HELP!! What are they????

[Legomom]

A tree trimmer from 2 yrs ago, just knocked on my door with 4 critters that he found on Saturday. I know they are not squirrels. Are they rats? Possies? If they are, I need someone else to take them from me, please.

I know I need to get some pedialyte in them, they are obviously dehydrated. I'll do that shortly. There are 4 of them.

[Skul]

Well, I don't think they're possies.
Rear feet don't appear squirrelish.

[Legomom]

Photos, girl, photos.

Patience, Skul, I had to resize them...way too big!

[lizharrell1]

HAHAHA.....Shanon has rats!!!!! And NOPE they aren't possies and NOPE I don't want them!!!! HAHAHAHAHA!!!

You could always let your son get a jump start on this year's science project!!!

Ever just get the feeling you shouldn't answer your door or answer your phone?

[Legomom]

I already have a 'rat' issue with the ones finding their way into my attic & crawl space. I CANNOT raise baby rats. I just can't do it. Will Anne do it? What about Digi? Someone, please. :Cry

[Legomom]

Ever just get the feeling you shouldn't answer your door or answer your phone?

After the day I've had, YES!!

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

Wish I were closer. I just love Jake's thread (Scoobysnack's baby). What a character.

[TinyPaws]

They look like baby ratties, except compaired to my baby ratties, the ones you have seem to have longer tails....Eyes still closed? If so, they are just under 2 weeks old..They look to be the same age as Alanna's babies, which are, 10 days old today...Eyes should open in about another 4 days...

If you lived by me I'd take them for sure.....

[Legomom]

I think they are palm rats. They were found in their nest, in a palm tree.

[digiandchipper]

I think they are palm rats. They were found in their nest, in a palm tree.

is it too late to try to reunite? Can you keep them til the weekend if I cave??

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

Definetely not possies. I too would say rats. Definetely rats or mice and they look pretty big for mice.

[Legomom]

is it too late to try to reunite? Can you keep them til the weekend if I cave??

If you really will take them, I'm willing to give it a try for a few days.
Do they eat Fox Valley? Or do I need to get something else for them?

[digiandchipper]

If you really will take them, I'm willing to give it a try for a few days.
Do they eat Fox Valley? Or do I need to get something else for them?


IDK...We will have to read the rat threads I guess. I can meet you this weekend if no one else offers. How does that work for you...Saturday?

Poor babies <3

[Legomom]

:bowdown :bowdown :bowdown
Saturday is fine & we'd be happy to drive them up to you or meet halfway.
Whatever you want.

In the mean time, if anyone else would like them, please, chime in.

[digiandchipper]

:bowdown :bowdown :bowdown
Saturday is fine & we'd be happy to drive them up to you or meet halfway.
Whatever you want.

In the mean time, if anyone else would like them, please, chime in.


you could certainly hear a pin drop in here:rotfl :rotfl :osnap
Saturday is good, we can meet somewhere and maybe have lunch and some chitchat, too.:grouphug

[Legomom]

My rats don't look like Scooby's rats. I think these are palm rats. Gonna go look them up.
http://www.thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22174

[Legomom]

you could certainly hear a pin drop in here:rotfl :rotfl :osnap
Saturday is good, we can meet somewhere and maybe have lunch and some chitchat, too.:grouphug

Yeah, I'm feeling the love, too, Digi. :rofl4

Anyway, Anne said she would be happy to be our meeting place.
Does 12 noon on Saturday work for you?

[djarenspace9]

Seems like you found someone, but if needed I would be happy to take them. I'm in the Orlando area and rehab rats and mice regularly. I would raise them to release though, if that makes a difference to you. We get them in as squirrels all the time and other foster moms don't care much for them, but I adore them!Please let me know if you want me to take them. I will PM you my phone number so you can call me.

Karen

[Legomom]

Pm me your number anyway. I'm going to be in Orlando tomorrow evening & Lori may have her hands a bit full. I'm checking with her now. :thankyou

[lizharrell1]

IDK...We will have to read the rat threads I guess. I can meet you this weekend if no one else offers. How does that work for you...Saturday?

Poor babies <3
SUCKER!!!!!!!!

