Questions about new chin mom with 2 baby kits!

[Justin5609]

My 7 month old Daisy surprised us with two kits this past weekend (Only got her in August, was unknowingly pregnant when we got her) We've done lots of research and talked to the breeder but I have a few general questions

Daisy(the mother chin) was always extremely quiet but since the babies she is a lot more talkative, always squeaking when shes running around her cage, is this normal? I don't believe she is sick or in pain(They are just low normal squeaks) as she isn't acting any different besides being more vocal!

I have them in the large Ferret Nation cage(yes I have it kit proofed) but I was told to block off the top half so the mother has to spend all her time with the kits, this is true/a good idea?

I was also told to limit the mother's play time out of the cage for a few weeks as she needs her energy for nursing / taking care of the babies and can't be away from them for too long, is this also true / a good idea? I feel like limiting her exercise would only stress her out.

 

[Shenanigans]

Not a breeder here, so this is my opinion for what it's worth.
I wouldn't worry about the noise change as long as they aren't unhappy sounds- she may just have someone to "talk to" now.
Block off the top half- she can probably get away enough on the bottom if she wants to, but then she has to nurse her kits. My sister bred rats for a while and had to do the same sort of thing (she also had to break up the bad moms from the good moms- one mom was trying to feed all 6 litters while the others hid!)
Again, limiting exercise sounds like a good idea to me. You have to conserve baby chins energy to grow, so it makes sense to have mom rest to save energy to nurse. I wouldnt keep her away from the babies, but if she's really overwhelmed I dont think a 2-5 minutes of rest away from baby time would hurt, but I wouldn't be taking her away for 15 or so minutes. (Again with my sister's rats, some of the moms were so happy to get a break they'd just sit calmly in my sister hands, even ones that hadnt liked being held.)

also, a bit off topic-for any rat people wondering at the 6 litter thing since I'm sure that's not normal, my sister had snakes and was going to breed rats to feed them but couldn't feed off them after knowing their personalities...but after they were all bred. She had 2 boys and 8 girls, seven litters later... we're guessing 92 (the girl who didn't litter was renamed Auntie). Some adopted out, but there's still 30-ish that are mostly named. And one baby girl got sexed wrong and was bred again before we found her huddling over her babies.

 

[Justin5609]

Thanks for the reply!

Everything is going well - but the female baby is gaining less than the male (2g last night, up only 1g tonight while the male was up 5g last night and 3 tonight) is this an issue? Should I try hand feeding or leave them be unless she stops gaining?

 

[Zoaea]

Let them be unless their is an issue. Messing too much with nature causes more issues sometimes! Warning signs would be kits fighting or one always off on its own and not gaining. The weight is just because chins can hide issues until it's too late.

In conclusion, if she is full of energy and gaining, don't worry.

 

[Zoaea]

Oh and also if it was a matter of supplementing, I'd leave the weak kit with mom. And do a switch/feed cycle with the fat one. Supplements are not as good as mom's milk. This is only something that should be done if one of the kits faces death with out intervention.

You can also give mom some of the dry kit supplement (I think the recipe is in the breeding faq) in a dish and the kits can snack on it too.

 

[6Dusters]

Hey Justin. Right now you can put a lot of soft Timothy hay in the cage. Make sure your offering a bit more than you think you would for mom. The kits are old enough to eat hay as well. If they are eating all the hay in the morning, add more in the afternoon.
Don't worry about one kit gaining more than the other. As long as they are not wounded on the body or the other kit is hiding all the time, mom has enough milk for them. And you know the importance of checking weight each day.

You don't have to use the supplement, but it is a great addition to helping kits stay full and gain weight. I buy my dry goats milk at Walmart in the baking section. Adding hay to the diet will be a great help. I suggest Oxbow.

Right now I'm feeding quads whose mother did not have milk for them. They are now 5 weeks old. They have been eating the supplement since week two. And love hay.
The last weight I did was three days ago. And they vary greatly.
135, 143, 159 and lastly 167.