#Pinky rats skin

If not, with enough dedication and doing the procedures right, you will be able to hand raise all of them yourself.

Mom may very well turn into a good Mom if you can just keep them alive in the meanwhile. Always put the babies back in the nest, together, after feeding. Gallon plastic jugs filled with HOT water, around the outside of the cage, then drape towels over the cage. Keep track of who was fed and who needs it - place one bunch on one side of the object, and the other bunch on the other side. Take the whole litter out at one time, and nestle them under towels next to an object - along the water bottle, or a bowl set out for this purpose.

If they are cold, they will not even digest what they take in. You will be able to tell instantly that you have succeeded, the Q-tip will turn yellow.Īt the end of the feed, if you can see some milk in the belly you will be doing okay. They will gradually increase the amount they are eating at each feeding.Īfter each feeding - this is a must - moisten a Q-tip in the warm water and gently roll and stroke that Q-tip over the genital area - both the urinary opening and the anal opening, to stimulate peeing and pooping. Or, set the alarm to allow 3 hours of sleep and then get up and feed again, for the first week. They must be fed every 2 hours or as close to that as possible.

#Pinky rats skin

Let the baby suckle it from your skin which is almost like them nursing on that tiny nipple on Mom's skin.Īt the beginning each baby will hopefully eat between. They easily inhale milk if you try this, and once milk gets in the lungs, you will have a serious pneumonia, the baby will die.Īlso be careful to not get milk over the nostrils, they don't know to sneeze out, and may suck it in - same result, pneumonia. NEVER TRY TO PUT THE MILK DIRECTLY INTO THE BABIES MOUTH WITH THE SYRINGE OR DROPPER. The excess can just run down the inside of your hand. Once they learn the milk is there they will eagerly suckle it from your skin. Take a baby, and hold her in the palm of your hand, curled around her, and drop a single drop of milk into one of the creases, near her mouth - she must suckle the milk from your skin.Īn alternate position is to hold the baby in your fist, upright, head up, with the mouth near the top of your curled index finger - and place one small drop of milk at a time on the flesh of your index finger, right by her mouth. (3) Some Q-tips and a small bowl of warm tap water.ĭirections to Feed : Warm a small amount of kitten milk replacer or human soy-based infant formula in the microwave until JUST skin temperature. (2) A box lined with a towel, and a liter plastic pop bottle that you can fill with hot water - cover with a thin towel to allow heat through. (1) A one-ml syringe or a small dropper (1 ml syringe preferred, the drops are smaller). You can also buy the powder type & mix it yourself. We thought she was never on the pups - but, on day three, we picked her up out of there with a towel she was not friendly) and checked each baby, and they all had little crescent milk bellies.Īre you sure there are no milk bellies? if not, get to the store asap and get human soy based infant formula or go to the pet store for kitten milk replacer, get the kind in the small can that is already liquid. we had one like that - she could hear us coming in the room and would, in a flash, be on top of the box guarding it. Some females will not lay on the babies and nurse when there is anyone watching. MAYBE IF YOU HAND FEED TO KEEP THEM GOING, YOUR MOM WILL CHANGE HER BEHAVIOR AND START NURSING THEM. Or, you can hand raise them but it takes a lot of work. That may be your best option - either buy the nursing Mom with the idea that you can return her with her own pups, or see if they will take in your pinkies and place them with the nursing Mom. By Lindsay Pulman with notes & photos by Lisa DunseyĬall the pet stores to see if any of them have nursing moms with young pinkies, as rats will take in other rat babies very easily.