Violette Had Babies

[Desert Arabian]

OMG- I AM SO HAPPY! VIOLETTE IS GIVING BIRTH RIGHT NOW!! I don't want to stress her out now, so in a little while, I will make the final count of pinkies.

:D :D :D :D :D :D

[GoldenRetrLuver]

CONGRATULATIONS! I cant wait to hear how many there are and see pictures!:D

[Desert Arabian]

WOAH! Now I know what was in that battleship-sized tummy- 11 pinkies!! 11 pinkies!! I quickly took a picture and counted, I could have counted wrong though, so later on I will check-up & recount- if I'm wrong on the # I will let ya know the correct # of babies!

:D

Here's a picture:

[GoldenRetrLuver]

WOW! 11! Hehe, they look like mice babies! Congrats again!:)

[Cookiebaker]

Awwwwwwwwww!! They are sooo little!!

How long is it usually until they are covered in fur and scampering around??

[CamCamPup33]

hey!! im so gealous!!! lol.. You can mail some to me in a little white envolope! i think i spelled that wrong.. sorry my mind is blank! ;) im soooooooo gealous!! HMP! ;) maybe just one?! or two?! :p when piglet had her little pinkies they were so cute i wanted to hold them so bad! lol we want to see sum more pictures!! :D

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by Cookiebaker
Awwwwwwwwww!! They are sooo little!!

How long is it usually until they are covered in fur and scampering around??


Well they get their fur in when their about a week old. They have slight fuzz before then but you can see it more when they are around a week of age. As soon as their eyes open they are pretty much running around, yep that's how fast they grow up. I'm always amazed at my little babies here, and my newest litter is already 6 weeks. They grow so fast. *sigh*


YLL, I replied to your other post. Did you get it? Told ya she was going to have them any second, lol. :p


Whoo hoo for Violette!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Glad you got to see the birth. :D :D :D

[luckies4me]

Oh hey YLL, look at my sig. Hasn't the blue boy grown? !!! :eek:

Hey you know, I have a litter comming up that will have some nice blues in it lol, and maybe some merles too if I am lucky. Wouldn't that be cool if you ever came to Oregon...you could pick up some dumbo ratties. :D

[Desert Arabian]

Originally posted by luckies4me
Oh hey YLL, look at my sig. Hasn't the blue boy grown? !!! :eek:

Hey you know, I have a litter comming up that will have some nice blues in it lol, and maybe some merles too if I am lucky. Wouldn't that be cool if you ever came to Oregon...you could pick up some dumbo ratties. :D

Well, I am making trips to steal Malone in New Hampshire and Nala in Florida, I supose I could swing by Oregon, and take ALL of your ratties, especially little blue berk boy- whose tummy I want to kiss so bad! :D :D :D :p He sure has grown! They grow up too fast! :( :)

[janiceruth]

Look at my Leo, and I do have a yellow lab




I wish one of you would point me to the directions on postin pics within the text.......

[Karen]

That's simple, see here (http://http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7406&)

[wolfsoul]

Yay! baby ratties! :D i'm glad that you are able to know that the babes are safe before you leave :) I can't wait to see what colours/ patterns will come out of this litter! Congrats to the mommy Viollette!

[Desert Arabian]

Originally posted by janiceruth
Look at my Leo, and I do have a yellow lab


Awww...your Leo is very cute! Of course you know now you have to post pictures of your yellow Labbie...have to see those!! :D :D

[janiceruth]

Thanks for the link, I'll check it out later. I joined this forum yesterday and asked for help yesterday and no response, at least I assume so, I subscribed to the thread and did not get anything.

I'll post pictures of my seven pets later, want to feel my way around. Same rules here, can have an avatar after 20 posts etc.?

This setup is the same as a falcon forum that I belong to, but they don't let you post pics within...so I am excited, not so many links to click with each message here.

:D

[janiceruth]

Karen that link led me to a cannot show page.....I tried twice.

Would you please try again, thank you?


:rolleyes:


Here is a bigger pic of Leo, who is 13 yrs old

[Airedalekisses]

Congratulations!! Love to Mother and babies-poor Violette must be exhausted- 11!!
she'll have her figure back in no time!! and the children grow up so quickly, sniff sniff!!:)

[wolf_Q]

Congrats! Glad you got to be there when it happened!

[shais_mom]

Yea!!

[Desert Arabian]

Here are some more pictures:
They sure are vocal...they LOVE to squeek, especially when mama moves or leaves the nest. :p Too cute!! I can't stand it!! :D

[popcornbird]

11?!?! :eek::eek::eek: WOWIE! Congratulations! :D Glad she gave birth before you went to camp. Are you going to keep them all? ;);)

[Desert Arabian]

Originally posted by popcornbird
Are you going to keep them all? ;);)

I would if I could!!!!!! If I had a job to pay for the 40lbs of food they'd go through in a month (and 100lbs of wood shavings). :p Afterall, they are piggies!

