How do rats take care of their young?

Answer 1

No, they don't. Rats are a very sociale animal and love each other. I have pet rats and when one of them was sick the others brought her food, cleaned her fur and just stayed by her all the time. Rats seem to be a bad or evil creature but the only reason we don't like them is they're diseases they cause. GO RATS<----Dumb. If you dont know, don't answer......just because this clowns didn't, doesn't mean that others wont.

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Actually, my sister's rat ate her babies last night. So, they do eat their young. I've been researching and people have differing opinions of why - they were weak, nobody knows why, etc - but my sister said the mother didnt have enough protein to feed them or something.

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one of my pinky rats were born and it died the same day :( and the mother ate it!

Rat's most definitely eat their young my rats had a litter of 10, and 2 weeks later i only had one left, hes thriving but his siblings were not as fortunate. So, YES, They Do

Yes and here are a few reasons:

1. the babies are weak and about to die so the mother kills it before it actually dies to 'clean' the nest. normally the eaten ones are the ones that are unlikely to survive anyways

2. stress can caused the mother to do unnatural behavior and by eating their young, the mother gain strength to counter the stress

3. lack of protein. rats are really into the game of life and if there isnt enough food for herself and the babies she would kill some or all of them to reduce the competition. if you own a rodent, i suggest you research more on this part on how to improve protein intake by the mothers

4. in the wild, the other adults eats it for variety of reasons including the ones above

5. finally, is all part of nature and it is nothing to be gruesome about. rats number is still and very large even after their cannibal behavior. as the matter of fact, it could be Mother's Nature way of controlling the rats population

Answer 2

They wean them. The mother will feed them milk from her 2 nipples and the babies will gradually start to eat the food.
These animals are born with all their teeth. They have all their hair at birth and born with their eyes open and ready to run. The adult will nurse the babies for about 6 weeks and then teach them what solid foods to eat.

Answer 3

It is a misconception that rats eat their young. Although rats (along with mice, hamsters, many species of fish, and even polar bears) will sometimes eat their young (this is called "filial cannibalism") many rats are wonderful mothers.

A pregnant rat will make a nest and after a 23 day gestation period will give birth to anywhere from 6 - 24 babies (called kittens). Make sure you try and change her bedding right before she delivers.

The mother will be able to deal with everything on her own, even eating the afterbirth of each kitten (yum!). She will clean and feed them all by herself. She may reject anywhere from one to all of her litter. It is wise to either find a nursing female in your area or get ready to feed all the kittens with actual kitten (baby cat) formula for a few weeks.

It's important to note that at this point the mother may become aggressive toward you. Don't be offended. Especially if this is her first litter and depending on how bonded you two are, she might not know who to trust right now. Give her some time and go slow.

She'll be fine on her own with her kittens for about 6 weeks. This is when the babies become sexually mature. It is VITALto separate the males and females at this point because they can and will mate with their siblings. They don't know any better. Not only will this produce, more than likely sick young but it will also put a great strain on the baby/mother in question.

The babies will continue to grow (and grow and grow) until they reach 12 or 14 weeks.

You can find more information at the related link below.* Keep in mind I am talking about furred rats. Hairless rats, often called "Double Rexes," do not always make good mothers.

Answer 4

When I was a child, my rat gave birth, and then ate her young. It was a shock to the system to see that happening as a child. So do not listen to people who say that they don't, because they do.

You have a lot of experts, who say that the male is dominate towards the young, and usually females will often eat the young of other females.

Rats are disgusting creatures in my eyes now, and even typing this reply something brushed on my foot and I had the thought of a rat just for two seconds lol

Answer 5

Rats take care of their young by providing warmth, milk, and protection. Mothers nurse their babies, groom them, and keep them safe by building nests and moving them to different locations if they sense danger. The mother rat plays a crucial role in teaching her young important survival skills.

Answer 6

No. Rats do not eat their babies.