I will only start breeding when I am more experienced with rats, but I have researched and watched videos and done all I can to make sure I know a lot about them. I even know a lot about breeding.
The thing is I need some more tips and suggestions. How hard is it? How much money would it take? How can I let people adopt them? What is a reasonable price?
Any other information would be great!
Oh, before you say "there is enough rats and created more won't do any good", I can barely even find a pet rat for sale in my town, city, whatever it is.
Thanks, I appreciate it.
If you are determined and do ALL your research, then it is fine.
Think about some of these things ...
You should ask yourself quite a few questions before considering breeding rats. The most important one must be, what are you going to do with anything up to 20 kittens! There is far more to breeding than putting a buck and doe together!
Breeding is not cheap - new cages, extra food and bedding and also potential vets bills will all need to be considered. (All this can cost thousands of dollars!) If you are breeding for show, then you need to consider genetics and obtaining quality stock from the relevant breeders. Choosing the right homes for your kittens can be hard. Things can go wrong, worst case scenario, does can actually die giving birth, although it's not that common. Lots of time to socialize the kittens is needed as well . You should have aims and objectives of what you are trying to achieve in breeding each litter you breed. It is highly recommended to find yourself an experienced breeder to mentor you in your new venture.
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com Would you be prepared to keep anything you cannot find homes for? - If the answer to that one is no, you shouldn't be breeding! It is worth sounding out your possible outlets before you decide whether to breed or not. Some breeders do cull unwanted kittens and even older rats, but that is down to personal ethics. Many reasons are given for culling - does not being able to raise large litters, poor type in rats, not being able to home the kittens, having unwanted colors and markings within litters, and more. (Yes, you must consider the genetics of the breeding pair.)
That's just a little I came up with. Think about all the details of breeding rats and be sure not to miss anything during your research. If you do decide that this is what you want to do, then I wish you the best of luck. <3
First off, i dont mean to sound offensive, but you sound really young to start breeding rats. Breeding is extremely hard, you need to own SEVERAL generations of rats before breeding. Not only to become more knowledgeable, but so you can see health problem in your rats, or any behavior issues. Or if you are trying to get rats from other breeders to breed, MANY responsible breeders simply will not give to new breeders for the better of the rats. Not to mention all the time it takes to play with all those rats everyday. It takes a lot of money, for not only food, and bedding, and very big cages but vet bills. If you are to become a reputable breeder you are going to need a website which costs money every month. And have you ever thought about the fact that there is no pet shops that sell rats in your area because no one wants them? Even though its heart breaking not as many people love rats as you think. Placing rats in homes can be extremely hard, and many people give up breeding because of how hard it is. Breeders charge anywhere from $ 5 to $ 50 for rats, depending on the rats genes. Most new breeders cant charge very much because no one wants to buy from them .
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com Please rethink breeding, good luck
Ever think that maybe the reason there is no rats is because there is no demand for them? The vast majority of the population think they are dirty, stinking, vicious disease ridden animals. Very few people realise what great pets they are.
Real breeders breed for a reason, to preserve and improve a show line. Would you know exactly how to combine a buck and doe for the best conformation and temperament? What about colour genetics and lethal genes, know anything about that? I'm sorry but I'm not going to encourage yet another backyard breeder to start breeding. No way, no how.
The hardest part of breeding rats, is finding homes for them all. There are so many in shelters (seriously), pet shops, and the mills pump them out by the hundreds to thousands each day. A single female can have 10-20 babies in one litter.
You will definitly want to invest in good starting "stock" to breed. This means avoid amateur breeders, and pet shops. Go online, track down the closest rattery you can. Getting your rats from a good rattery is step one. And really , you'll probably want to go through two ratteries to make sure you do not inbreed your rats.
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com Depending on what kind of rats they are, and the demand for the kind you breed will depend on how much you can charge. Standard rats go for around $ 5. People are more willing to pay $ 10 or more for dumbos, and ones with unusual colorings (such as siamese .. Which I've seen people ask $ 20 for).
