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Post by Deleted on Feb 2, 2016 17:21:25 GMT -5
02/11/2016 EDIT:
I have had all my questions answered and have now begun raising rats as my own prey. You can read through it for the information I was looking for and for the advice given, and for updates on my journey through creating my own rat colony.
Thanks for reading!
--- original post ---
I decided about a month ago I am going to start raising my own quail, but have recently decided to raise rats as well. The problem is, unlike quail, I can't find a single good care sheet on raising rats.
1. Where do you buy the original breeding rats? Petco, find a local breeder, talk to a reptile shop that breeds them? Order online even? I'm not looking for show rats, just healthy ones to start the colony.
2. What size enclosure/tub do they need? What size enclosure should the litters have until I am ready to cull/freeze them? I am going to be raising them to just the adult age.
3. How do you keep them entertained? I know they are curious animals, what are the basics that should be included in their enclosures for stimulation?
I know the other essential information, but the above questions are ones I can't find plain answers for. I'm only able to find what people do for pet rats. I want them to be happy and healthy, but just need the basics.
I know the other essential information, but the above questions are ones I can't find plain answers for. I'm only able to find what people do for pet rats. I want them to be happy and healthy, but unfortunately they will not be pets. So we just need the basics.
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Post by Celene on Feb 3, 2016 17:45:02 GMT -5
Jason ( bitbyter) raises his own prey - ASF rats I believe. There are many people on here who do but he's the one I can think of off the top of my head. He also has lots of great photos/videos and is active in breeding groups.
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Post by bitbyter on Feb 3, 2016 23:56:06 GMT -5
I'd suggest joining Feeder Breeders Only on FB. Lots of knowledgeable people there. I've only bred ASF's and mice. Each species has it's differences in breeding though mice are similar to rats. ASF's are pretty unique compared to other rodents.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 0:39:58 GMT -5
1. Where do you buy the original breeding rats? Petco, find a local breeder, talk to a reptile shop that breeds them? Order online even? I'm not looking for show rats, just healthy ones to start the colony.
I purchased both my mice and rats from a breeder. I prefer personally not to purchased pet shop rodents as most of the time they will not show you their breeding set up nor show you the mothers and fathers. They also may be ill in health and thats certainly not what you want. The breeder I get my guys from is a fancy breeder. I attempted other fanciers but they are very reluctant when you mention feeders. I got lucky. Another feeder breeder may help you set up with breeders. 2. What size enclosure/tub do they need? What size enclosure should the litters have until I am ready to cull/freeze them? I am going to be raising them to just the adult age.I can't remember the size of my tubs, but they're big in width and height. I use smaller ones for pregnant females, larger ones for grow outs (Well I'm going from my knowledge from my mice) I need to purchase a couple more tubs for my rats . 3. How do you keep them entertained? I know they are curious animals, what are the basics that should be included in their enclosures for stimulation?
I adore my rats. I got them yesterday But from being a former rodent owner, I can't help but spoil my guys. You can give them some boxes, or large tubes. Large hide holes (I use fabric ones because I have left over stuff from when I owned rats hehe) Oh I follow a blog on rat breeding if you're interested. rat-breeder-confessions.blogspot.com.au
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 1:25:04 GMT -5
bitbyter I joined that exact group and asked the exact same questions, no one could give me an answer. :/ @machan Can you please tell me what size containers you use? I would like to know the sizes. And what is the lowest temperatures they will breed in?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 4:03:13 GMT -5
@machan Can you please tell me what size containers you use? I would like to know the sizes. And what is the lowest temperatures they will breed in? I'm going to blindly have a guess and say they're around 35L - 40L. I'm getting some 53L containers next week. I've never really paid any attention to temperatures even with my mice, but from my research people have mentioned around 65-70F for lowest and between 70-80F being optimal.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 4:17:12 GMT -5