[janiceruth]

Here is Sonny. I he were a she it would have been Sunny.

:p

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Oy.......it's going to be a fun summer for me, juggling baby ratties! :rolleyes: I'm telling you, her room already looks like a pet store with all the various and sundry cages/supplies in there. I'm not too enchanted by "pinkies", but once they get their fur and those little seed eyes open up, I'll be in their spell.

We usually keep just one female from the litter, so mama doesn't have to go through complete trauma from losing her babies. The pet store is more than willing to take the others back, and it's the easiest solution for us, since we are not breeders by choice, but by pet store personnel stupidity :mad: . It's always a sad day though when the babies have to leave, but I know our limits and what we can afford to care for.

I'll be tracking their progress with photos, so I'll post some here and there.

[luckies4me]

When do you plan to hold the babies?


Do they have to go back to the Petstore? You can always advertise on rat lists, the Rat Fan Club etc. and also put an add in the paper. Especially if she has blues, I am sure they could be placed very easily. I would hate to see them go to the petshop and get pregnant there and start all over. :( Is there any way to make sure the petshop seperates the sexes so this doesn't happen? Another thing I would worry about is them going as snake food.


Have you checked them to see if they have milkbands? I think I see one in the second photo. :) She looks like she's taking very good care of them. Congrats to both the new grandma and the new great-grandma, ie YLL and ACGAS. lol :p


I bet you can place some of the babies online, I can even help. :) Rat message boards are great, and cute pics always sell people. :p

[TheAntiPam]

Congratulations times 11!!! I'm so glad you were there for the big event - being away and hearing about it long distance would be such a bummer!

By the way, what is a "milk band" ???

Hurray for pinkies !!!

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by TheAntiPam


By the way, what is a "milk band" ???

Hurray for pinkies !!!


A milk band is exactly that lol, a band of milk that you can see in the stomach. baby ratties are see through, you can see the stomach, what's inside the stomach, the heart etc. If there is a white band underneath the skin near the stomach, that is the milk the babies have swallowed. If there is no band, they are not getting enough milk and they may need to be supplemented or a surrogate mother found. Hairless does have a very hard time lactating, but most "furred" mothers have no troubles. Blues are known to have some bleeding disorders, but it's still pretty rare now a days. When blues first started to become known a lot of them were dying in labor, from complications due to loss of blood.


Most breeders have eradicated these problems now though, so it's something you really don't have to worry about. The color blue is fairly new to Australia. We know that it's the same gene, but the blues there are having bleeding troubles. Oh no, I have started going way off topic. I will shut up now lol, :p

[luckies4me]

Here's a pic of a milkband, it's clearly visible in the baby on the right. The pics is of my last litter of seven.

[ChloeLove]

Congrats to you and Violette, the babies are ADORABLE! :D

[janiceruth]

All Creatures.....did you see the large pic of my Leo, looks just like one of yours...

Have you read Harriot's biography by the the way, or has any of you?

I still need help figuring out how to put pictures with my sig. and within the text box instead of a link. Where are the directions?


:rolleyes: :D Thanks so much...

[wolfsoul]

Sorry, but why are you taking them to a petshop? :confused: :eek:

The cycle will just be started over again. They won't split up the litter and the females will become pregnant.

I agree with luckies, put an ad in the paper or on the internet. I find that it works best when you put them in the paper. Tikeyas_mom got hundreds of calls that way for her baby hammies.

Please reconsider taking them there, everyone is always saying how pet shops are evil, and so I just can't bear to hear of little baby ratties going there :(

[janiceruth]

Someone needs to let people know how the sale is completed by advertising, Internet or otherwise. How is the animal sent to the buyer? What mode of transportation.......If there is a simple answer please share what it is.....

Otherwise I can see the problem ......

:)

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by janiceruth
Someone needs to let people know how the sale is completed by advertising, Internet or otherwise. How is the animal sent to the buyer? What mode of transportation.......If there is a simple answer please share what it is.....

Otherwise I can see the problem ......

:)


Well I advertise my litters online, in the paper, at vet clinics and I also have business cards. It's fairly simple really. Usually people come to my house to pick them up, but if I am doing a trade or if it's a really nice show rat that I would like to go to a home that will help my lines grow, then I will drive the distance. I go as far as Washington, but can easily meet people in between. Most people prefer to go to the breeder/owners home in order to see how the babies were raised etc.


Advertising on rat lists is not hard to do, just find one on your area, or one like the Rat Fan Club which covers all areas. You never know, there could be someone out there looking for a precious blue rat. There are also rescue groups which will post pics of babies born in unexpected litters as well.


