OH CRAP

Fri Feb 10, 2006 3:00 am

Yesterday I found Iris sitting on top of Ted-E-Bears cage which is screen so he couldnt get at her at all. I wasnt sure how she had gotten out, her and her two sisters are in a large aquarium for now with the sliding and locking lid...which was still in place. I didnt think anything of it. I put her back and weighted the lid down with a rock. I come home today and guess what....no Iris. So I started looking around and couldnt find her. I looked around Teddys cage and guess what SHE WAS IN IT!!!!! That lil Hussy CHEWED through the metal screen and was curled up next to him! Because of everyone getting cage up grades with my tax's I dont have enough for an emergency spay, and I dont get paid until the 17th...which is probably too late isnt it? I cant believe this has happened I never expected a rat to chew through metal.... Blink

now I am not sure what to do at all. By the time the other two females I am getting are out of Q she is going to be delivering babies...and I have ALOT of ratties here that I need to find homes for already. BTW Iris is a black irish marked berk and Teddy...is a blue dumbo rex... Iris could also possibly carry the hairless gene since I got her from the same gal that I got Whiskey and Hope from...my god what am I in for....please pray I find some money really fast for a spay or pray for a small litter and some of my current rats to get adopted. I feel so stupid and STILL dont know how she got out but Rose and Sage havent... Shaz

_________________

Fri Feb 10, 2006 3:28 am

Wow, she must of been desperate or some man-rat. LOL! Anyway, I am hoping that you get some money soon, or even hav a small litter... not to make you worry, but I hope that she didnt digest any of the metal. goodluck

and

for you and your ratties!

_________________
_______________
To the world, you are one person.
To a rat, you are the world.
~Charlie S.
Kristina an her babies, Basil and Snickers.
~*RIP Ema, I miss you sweetie!*~
<:3( )~~~~~~~

Fri Feb 10, 2006 3:42 am

O M G

Did you explain to her that she was a bad girl and she would get no yogies tonight??

_________________
Rats are man's best friend. They gave up long life to be able to give more love.

Fri Feb 10, 2006 3:45 am

The metal is just shredded...I hope she didnt eat any as well...I wonder why she picked Ted-E-Bear...Thunders cage is right next to his...but Thunder also has some dominate issues so I am glad she didnt breed with him. Teddy is a loveable squish...and comes from great lines. Iris on the other hand is a little snot...prefers to run around and not be held she is very energetic, very small which concerns me. But otherwise a very nice ratty. She is just hyper. Her background consists of agouti, fawn, blacks, beige, and a funky silver not white but not beige color. so their shouldnt be any pew or hoodeds... Ted-E-Bears line is all american blue berks and selves...all dumbo.. Gawd I feel aweful and kind of sick.. I thought I had everyone secure but now I know I didnt. I am a rescue not a breeder and even though I didnt put them together my negligence was the cause of this so I am guilty. This is such bad timeing...I feel like I let my rescue down and everything I stand for. Shaz

_________________

Fri Feb 10, 2006 3:46 am

I called her some naughty names besides Hussy... Embarassed

and all she had to say for herself was a lick to my fingers...Shaz

_________________

Fri Feb 10, 2006 5:12 am

I PM'd you Shaz. Hopefully she's not pregnant. The 17th.... that's what.... 8 days? If you're going to do it, it's probably best to do it sooner than later (smaller op etc), but I'm not sure that 8 days would be too late to do it - perhaps some people who are more familiar with it could answer.... Would it be possible to arrange for delayed payment with your vet?

