RoseNbloom Rattery

Contact: Alana Email: lilblanco1@hotmail.com Website: http://www.geocities.com/blancornb/roseNbloomRattery.html Location: Kingston, Ontario I place my rats privately as pets

Describe the types of rats that you breed or intend to breed.

My First priority is health and temperament. (I have children so a good temperament is a MUST) At this point I have blue, amber, beige, fawn, black, champagne& platinum. In top eared and dumbo. I also have satin, standard and rex .I am working towards a Rex & satin line of variegated blue, black and platinum. A dumbo line of blue, beige and black in banded and variegated hopefully blazed. As well as a rex & satin fawn line in blazed hooded and varrigated for the hubbys great love of fawn. I am very proud of how they are developing, as it is a slow process at three litters a year. J

Do you keep records?  That is, do you have knowledge of the health, temperament, and colour of past rats in your breeding lines?

Yes, since I have just started I only have the info on my rats parents as I did most of my purchases from a breeder that was getting out. I plan on keeping close track of my lines/breeding & buyers. I now have a pedigree program to help with this task.

What type of bedding do you use?

I use alph-alpha pellets dust free and shredded paper for nest building plus the moms also get shredded paper towel.

What type of diet do you feed your rats?

I feed Hagen lab blocks. Fruit & veggies are also given 3 times a week and always fresh water.I also give milk bones and rawhides too.

Do you also rescue rats?

Very Rarely for quarantine purposes

Describe the steps you take to quarantine new rats.

If they arrive from a reputable breeder (that I have dealt with) then I quarantine 7-14 days. If from new sources I will quarantine up to 6 weeks. They are housed on another floor at this time unfortunately that does nothing for airborne. Yet being new in Kingston I have no other option.

How many rats do you currently own?

6 females 12 males (I love boys J ) (plus some looking for homes)

Describe your cages.

At this point I use Ex-large rabbit cage for my girls. A smaller rabbit cage for my growing out babies. A chinchilla cage for my oldest boys and a homemade cage 2x4x3 for all the rest of my males. The birthing cage is two large attached hamster cages.

How many litters do you have or expect to have per year?

2-3 litters a year based on demand & replenishing my stock with new variety.

Do you wait until you have waiting lists to breed your rats?

Usually

Do you insist that people adopting rats from you must sign an adoption contract?

Contract type at breeders discretion.

Describe your goals with respect to breeding rats.

I hope that by supplying the public with friendly, healthy and many coats and colors that rats may gain more a popularity as PETS!!!

Is it your intention to make a net profit from breeding rats?

No

How long have you cared for rats?

I have had rats in my care as pets/rescue for over 15 years.

How long have you been breeding rats?

This is a new endeavor as I believe rats are the perfect pet for almost anyone. Young kids should be supervised.

Do you ship your rats? If so, how?

No I do not but sometimes can deliver at the cost of gas.

At what age to you adopt out babies to people?

5-8 weeks depending on owner knowledge/age and size/weight of the baby.

Describe your breeding techniques (inbreeding, linebreeding, outcrossing, etc.).

I will start with out crossing to start to achieve my goal.  When I start seeing the qualities I like I will line breed with out crossing every 2-3 generations. I will not inbreed.

Are you a member of a rat club such as the RMCA RMFE or rat fan club?

Applying

Do you keep in touch with people who have adopted your rats in order to keep track of trends in health and temperament?

Yes I will try . I  use to show and breed dogs and realize that healthy/friendly babies can change. Unfortunately unlike dogs there is no genetic testing. I was very lucky in the dog world with testing and hope that luck carries through to my rats.

At what age do you breed female rats for the first time?

4 1/2-5 1/2 months. But prefer 7 months

How many times will you breed a female over her lifetime?

I only breed a doe once, one day I might actually breed a doe twice.

Describe how you socialize babies.

LOL gee I have kids, I handle at a few days old to start imprinting human scent. Then as they age the whole family gets in on it. How can one not pet and cuddle a baby rat? :)

Describe where you got the rats that you are breeding. 

Some of my rats came from very reputable breeders. Most of my females from a hobby breeder who was shutting down. The males were purchased from a hobby breeder who breeds strictly for pet stores but kept great track of parentage.

Are there any additional comments that you would like people to know when considering adopting from your rattery?

Date form was first completed: September 2002
Partially updated: November 2002, February 2003