[digiandchipper]

Pm me your number anyway. I'm going to be in Orlando tomorrow evening & Lori may have her hands a bit full. I'm checking with her now. :thankyou


Ok, I stepped away for coffee and lost my babies, lol. JUST KIDDING! The above offer by DJSP sounds wonderful. Definitely far more experienced than I!

I will miss seeing you, tho, Lego:grouphug

[lizharrell1]

Ok, I stepped away for coffee and lost my babies, lol. JUST KIDDING! The above offer by DJSP sounds wonderful. Definitely far more experienced than I!

I will miss seeing you, tho, Lego:grouphug
Dang.....And I was hoping to watch ya'll fight over............RATS:rotfl :rotfl :rotfl

[Legomom]

There's no reason we couldn't still meet at Anne's on Saturday. I'm sure she'd love to see us both. I might even let Liz come with. :P

Just talked to djarenspace9. We're gonna hook up tomorrow evening in Otown.
I'll do my very best to keep them warm & full bellied until we meet. Thanks, ladies!

[lizharrell1]

WooHoo!! Party at Annes!!!! Ummmm......guys? Does Anne know?:D

[CritterMom]

Wow. A rat party. Don't tell Amway and Tupperware...

[Legomom]

:nono Bad girls. :rofl4

Got weights on what I believe are 2 boys & 2 girls. The one boy looks like he may have been suckled by someone else, but he did pee, so I'm hoping it will be fine. Weights are 7 & 8 grams...2 at each. Got one round of pedialyte into all & a bit of pee from each. I'll try for more in a little bit.

*Admin: Feel free to put this is non-life threatening. I think we're ok for the night. Trust me, you'll hear from me if that changes. :D

[proud mama of Rocky]

I couldn't help but notice this post because today I found my little girl sucking on my little boys genitals. I separated them, but what bad thing can happen from this? He hasn't peed recently.

[Legomom]

How old are you babies? I assume you have squirrels? How much are you feeding & how often? Typically one will suckle the other if they are still hungry. You might bump up the feeding just a bit. Make sure that he is able to pee. If it is scabbed over, give him a warm water soak & try to VERY gently lift the scab. You could also put vaseline on him to keep him moist & loosen the scab. Good luck!

[Cejemere]

All I got is LOL@rats! This thread made my night...:thankyou

[Legomom]

You laugh. HA! Just wait. It'll happen to you one day. :osnap

[Jackie in Tampa]

Hey ...:wave123 don't want those ratties, I have ratties of my own,
but can Stevie hitch a ride to Annes? with anyone?
I have been working too hard for too little and I can't find time to get outta here! wish I could go...
Stevie wants to SEE his ole squammies Anne and Chas!

[Legomom]

I am happy to report that all 4 ratties survived the night & day in my (and my mother's) care. When I passed them off to DJ at 6 pm they had already eagerly started taking diluted FV & all 'systems' were functioning. Thanks for taking them, DJ. Maybe post a pic or two as they grow? I'm curious to see what they look like. :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown

Jackie, between me, you & liz, we can get Stevie to Anne. Sq train across FL? No prob. PM or call me & we'll see what we can work out. :grouphug

[Mars]

Dang I hate to spoil the rats fav party here, but those are mice. Rats do not have hair on there tails even at that age.
:D

:grouphug

[Legomom]

Hmmmm, interesting. In either case, I'm glad to have passed them off. :D

[fungipami]

Hmmmm, interesting. In either case, I'm glad to have passed them off. :D


They're just like us:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_mSuiu-5K2Dk/TEI7HyWi88I/AAAAAAAAAas/HikKOnR1hqU/

[djarenspace9]

All 4 babies are doing well so far, just keeping my fingers crossed since they had a rough start and hoping they pull through. Don't want to get my hopes up and then be disappointed.

All are eating well. It was painful to get up early this morning to feed them :shakehead (I am NOT a morning person and usually only do that for an early plane or for sweet tiny babies that need their formula!)

I will try to take pics later this week, though I usually can only photograph blurs.
Thanks :Love_IconLegomom:Love_Icon for taking the time to bring them to me.

Mars, I am curious about identifying mice vs rats.
I always have a hard time doing that unless sometimes size makes it obvious.
Is hair on the tail a sure way to know that?
Either way I likes 'em the same!