You can establish a free web site at Yahoo and many others in order to advertise babies. Again, it's not that hard. You put out an ad, people call, people pick up cute baby and there you have it. :p

[wolfsoul]

In my area alot of people look at the postings at the college. I would just find lots of bulletin boards in places like that, or at petshops and shelters where people might look. Have the little phone number tabs.

I know it's more difficult, but it's better for the kittens to have a home that's been checked somewhat, and it's better for you so atleast you don't have to feel guilt later on, and you'll know that the babies are well taken care of. It's like adopting out a child, I certainly wouldn't want my child being taken by someone I don't know at all. I'd want to do a background check.

[janiceruth]

Well you sold me, but on the Internet you could conceivably find buyers on another continent. There would be plenty of interest AND disappointment.

;)

[All Creatures Great And Small]

I have no interest in breeding or selling rats, which is why I am going to let the pet store do that. I buy rats for my daughter to keep as pets, with no intention of buying pregnant females. Since the "accident" has happened, we will provide loving care for the babies until they are old enough to be sold, and then give them over to the pet store. Then they can take the responsiblity for their care and feeding as well as any repercussions from buyers. We already have 9 adult rats here, and we will be keeping one female from the litter, and that is enough of a chore keeping those 10 happy and well fed. Having 10 more adults awaiting adoption here would be out of the question entirely - we have a very tiny house and I don't want to invest in yet another cage to house temporary residents. I'm already facing the expense of getting a cage with small enough wire for baby/toddler rats until they are old enough to leave. Yes, it's possible that they will be sold to inept rat owners, or as snake food, but so will the other 15 rats they had at the store, and I wasn't able to buy all of them to save them from a horrible fate, just as I won't be able to keep all these babies while I carefully screen owners. This whole situation is why I asked the pet store for definite assurance that she could not be pregnant, or I wouldn't have bought her. If I was really uncaring, I would have taken her back to the pet store immediately upon finding out she was expecting. My husband and I don't really relish the idea of a stream of visitors coming to the house to look at rats, or having our phone number out there on bulletin boards all over town. Like I said, we're just rat owners, not rat breeders.

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by janiceruth
Well you sold me, but on the Internet you could conceivably find buyers on another continent. There would be plenty of interest AND disappointment.

;)



That's usually why you state your location in the Subject line of any posts to forums, so they know where you are before hand. It's not hard to tell someone, look I am in Oregon, if you want to drive here from Canada fine, but it's something that's beyond my limits. You just tell them, either they like it or they don't.


Plus, I also ship. Buyer pays all expenses. I have never had a problem getting a new baby to an owner. We even have ratty trains with people driving several states to deliver babies out of the kindness of their heart.

[luckies4me]

ACGAS,


Is there any way you can at least try to have them sold as pets? Is there another pet shop who sells just pets? It's worth a try at least.

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Holy cow - I finally got a chance to go in there and get a head count on the babies, and there are 13! :eek: Here's the little wigglers:

The guy on the far right is quite a runt - only about half the size of the others. So far he seems pretty lively, but I'll have to keep an eye on him.

[aly]

I dunno how I missed this!!

Congrats ACGAS.. or should we call you granny? :D

How do you guys always get the babies to stay in a row like that?

[CathyBogart]

*SQUEEK* YAY!! Rittens are so cute!!

[iceyshiver21]

OMG!! Congrats YLL!! 13?!?! Wow what a handfull :D

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by All Creatures Great And Small
Holy cow - I finally got a chance to go in there and get a head count on the babies, and there are 13! :eek: Here's the little wigglers:

The guy on the far right is quite a runt - only about half the size of the others. So far he seems pretty lively, but I'll have to keep an eye on him.


Hehe is that a blazed ratty over on the right? LOL I see about 4 blues (could be agoutis though), some blacks and some beige/fawn babies. Good color litter! I also see a berky too! :D



Hey there are a few that look dumbo too............only time will tell. It's hard to see from the pic though, but I swear I see dumbo ears on some of them!:D :D :D


They all look nice and plump too. She's doing a great job and congrats to you for taking them out and holding them so early. Isn't it so cool to watch them grow up? ;)

[Desert Arabian]

I have contacted Mama Moondancer to see if she could take in the babies when they are ready to leave the home. I refuse to give this litter to the pet store, they do not deserve a nice litter like this for them to ruin!!

It is an excellent rat rescue orginazation. She provdes a nice warm cozy home for the rats, providing proper medical care, feeding, etc. She also screens all adopters, and has them fill out an extensive adoption information form.

I am waiting for a response back. Best of all, this rescue org. is only about 10 miles away from my house!

Here is the website for Mama Moondancer if you'd like to check it out. Mama Moondancer's Rat Rescue (http://www.ratrescue.org/)

:)

[luckies4me]

Huh, you aren't going to tell us what colors they are? How's about pictures? ;) :D :p