Recently, I picked up a rat from a pet store. The rat had just been turned in by her previous owner (who was still there). After talking to the previous owner, I realized that she knew very little about rats. The girl said that rats are too much work. Apparently, she had also turned in some male rats at the same time. The female ratty seemed sweet (she licked me), but scared and alone. I felt sorry for her, and brought her home to join my mischief, where she wouldn't have to worry about being alone or abandoned ever again.

Things started off well. When I picked up the rat, she was really very friendly, and when I handed her a treat, she took it from me gingerly. However, when I put my hand in the cage the next day to adjust something, she bit me! Hard! :(

She continued biting every day after that. Not just biting in self-defense, but actively seeking out fingers and hands to rip open. I have never seen such an aggressive rat before in my life. I wasn't sure what to do.

About two weeks after I brought her home, I determined that she was pregnant, and that she was going to have babies in a few days. I cleaned the cage every day (which took some doing, since she kept trying to bite me) to make sure it would be clean enough on the big day.

Sure enough, two weeks and four days after I brought her home (Friday, August 20, 2004), I found eight pink babies curled up in the cage with her.

I set up this section so that you can watch them grow up from pinkies to ratties.

One Day Old
Three Days Old
Five Days Old
Six Days Old (In Cage)
Seven Days Old
Nine Days Old
Eleven Days Old
Thirteen Days Old
Fifteen Days Old
Seventeen Days Old
Nineteen Days Old
Twenty-One Days Old
Fourty-One Days Old