_________________
Andy & The Rats

~ Darwin ~ Maisie ~ Ella ~ Zak ~

~ Finn ~ Malachi ~ Azrael ~ Newton ~ Charlie ~

Fri Feb 10, 2006 5:27 am

I will call tomorrow since it is tooo late tonight. I know a nueter is $53.00 not sure about a spay I do know that my vet doesnt like spaying because its more complicated then a nueter. All black babies are going to be really hard to adopt out....but I am finding that pew are harder. Maybe your hopes are right and she isnt preggers but I dont know how long she was in there cause I was at work. Maybe Ted-E-Bear didnt want anything to do with her....I can hope but I think odds are against me on this one. Shaz

_________________

Fri Feb 10, 2006 6:07 am

Well - I think there are several points to bear in mind:

a) it depends if she was in heat or not.
b) it depends if Ted tried mating with her (from what some of the breeder folk have said, generally if they start, they keep on going over and over, so you may well would have spotted if they were freely at it!)
c) rats generally come into heat in the evenings and overnight - that's no guarantee of course, but it's another hopeful factor if she was in there during the day.
d) even if she did get mated, there's no guarantee that she's pregnant. I'm not sure what the percentage is of matings that take vs those that don't. I saw someone mention a figure of 75% but I don't know how accurate that is.

Did you spot any signs that she was in heat either last night or today? Any ear waggling, engorged or dusky coloured genitals (there might have been a white plug, a little discharge or even a tiny bit of bleeding if he was rough with her and mated her) from extra blood flow, lordosis (arching her butt up if you touch her back or rump)? Does she have easily noticable heat cycles anyway, or is she usually reserved about her urges?

Keep an eye open over the next few days, either way - if she goes into heat, then chances are very very good that she's not pregnant. I say very very good because they can delay implantation for a while (as we discussed a few weeks back) so technically it's possible that she could hang onto them, come into heat again, and then become pregnant, even if she isn't mated again. But they won't go into heat if they're already pregnant.

And as for chewing the metal mesh - man, she is a little hussy for sure. Whendi (my flatmate's girl) chewed out of a thick ferret cage plastic bottom in a couple of hours to go and visit my boys - she didn't get into their cage, but it was enough to make us decide to go with powdercoated metal pans from thereon. What kind of mesh was it? How thick was the wire?

_________________
Andy & The Rats

~ Darwin ~ Maisie ~ Ella ~ Zak ~

~ Finn ~ Malachi ~ Azrael ~ Newton ~ Charlie ~

Fri Feb 10, 2006 7:35 am

I didnt catch them in the act...they were in his box sleeping and Ted E sleeps till about 4pm...he goes to bed about 1-2 am...at 6 am when I left everyone was tucked in tight..I got home late today about 3:30 pm your right they were just sleeping in his box....I didnt notice anything unusual about her except her excapeing the night before. Ted has a Male rat odor..its kind of nice smelling hard to describe..maybe she saw he looked lonely. I still have yet to see any ears flutter and my girls out weigh my boys..Magic just squeeks when she is in heat....I got her down to a pin point but then again when I first got her I was going to breed her....and didnt...thank god. I will get a pic of the wire asap. Shaz

_________________

Sat Feb 11, 2006 2:30 am

Well....I have descided to let Iris have the babies...I will figure things out as it is handed to me. My descition was made because my regular vet is on vacation for the next two weeks he left yesterday, and I dont know if his replacement has ever done spays so I am not going to trust him since I dont know him. So I will be updated my website and getting the current babies on there for adoption. I have a few people interested in the ones I have also in the possible litter that is comming. If she is preggers we should have babies around the 3rd of March. I will not be taking in ANY new rescues as of this weekend until I have the majority of the ones already here and comming adopted out. I was invited to a rescue swap meet at the richland center on march 12th so I am planning on going to that as well. I will have pics of the babies available and possibly be taking some of my ratties with me. I am also going to be selling supplies and hammocks n things. The timeing of that swap meet is pretty good. Shaz

_________________

Sat Feb 11, 2006 2:58 am

Good luck and Crossed Fingers

that she doesn't turn out to be pregnant. Good Vibes

It's a hard decision to make, whatever option you choose.

_________________
Andy & The Rats

~ Darwin ~ Maisie ~ Ella ~ Zak ~

~ Finn ~ Malachi ~ Azrael ~ Newton ~ Charlie ~

Mon Feb 13, 2006 12:03 pm

Good luck!

_________________
Tails and her RAM byting Rats
Linux & Apple Mac
Angel rat

Maxie & Pepper