Harry

Question
QUESTION: Hey, I think I talked to you before about Harry. Well Harry is doing good. Just one problem. Harry isnt a boy. She had 3 babies yesterday. Is there anything special I should do? My mom wants to get rid of them, but my uncle wants them to be snake food. He said thats what they are for. But those are my pets so Im not letting anyone touch them I was just wondering its theres anything particuar I should do?

ANSWER: Tell your uncle for starters that feeding live is not in the best interest in the snake....but I wont get on my soap box since I am here to help you about Harry...maybe you should call her "Harietta"?
She is the hairless rat, right?  You need to, first of all, be sure she is nursing these babies. Hairless rats don't lactate properly.  You should start to handle them right away so they are social and not scare of human touch. If you don't, they will be shy and people may not want to adopt them from you.  Anyhow, to see if Harry is nursing the pups, first you need to take them out one and a time and flip them over and check for what is called "milk band".  THe skin on newborn rats is very translucent and you can see into their tiny tummies and actually see them full of a white substance which would be milk from mom and this is what we want to see.  You should already have increased her protein levels a bit in her diet already since she is hairless, but if not, now is the time to do it. Be sure she is warm as well.
What type of habitat is she in?  Even though the pups are not moving around, before you know it, within about 2 weeks or so, they eyes will open and within 3, they will be moving about the cage. The bars need to have small spacing or they will squeeze out. Although aquariums are not ideal for rats to live in, its ok for a temporary nursery while the babies are young.
You will need to know the sex of the newborn rats and be POSITIVE about it by the time they are 4.5 weeks old. Male pups can get the females pregnant after about 4.5 to 5 weeks, and this includes the mother rat too which would be a disaster if mom were to get pregnant right away after just having a litter....so you will need to learn how to sex the babies and take out the males in about 1 month from now.
Refer to my website in the rat care section with photos that show how to tell the sexes in newborn rats. One easy way is to get a magnifying glass and hold it over  the babies belly and look for nipples. Males do not have them, females do. This doesn't need to be done right this second, of course, but you will need to be sure of the sexes within at least a nother 2 weeks.  
The url to my website is:
         http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/allaboutratcare.htm



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QUESTION: Harry wont kill the babies if I touch them to check for the milk?

ANSWER: No rats will not kill their young if they have the human scent on them. I would not tell you to handle the pups if the mother would turn around and kill them.

They only time a mother kills her pups is if she cannot lactate to feed them or if there is something physically wrong with them that she knows they wont survive...but they will not kill them if you touch them.  Just be sure she doesnt get a bit aggressive when you go for them. If she does, remove her from the cage for a few minutes. You must do this to be sure these babies are getting milk from her because if not, you will have to feed them yourself to keep them alive which will not be an easy task.  Also, again, in order to properly socialize them, they need to be handled very young or they will be as timid as a wild rat or mouse is around people which in turn will make them undesirable to adopt out.



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

QUESTION: Sorry that it took so long to reply. But Harry has gotten sooo much smaller since the babies! Its weird! But the babies are starting to get tiny tiny hairs on the. im pretty sure they will be hairless. Their eyes arnt open yet. But the ears are working at opening. Anything else i should do since they are older?

Answer
Thanks for writing!  Harry looks smaller because she isnt pregnant any more.

You will need to count when they are turning 4.5 weeks old and you have to be able to tell male from female.  This is very important because the males can get the female including the mother, pregnant at that young age. All males MUST be removed from the girls before they turn 5 weeks old.

Check my website for photos of baby rats to compare them to your baby rats so it can help you tell boy from girl.
Are you holding the babies and socializing them daily?
I am glad they are doing ok. Often a hairless rat does not lactate properly and the pups starve...prompting the mother to kill them.  If the pups are growing and they have the milk bands I told you to look for, all is well, and thats comforting to know!!

Keep me posted!