aquired what I thought was a pregnant female mouse (a rescue). I have had her for 3 weeks now and it seems that she is just fat! I went today to purchase a female mouse friend for her (a 2 month old). While I was pickin up the baby- I somehow ended up with a 6 week old female rat that was about to be culled by the store. I currently have all 3 ladies in an aquarium that is about 2.5 ft by 1 ft. They are all in a big cuddly lump and are grooming eachother. I dont want to aquire any more pets, and want to know if I should be able to keep the 3 of them together. I also need tips on helping my baby rat's nutritional needs, as I feel certain she was taken from mom too soon. I put a dish of esbilac in the feeding area as well as a quality mixed seed feed. Thanks for any help!!

ANSWER: Hi Becca

For starters, the rat and mice must not be put together. Right now because she is so young, the baby rat is too young to realize she is among mice.  When she does, she will kill them. I have known some people that did not heed our warnings and put them together and and it took several months but it happened.  It was not pretty. The rat is a natural predator of mice so, they will not get along!

I am glad you rescued her though.  As for the aquarium, it really isnt ar good place to keep rats or mice once they grow.  For mice, its not bad since they are so itty bitty, but once they are adults they need to be a mouse cage with the bar spacing very very close together. Rats also should never be kept in an aquarium.  When small they should be in a cage also with the bars spaced closly together so they cant escape. Tanks do not allow proper air circulation and this can contribute to lung disease.  Here you are asking me one thing and I am throwing all sorts of stuff your way, you probably want to strangle me. LOL!
Anyhow..about the baby rat and her food. Seed mixes are not good for rodents, esp rats. Birds eat seeds, rats need vegetables, fruits and a healthy rodent block that is low in protein and fat. You can buy these and moisten it with water so it gets real soft and feed it to the baby rat and also can feed her baby food too. Infant forumula (soy only) can be given via a dropper. The Esbilac is a bit too rich and high in protein for the rat but a little bit wont hurt for now. I would not use much though and when you can get to the store replace it with human baby soy formula.

You can read up on rat diet on my site here:

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/ratsandahealthydiet.htm
Thanks for saving the little rat from culling. I hate to hear about things like that so much. It really bugs me!!!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for gettin back to me so quickly!! I have a multi-tiered ferret cage (3x5'). I can move my new rat(who is absolutely wonderful!) into it 2moro, but probably not any earlier. Im also concerned about the bar spacing on it, and the height. The baby rat is not aggressive at all right now, so should it be ok to leave her for the night? My adult mouse seems to have the two babies firmly in hand right now!
I have been reading up on your website prior to getting your answer and have already checked at walmart for block food, but they do not have it. Ill hit the pet store in the morning when they open. I did grab some soy formula and am giving her that now.
I am going to try to find a home for the mouse pair, as I have a home full of critter cages already. I guess the next big step is to get my little one a friend. The pet store gave her to me for free- as they intended to kill her. I checked our humane society website and there are no rats available there. I would rather adopt than buy a rat at the pet store. I can't seem to find any adoptable near NC, if you have any ideas that would be great! I have no overwhelming desire to have several rats, as each animal in my home is dearly loved and doted on and requires alot of time. Can a rat be happy as a single if she is given alot of attention? (she is currently asleep under my chin and doing that purring thing!). Sorry to throw so much back at you as well! Im trying to figure out as much as possible in a short amount of time- I don't generally get a pet without doing my research first! Thank you so much for the time that you are devoting to answering all of these questions!

Answer
Hi

I cant promise that she will be ok tonight with the mice...but hasnt she been with them for a day or so now?  I hate to see her escape the cage...did you see on my site the hardware cloth you can use for cages with wide spaces?

I live in NC, btw, right in the Charlotte-metro area.  I rescued two great boys from the dog pound in Charlotte last summer. They were older, 18 months actually, but they are still kickin and doing ok KNOCK ON WOOD! The dumbo boy was all congested and sneezed like mad for months but he got better over time and they both had lice and the bigger black one has bumblefoot on both feet, so they were a mess.  Your house sounds like mine, with the critters all over.  We have cats, a dog (she is bigger than me!!!!) a bunny, the rats and four 3 to 5 year old hermit crabs that are HUGE! SO yeah I know what its like to have lots of critters.  As for the rat living alone...to be honest, despite all the love and attention you give her, you cannot get into a hammock with her and sleep all day. You cant groom her and she cant groom you *(no matter how much licking she may do to you!  LOL! Rats are so social and they love each other so much that (this is true, it happened with my rats before) they actually can mourn themselves so much if they lose their cagmates that they die of a broken heart.  They get stressed, it wonks out the immune system and they end up sick and dont have the will to fight it.  Its hard to imagine denying a rat another rats love...they say to think about it being you and you are all alone with no humans to talk to , etc... studies have claimed that rats even laugh during playtime with one another.  I think you can even hear that on you tube!          
You wont need alot of rats, just one more her age, same sex of course, that was a no brainer!! LOL!
Also the lab blocks, I dont think Walmart carries them. Avoid KAYTEE brands if you can.  Mazuri makes a fairly decent one. You can give her a few of those a day and even make up our own stuff using the various recipes on my site.  The problem with seed mixes is of  course the fact the rat picks out the stuff he likes, which is probably just the sunflower seeds.
Where are you located?  I may be able to find a rescue and if not, a decent breeder!