[Legomom]

That's a cute pic, DJ. Lack of sleep is no biggie when it comes to fuzzy loves, right? :bowdown Thanks again for taking them. I didn't mind having them, but I'm just not comfortable with raising them.
I have no doubt that they will do beautifully with you. :thankyou

I'm curious to see what Mars has to say. In the mean time, I did get a few good pics with my son's camera (mine has crossed the bridge :( ).

http://i37.tinypic.com/1rxevr.jpg http://i37.tinypic.com/14xjedt.jpg

http://i36.tinypic.com/24cvbcx.jpg http://i36.tinypic.com/30axi79.jpg

Be well & grow strong, little ones! :grouphug

[Gina]

All I got is LOL@rats! This thread made my night...:thankyou

:jump me too!! Even if they end up being mice, still funny!

[TinyPaws]

I'm not familure with palm rats, but I have to say they look too big to be mice..Mice under 2 weeks are alot smaller than those guys...That may not be hair on the tails, it could just be skin pigmentation....:dono

[scoobysnack]

Get them on soy infant formula. I learned that the hard way. They look like roof rats, black rats, ship rats or any of the other million names they have.

[TinyPaws]

Did some research....Palm rats are also know as Roof rats....they range in color from black-grey...they have really long tails and bigger ears than other rats....The black palm/roof rat does have a black tail....hope this helps...

[scoobysnack]

I could be totally wrong but the tails look too long to be mice, eyes too wide set and they look kinda big. Palm rats I didn't think of those. I don't think mice nest in trees anyhow.

Good luck with them they sure are cute!

[Mars]

http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/2997/babyrats3.jpg (http://img825.imageshack.us/i/babyrats3.jpg/)


Okay I maybe wrong wouldn't be the first time LOL But they still looks like mice, deer mice perhaps. Rats are bulkier and bigger boned.

http://img828.imageshack.us/img828/9505/10340babymice.jpg (http://img828.imageshack.us/i/10340babymice.jpg/)


Baby mice have finer bones. And longer faces.

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/4776/catheadmouse.jpg (http://img841.imageshack.us/i/catheadmouse.jpg/)
:rotfl

[Alcippe]

We shall just call them Whachacallzits. :D

[lizharrell1]

http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/2997/babyrats3.jpg (http://img825.imageshack.us/i/babyrats3.jpg/)


Okay I maybe wrong wouldn't be the first time LOL But they still looks like mice, deer mice perhaps. Rats are bulkier and bigger boned.

http://img828.imageshack.us/img828/9505/10340babymice.jpg (http://img828.imageshack.us/i/10340babymice.jpg/)


Baby mice have finer bones. And longer faces.

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/4776/catheadmouse.jpg (http://img841.imageshack.us/i/catheadmouse.jpg/)
:rotfl
The look on that cat's face is like "Oh, the indignity of it all":D

[Legomom]

I guess we'll just have to wait & see & hope that DJ will keep us posted. :D

[djarenspace9]

Love all the pics! :thumbsup
Sure wish my cats were so passive! :D

I am really not sure what the little guys are.
It's often a wait and see game when I get these little rodents.
I have to admit sometimes I'm not sure what I released, a small rat or a big mouse. :rotfl

All babies are doing well and gaining, yesterday all were up at least 1 gram if not more and everyones eyes are starting to pop open.
I tried to take photos but they all come out blurry.
I'd like to blame the camera but I'm sure it's just me.
Looking for the manual tonight to see what setting to use for clear pics and will post them.

Maybe with pics we can take a poll and decide what they are! :dono :thinking
Either way they are small, furry, cute and fun to raise as far as I am concerned! :wave123

[Legomom]

:bowdown :bowdown :bowdown Keep up the good work, DJ!
Are you naming them?

[djarenspace9]

I love giving my babies names! :D
Eeny and Meeny (the girls) Minie and Moe (the boys)

Truthfully I can't really tell the girls apart most of the time so they are like twins that switch places so much even they forget who is who! :rotfl

Everyone is very active, eyes are open and they pop out of their nest like crazy ants when they hear me nearby.
They have one thing on their mind and it's that big yellow nipple.
I have to tickle them sometimes to get them to let go once the milk is gone!

