50+ rats OH MY hehe

[luckies4me]

This whole entire thread is so very very sad. It DOES NOT matter if they are being bred as feeders or not. The point is this, basic humane care should be given to ANY animal we have in our position, whether or not that animal will be used as a food source or not. If you cannot provide the best possible living conditions for these rats DO NOT BREED, period. By the sound of it, you know nothing of breeding. Can you stand to watch a baby die of megacolon? Can you sit there and watch a mom die from birthing complications? Will you take her to the vet if she has trouble? Or will you simply set that aside because well...she's a "feeder" and therefor less important than the other animals out there?

I have never had an issue with feeder rodents, I have an issue with their caretakers. There are people out there who can breed responsibly, and the ones who cannot should not be doing it.

One thing I want to clear up, male rats and mom rats for that matter almost never cannabilize their young. It is VERY rare! Most often than not the dad will usually help care for the young. Though, having the male in with the female is not wise in the first place. Having mothers in with other mothers is pretty bad. All moms should be seperated when with a litter to avoid fighting, snatching babies (which more often than not results in damage to the infant, or death from being pulled on by the rats) and not knowing who came from who. What if a baby was born deformed? How would you know which mom it came from if they were all in together? You should know this in order to breed responsibly, as that mom would need not to be bred again.

Please everyone, I urge you. Don't breed unless you read up on it first. It's not fair to the animals.

[Jods]

Cass I was hoping you'd chime in with your opinion

[sandragonfly]

this upsets me and my tummy very much too.

aw jess. we used to bred our feeders (rats & hoppers) at the ZOO where I worked at. on their strict clean policy, we always, always seperate the mommy rats and clean out their (28 3x3feet) drawerhomes every other day as well as their disease is very contagious. and we chop out heart of fruits/veggies left out from larger animals' meals daily. we also had scheduled dates of freezing, to inject with caliums/vitmans, feeding which to who. the fresh they are for them. do you think you can do all of that, the proper prep too, especially things you've been going through lately?

I know I am not you but I just hate the idea myself or my friends breeding the feeders unless it's done by a professional. at no heart I have to do this, I'd rather buy frozen pinkies (and thaw them) than watching little helpless hearts growing out of hands and gasping out for their lives.. five or one second.

but, if, for your sake's you still want to do this, feed alive.. please, for my and rats' sake, gas it and crack its neck before you feed it.

best for the rats. I don't think you really want to do that.

[molucass]

I don't own a snake...

& there was blood on the noses of the mice & rats! Explain to me how that is more humaine?

If you knew much about rats, you would know that is not blood, its porphyrin and they get it when they are stressed out. It is the red color and appears like blood, but it is not. There is other reasons they get it, but the most common is stress.

Rats produce a lubricating secretion called porphyrin that is manufactured by the harderian gland which lies behind the eyeball. It is stained red with a pigment called porphyrin. When a rat is stressed, this bloody looking mucus may be produced in an over abundance and stain their nose or eyes. Sometimes it looks like bloody tears coming from their eyes.

I took the above statement from a website.

[jackie]

I have nothing wrong with feeding live, but I am surprised you posted about this.

You know this topic would upset some people here.

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Please everyone, I urge you. Don't breed unless you read up on it first. It's not fair to the animals.

I agree 100%

[Chilli]

First off, I have nothing against breeding rats for feeders (eventhough 3 of my rats were being sold as feeders when I bought them) as long as they have proper care and I mean proper care, not just decent care.
I just wanted to ask, if you're saying you are breeding these rats responsibly, why didn't you find out about the past of the male rat before you bred? It just sounds a little ironic to me.

[Miss Z]

This whole entire thread is so very very sad. It DOES NOT matter if they are being bred as feeders or not. The point is this, basic humane care should be given to ANY animal we have in our position, whether or not that animal will be used as a food source or not. If you cannot provide the best possible living conditions for these rats DO NOT BREED, period. By the sound of it, you know nothing of breeding. Can you stand to watch a baby die of megacolon? Can you sit there and watch a mom die from birthing complications? Will you take her to the vet if she has trouble? Or will you simply set that aside because well...she's a "feeder" and therefor less important than the other animals out there?

I have never had an issue with feeder rodents, I have an issue with their caretakers. There are people out there who can breed responsibly, and the ones who cannot should not be doing it.

One thing I want to clear up, male rats and mom rats for that matter almost never cannabilize their young. It is VERY rare! Most often than not the dad will usually help care for the young. Though, having the male in with the female is not wise in the first place. Having mothers in with other mothers is pretty bad. All moms should be seperated when with a litter to avoid fighting, snatching babies (which more often than not results in damage to the infant, or death from being pulled on by the rats) and not knowing who came from who. What if a baby was born deformed? How would you know which mom it came from if they were all in together? You should know this in order to breed responsibly, as that mom would need not to be bred again.

Please everyone, I urge you. Don't breed unless you read up on it first. It's not fair to the animals.

Perfect post. Although it says in my rat book about cannibalism, and I know the same is true of hamsters Ah well, I suppose you are far more experienced than any book. Never trust what you read!

And the last sentence, I reckon, should be the eleventh commandment.

[luckies4me]

And the last sentence, I reckon, should be the eleventh commandment.

Amen!


Rats can eat their young. I have seen it. I was just saying it is very very rare.