Ahem Tiny.  Let's see the fawn-ness in your home expand!!!  Babies, babies, babies!!!!!  If you have your babies today, I'll bring you your very own bag of chocolate cheeps, ok?  Fair enough? 

*fingers crossed that the fawn herd will come today!*

Sending POST RESULTS NOW!!! vibes!
 

Okay guys I am here....

Good news and bad news.

Bad news: No bubs today. She looked like she was getting ready to have them last night, but then nothing!

Good news: She is feeling fine. She is still nesting, but also eating and drinking well. I've been in touch with the vet and have an appointment for tomorrow (which I'll cancel if she pops during the night) and we have a FANTASTIC e-vet nearby who I can run to at any time if necessary. She's eating and drinking and has no signs of distress. In fact, if it weren't for the belly, the nesting, and some blood spotting last night, I wouldn't even think she was pregnant. I am pretty stumped as of now and am tearing out my hair wanting her to HURRY UP ALREADY! But... she is a happy energetic little girl who has made a huge nest, and I am thankful for her good health and lack of stress as of now. If there are any problems we will be at the vet before you can say "Dr. Fitzgerald" (yup for those of you who don't know, my nearest e-vet is the Animal Planet Emergency Vets clinic- I have 100% faith in their abilities) but I think all is well and she is just having an atypical pregnancy. Gestation can potentially be 19-26 days; it's just rather unusual for them to go to the very end of that range! Of course, Tiny has never done anything typically- she is at the outer edges of all the ranges, LOL! She is only 264 grams pre-pregnancy weight, at the very low end of the "adult girl" weight, and she is at the upper end of the "how often they boggle" range for all rats 

Oh Phew!  Thank you for the update.  I was starting to get really scared that something truly bad had happened and you just weren't ready to tell us. 

Tiny is gonna be fine!  She is just making sure her buns are well baked before letting them out of the oven!

Staci

Okay.. I'm guessing 10 bubs... 3 girls, 7 boys.

Go Tiny Go!  Have those babies!  Have them healthy!

Best of luck

Pink

New to the forum and just read this thread.  Glad I won't have to wait as long as you guys to seep pictures!

Hope the birth goes well.

Again with the good news and bad news.

Bad News: I believe Tiny's body has decided to reabsorb the litter. I was concerned about this for the past week, but as a character in a favorite book of mine is fond of saying, "from your lips to the Gods' ears," so I was not going to think negative thoughts prematurely. Her weight gain was steady, but slower than I have seen on other breeders' weight charts, and after the delay in delivering her weight stalled and today has dropped fairly significantly. Why did this happen? Well, I don't know, but I do not think it was either a weakness in her OR something that could have been prevented. I have talked to other breeders and sometimes reabsorption just happens, for whatever reason their body says they are not going to have a litter this week, and they reabsorb. I wonder if perhaps it was because she is so very small, but who knows? All I know is that she no longer feels pregnant. I am neither a vet nor a psychic, so I don't know for sure that that is what happened, but it sure seems that way, and her vet agrees.

Good News: Again, she is feeling fine. She is eating and drinking and acts like nothing ever happened. I am glad to have my Tiny girl safe and sound. I have been in close contact with her vet all day- we talked four times in the space of a few hours. We will see about antibiotics if the vet feels she needs them, but she seems much more herself today than she did the last couple of days. Whatever she needs, she will get, but for now I trust that her body knew what was best, as ratties often do. IF we try again with Tiny, it will be with the close guidance and supervision of both her vet and the many wonderful rat people who are always there to support me, and it will be after plenty of time to recover. However, as she is already almost seven months old, I think it may be that the best decision is to be thankful for a wonderful pet and let her be just that. All my rats are pets first, and I would rather not risk her health by trying again too soon or by trying for a first litter when she is on the older side. So, no RIZL babies this spring, but come summer or fall, and when our first litter finally does come, you can bet we will  give this thread another shot, and you all will get more fawn horde pics than you can handle!

I want to thank everyone who has been there for me on the phone and online through all of this. It is not the outcome I hoped for from my first planned breeding, but it is also far from the worst case scenario, and as the saying goes, "Raisins happen." I knew when I decided to breed that I can get the best rats I can find and do the best I can by them, and sometimes things will still not go as planned. I have been prepared from the start to deal with every scenario from best case to worst, and this one falls somewhere in between. I am more sorry to disappoint the people who were hoping to adopt from this litter than anything else, but I am again just thankful that, though we do not have a litter to celebrate, we have a happy and healthy Titania to celebrate. I am very thankful for that, and for the friendship and support of rat people all over. I have been waiting a long time for my first litter, and waiting a little longer won't kill me.

Soooo on that note, farewell to Titania's belly, long live the future RIZL bellies! There are things in the works for later this year that I think everyone will be VERY excited about, but I'm just going to keep you all in suspense until I'm ready to make official announcements. For now, I will be putting as much time and energy as I am able into my new role on the NIRO Board of Directors, and into planning the NIRO fun show this June, which should be a blast! I also just redesigned my website (whaddaya gonna do when you're up all night with a pregnant rat five days in a row?) so- if you would like to check it out and let me know what you think, please do! Link in my sig.

Saydrah,

I am sorry that this is not the outcome you had hoped for. Unfortunately things do happen. I am happy that Tiny is okay.

Sometimes it just seems to be Murphy's Rat Law. You brag and brag about a litter. . .you put the pair together. . . and NOTHING. Meanwhile on the other side of the country/state/street a rat escapes their cage - no one notices mom is pregnant until 20 babies are born.

Give Tiny those chocolate chips anyway for being a good girl!

Absolutely the most important thing is that we have a healthy happy tiny! She is a beautiful rat, and is blessed to have an owner who is a caring as you! good luck in your future ratty endeavors, I think it's safe to say we will all be routing for you just as much then as we are now!

Oh wow! I didn't read about your re absorption until now! Sometimes this thing doesn't let me know when there was a new post. I am sorry to hear that. And glad mom did it this way rather than labor problems which can be fatal.

I for one have never had this happen, after 70 litters. I am sorry you didn't get your babies!

*hugs*

sorry to hear no babies.... stinks you plan babies and dont get em I dont and get em...grrr wish we could switch places hahaha well hope she will be okay tell her Lita and Rattatouille oh and all the little ones say feel better