Hello! I thought I'd add a few notes in here! 1. Where do you buy the original breeding rats? Petco, find a local breeder, talk to a reptile shop that breeds them? Order online even? I'm not looking for show rats, just healthy ones to start the colony. Pet shops aren't the greatest because they very rarely put the animals' health first, you'll often find they're too old, too young or sick. Snake food providers are the best because they're rats and mice are already food quality, you can pick them up online or from a show. 2. What size enclosure/tub do they need? What size enclosure should the litters have until I am ready to cull/freeze them? I am going to be raising them to just the adult age. This is where it gets questionable, I've known people to keep 5 females to 1 male in a tub that's completely dark, no toys and about 5 gallons. Go for a tub that's rather high so you can put several layers in with chew toys and beds. How many will you breed at a time? Tubs make things easier for breeding and cleaning if you have loads but a standard rat cage is good for keeping them as pets. 3. How do you keep them entertained? I know they are curious animals, what are the basics that should be included in their enclosures for stimulation? www.lovethatpet.com/small-pets/rats/ I found this one if it helps although it is for pets and not breeding. I don't know about exact temperatures but if you're cold, chances are so's your rats. They are however more susceptible to heatstroke than we are. www.nfrs.org/geninfo.html
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Post by bitbyter on Feb 4, 2016 8:59:15 GMT -5
One thing I did learn is you DON'T want to use wheels like this if you have more than one rodent in a tub. The cross bars cause injuries if one rodent tries to get on while another is running on it:
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Post by bitbyter on Feb 4, 2016 9:04:32 GMT -5
This is a good site about breeding rodents: link
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 9:31:14 GMT -5
One thing I did learn is you DON'T want to use wheels like this if you have more than one rodent in a tub. The cross bars cause injuries if one rodent tries to get on while another is running on it: I have one of those ones for my mice. They rarely use it. Little fatties.
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Post by bitbyter on Feb 4, 2016 12:12:54 GMT -5
ASF's are wheel machines. There is at least one on my breeder colony tub wheels at any given moment. I was getting head and eye injuries with the wheels above.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 14:16:24 GMT -5
I don't plan on giving them multiple levels or beds, they're not going to be pets. I won't include wheels because they can break rats tails, I'm asking about simple items they can use for entertainment. Someone on another forum suggested small 2x4 blocks. bitbyter Thank you for the link, that is very helpful!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 15:37:09 GMT -5
I don't plan on giving them multiple levels or beds, they're not going to be pets. I won't include wheels because they can break rats tails, I'm asking about simple items they can use for entertainment. Someone on another forum suggested small 2x4 blocks. bitbyter Thank you for the link, that is very helpful! Anything they can chew on is great. If left alone rats have a tendency to stress/boredom groom even if there are others in the cage..
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 16:01:24 GMT -5
I don't plan on giving them multiple levels or beds, they're not going to be pets. I won't include wheels because they can break rats tails, I'm asking about simple items they can use for entertainment. Someone on another forum suggested small 2x4 blocks. bitbyter Thank you for the link, that is very helpful! Even if they're not pets, they still deserve to have comforts and appropriate stimulation. Climbing is an absolute must for rats, they love to climb and adore hammocks and high places to sleep. Rats make ferrets look clumsy when it comes to climbing! I used to buy cheap horse lead ropes and cable tie them so they sort of spider-webbed across the cage which they would use as a climbing frame. My rats only ever used floor beds when raising litters. I would recommend a wire cage, most rats have Mycoplasma pulmonis from birth and poor ventilation is a sure-fire way to get debilitating respiratory problems. They pretty much like all the same things that ferrets like; tubes, hammocks, deep litter and things to keep them busy. I used to shred newspaper and hang it through the bars, they would spend hours pulling each strip through and taking it off to fashion a nest with. I used to hang salad balls with fresh curly kale and mixed veg in for them, which they really had to work to get at. They love a little bowl of water with peas and sweetcorn floating for them to fish out also. For does in kit, housed alone is best but some people have had success with housing together. You can either give them newspaper shreds etc to make their own nest or give them a little igloo to kit in. Personal choice, I do find that plastic igloos can build up condensation though. Heat-wise ... rats are much more susceptible to the cold than ferrets, their comfortable temperature range pretty much matches ours, if that helps.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 16:31:56 GMT -5
I appreciate the feedback. They certainly do deserve the comfort other animals due, but because they are going to be food they will be given just the essentials. I've been able to put together a care sheet from the information I've found here, on other forums, and on random websites. I should be getting my starter rats sometime this next week.
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