# Small Rodent setup



## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

Hi all,


I'm just wondering what is the best way to set up a very small rodent colony, I am only keen on having 4 or so rats to save myself a little money as im running a bit scarce due to yr12 !

I have kept rats before, but never actually tried to breed them for food. So what are the basics I need to know to get this off the ground ?

cheers, Blake


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

Now the really hot weather is past , you can use my favorite . l get old 3 or 4 ft fish tanks , hard garbage has been kind , and make a wire and timber lid . The glass is ideal as they cant chew out . lcecream containers make good nest boxes and newspaper or woodshavings for substrate . Cheap as and you will soon have a freezer full .


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

As for breeding them , try and stop them , they breed like rats .


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## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

yeah good idea, I will try to get some old tanks if I can.... what ratios work best ? I've heard 1 male to 3 females.. and then to seperate the females once pregnant, but i'm a bit of a noob when it comes to this.


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

l dont split them up , that way the females get knocked up as soon as they drop the pinkies . The ratio doesnt matter , just one adult male to 1 - 6 females . lf you want adult feeders put weiners in seperate cage to grow out . After a while save some nice rats to replace the breeders , every 6 to 12 months or when they look a bit worn out [ or if they bite you ] .


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## cwtiger (Mar 5, 2010)

Don't think there is any need to take female out once pregnant I have never had to. If you are taking them as pinkies then you don't need to worry about them getting eaten which can happen but not always. If you are taking them as fuzzies then you could take mum out before she drops. I have 3 females to one male and as you only want 4 then that would be fine for you. I feed pony pellets 20kg bag is $13.00 and wood shavings huge bale is $11.00. Just remember once she has given birth she will mate and fall pregnant straight away. Hope this helps you.


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## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

alright, too easy then.. I think ill try to gather some tanks of the weekend, get it all set up and then let them have some fun... what way do you cull ?


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## deebo (Mar 5, 2010)

if you stopped spending all your money on booze im sure you could afford frozen rats.......yr12 is a killer like that! haha!

If you are only running a small colony pretty much as jungletrans say si the way to go....on tub for breeding and one or two tubs for growing out. Replacing breeders regularly is the way to go. I got kind of attached to my breeding females to the point where I had really small litters from each female, after replacing my females I am over flowing with rats.

I really enjoy looking after my rats, they are great to have and its always nice to be able to duck up to the shed on feed night and pull out 20 rats at different sizes....

Good luck,
Dave


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## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

well this is seemingly a fair bit easier than I first thought ! I will be growing the majority of them into medium to large adults, and the others into only sub adults.. Might try to get this started on the weekend !


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

blakehose said:


> alright, too easy then.. I think ill try to gather some tanks of the weekend, get it all set up and then let them have some fun... what way do you cull ?



Quick wack on corner of shed then drop in bucket .


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## cwtiger (Mar 5, 2010)

I have to have pinkies for the hatchies and almost adult for the 4yr Bredli. I put them to sleep with gas. I take the pinkies once born. David is right to rotate your females and male as they will not breed as well as they get older. I rotate mine at about 8-9 months of age. So there maybe times where you are running over your 4 as you need your breeders unless you can work it that you have a stock pile while waiting for your newbies to start breeding. And yes it is hard not to get attached to them as I keep mine friendly so that it is easier to clean them out and take babies out. Fish tank is great way to keep them. You could ask any aquiriums if they have any tanks with cracks in them or put an add on here in wanted or other sites. 
Good luck


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

l have found that $50 of pellets and grain [ wild bird seed ] and any leftover fruit and veg from the kitchen will make hundreds of rats , l sometimes sell some excess live weiners cheap to pay for the feed .


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## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

haha, well i'm not quite 18 yet Dave but I tell you what I'll need something if it keeps going at this rate ! How often should I be expecting litters from them ? 

And can plastic tubs be used ? or am I better of using glass as they might chew through it.. the only reason I ask is they are a more easily accessible for me

Cheers for the help


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## Jungletrans (Mar 5, 2010)

Big plastic is ok , l just like to see what is going on in there when l walk past .


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## blakehose (Mar 5, 2010)

I didn't think of it like that, tanks might be the way to go ! hopefully I can get hold of a few.
I think the hardest part for me will be culling them, but I suppose it's the way it goes.

Cheers for the help everyone

Blake


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## deebo (Mar 5, 2010)

big plastic tubs are great.....make a pine frame wit h mesh for a lid and away go. A big 220lt tub from bunning is about $60 or several smaller 50lt tubs will do the job as well. All depends how extravagant you want go.


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## Bax155 (Mar 6, 2010)

I find separating females is the way to go as it gives them a break which also rises litter numbers and makes them breed longer, it also helps me to rotate new females with the males as they can get fed up with the some ol gals and get a tad on the fat n lazy side. Rats are only good for about 4-6 litters so I like to get 9-12 per litter. Its also a humane concious thing to, I feel its slack breeding back to back. Just my opinion though, whatever works best for you go with it!!


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## bpb02 (Mar 9, 2010)

after reading this i think i might have a go at breeding, i see only one problem tho what to do when you have 100's of rats being born, rubbish bin?


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## Londos1990 (Mar 9, 2010)

Lol im thinking of giving it a go to, say i want my rats to stop breeding at some stage would you just seperate male and female and is it easy to tell difference?


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## blakehose (Mar 9, 2010)

Grow them to the size you need and then cull and freeze I would assume.. Or if you have sufficient numbers then seperate the males and females until you need more .... But i'm a bit of a noob with this, hence why I started this thread lol.


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## blakehose (Mar 9, 2010)

Once you have a male and female rat in front of you londos... you will no doubt see the difference... the males tackle stands out to say the least haha


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## Londos1990 (Mar 9, 2010)

lol no worries, i have been feeding mine for months and never actually thought to look, strange or not lol you decide....


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## blakehose (Mar 9, 2010)

Take a peek, and you will understand


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## bpb02 (Mar 9, 2010)

how long can rats stay in the freezer


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## dtulip10 (Mar 9, 2010)

yeah how do you not notice the huge balls on the male


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## blakehose (Mar 9, 2010)

bpb02 said:


> how long can rats stay in the freezer


 
I think it's something like 8-12 months.. But again, I'm not 100%


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## cwtiger (Mar 9, 2010)

yes it is easy to tell the male from the female. If you don't want anymore babies just take the male away and they can't breed. Not sure that there is a time frame on freezer dates but I do know the longer the rat is in the freezer the more nutrition is lost so try not to put to many stocked up in the freezer.


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## Jarden (Mar 11, 2010)

Thanks for this thread i am planning on breeding rats also


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