Moe, the smallest is having all sorts of issues :shakehead
...not sure if he will grow out of them or need special care.
He's the one that came with a scab on his boy parts.
The scab came off but it seems to have taken off his um "baby maker".
It's very odd. I compare him to Minie and it seems that little tip is all gone.
He just has a bit of a mound and a small opening so he does pee when stimulated.
I'm not sure if it will be a problem for him to go on his own though.

Also I had been having a hard time getting the nipple in his mouth and realized his teeth were much longer than the others and they do not line up.
I was able to clip them with a nail clipper and that helped right away.
I will have to monitor his teeth and see what happens.

He is dragging behind the rest in size and weight, but is gaining so I have hope for the little guy!
:wahoo Rooting for Moe!

[Legomom]

Awww, poor little Moe. I hope he does well even if he's a little bit behind.
I am truly glad that you were able to take them. I don't know if I'd have been
able to identify the teeth problem. Keep it up & keep us posted!
Thanks, again, DJ! :thankyou :bowdown :bowdown :thankyou

[djarenspace9]

PS. The answer is....MICE!
Here are some pics, the best I could do with a questionable camera and a bit afraid these guys will pop out of my hand and get lost in my house.

Eenie (I think)
115447

Meenie (possibly)
115448

Minie (this one I'm sure of!)
115449

Moe
115450

Check out this belly! Not skinny no more!!!
Everyone's fat and happy and learning to eat all kinds of foods.
115451

I'm pretty sure I'll need to keep Moe.
His teeth don't line up at all.
Not sure if he will be able to eat solid food, but hoping he will manage.
Otherwise I will need to figure some sort of diet that I could hand feed him or that he can slurp up.

Any ideas if it's best to keep him alone or with his brother Minie?
I definitely don't want to keep him with any of the girls :nono
Just not sure if two males will get along once they mature.
Hoping so that way he would not be a lonely boy.

[lelliott]

They're SO cute!

Not sure if they're like domestic mice, but if so, I would keep him alone. Domestic mice will fight to the death once they've matured, even if they've never been apart.

[pappy1264]

They look great! Unfortunately, two males together are a no-no, very rarely will it work out (and they will fight to the death.)

[djarenspace9]

Thanks for the info.
I was hoping he could have a friend to live with.
I guess that will be me :crazy
Not the first time I've had to entertain a rodent. :D

[Legomom]

I have a feeling that you'll be a perfect mouse toy. :D

How long until they're ready to be released? Where will you release them?

[djarenspace9]

Mice are ready to go pretty quickly once they start eating on their own.

I don't rush them though...
I'd rather give them a good head start and be as big and wiley as possible.
I can usually tell when they are ready...they get real skittish and spend all their time plotting an escape!

I have a few good spots to relase mice and rats, in remote areas with lots of brush and ground cover. Don't worry...I never ever release them near any homes, don't want them to be a nuisance!

[Legomom]

I wasn't worried. Just curious. They have turned out pretty cute. :bowdown

[Mads]

this is a very funny thread....I've enjoyed reading it this evening....:rotfl :rotfl :rotfl :rotfl :rotfl

[djarenspace9]

I love happy endings....

...all 4 babies turned into wild and crazy mice focused on only one thing...liberation!!!!
Raising mice is scary for me when they start spending all their free time trying to find a breach in my housing.

Luckily we made it without incident to release day, and they are now running wild and FREE in a huge nature preserve.

Even little Moe made it to freedom!!
To my surprise, his teeth fell back into place after just a couple of trims.

Thanks to Legomom for helping them get through their first few days and getting them to me!
I really enjoyed raising them.

:thumbsup

[squirrelfriend]

So glad that these little guys found a home and have fat bellies now. I have a soft spot for rats too. I help out a friend of mine that breeds tarantulas and sells them at the reptile expo. Every time I go I go and save a few baby rats (feeders). I now have a large collection of them because I can never leave without saving at least a few. Thank you guys for saving these little guys. That is great.:Love_Icon

[pappy1264]

So happy to see these guys all made it to freedom...may they live a long, healthy life! Great job!!