New BABIES!!!

Question
Hi! I have 8 babies that were just born today as far as i know. There were 11 all together that I found, but 3 were not alive. I don't really think the mother is caring for them from what I have seen so what should I do? ??

Answer
The first thing you need to do is turn the babies over, each of them and check their bellies for what is called MILK BANDS. They have transparent skin and you will be able to see the milk inside the belly if they are being fed. Is mom sitting on the babies at all? What kind of rat is she as far as coloring, markings and fur type?  Do you know how old she is and where did she come from?

Its really difficult to care for newborn rats alone...they rarely make it. Here is a site that will tell you exactly how to do it the best you can. If your certain mom isnt caring for them, you can call a petstore and see if they have a mom that is nursing that you can possibly have take care of the pups that you have as well.

Let me know for sure about the milk bands. Also did you remove the dead ratlets from the cage?  

Here is the URL to the site that will tell you how to care for the pups:

CARING FOR ORPHANED RATS

http://www.rmca.org/Articles/orphans.htm


Good luck!!