It's Been A While....Lots of Updates!

Due to some recent health problems, it's been quite a while since I have been able to update the website and get through emails. Now that I feel more like myself again, I will be working on catching up this weekend.

Some good news first - Serenade delivered her litter on June 19, 2009. She has a total of 15 little ones, most of which are boys. We have 11 boys and just 4 little girls. I have been handling and them regularly and they are all thriving. There are no runts, and Serenade is doing a wonderful job as a first time mother. I will be taking pictures of the little ones tomorrow, and they will be posted on the website hopefully by tomorrow night. :)

I still have two little girls available from Calypso's litter - a Seal Point Siamese Berkshire Downunder and a Black Berkshire Downunder Velveteen. I will be posting updated pictures of them on the website tomorrow as well.

There have been some changes that I would like to address here. I have made a few changes to my breeding plans, and have cancelled one upcoming breeding - Cama Vertigo x SERR Venus. At this time, no other changes to my immediate breeding plans have been made.

Also, I have had quite a few applications for Dwarf rats, which I will not have available for adopters for at least 6-8 months from now. Since I am still building my Dwarf line, many of my upcoming breedings will be Standard rats that are Dwarf carriers - and not many Dwarves. Dwarf rats have very small litters with an average of around 2-6 little ones per litter, so even when I do start DwarfxDwarf litters there will be very few available to adopters. So, at this time I am not accepting any new applications for Dwarf rats. I am still accepting applications for Standard rats, and there should be plenty available - especially males, as it seems my girls tend to have predominantly male litters. ;)

Okay, I think that covers everything for now! :)

General Updates - Litters and Changes

Reserves for the current litters are still ongoing. We have managed to reserve all of the females, but we still have quite a few males available. I am still going through the Wait List, but it looks like we will still have boys available as most of the list is requesting females.

The current litters can be viewed here: http://www.serendipityrats.com/CurrentLitters.html

If you are not currently on my Wait List and are interested in the currently available male babies, please contact me via email: SerendipityRodentry@comcast.net

There are a few changes that are slowly happening, so I wanted to update everyone. My main focus for at least the next year is on Dwarf rats. I am currently working to establish the Dwarf line, so many of my upcoming breedings are for Dwarf or Dwarf carrier rats. By this time next year, I hope to have Burmese, Black Eyed Siamese and Russian Blue Dwarf rats. Eventually, I hope to be working exclusively with Dwarves.

This means that during the transition, I will be doing a few more breedings than normal to establish specific colors, coat types and markings in Dwarf carrier rats. I will also be doing a few more breedings of Standard females 4-5 months of age with Dwarf males. This is only done because the size difference is so great that most 6 month old females are too large for a breeding with a Dwarf male to be successful.

Once the traits I am looking for are established in the Dwarf lines, the number of available litters will dwindle. I plan to only have a litter available every 2-4 months, and since they would all be Dwarves, the litters would be much smaller and therefore there will be less rats available to be adopted.

I am updating the News with this information now because I want to let anyone who may only be interested in adopting Standard rats from me know that I will only be working with them for a limited time, though there will still be Standard rats available at least until the end of this year.

Fiona's Litter, Adoption Process Change and Website Updates

Fiona delivered her litter in the early morning hours of April 6th. Her litter of 5 are doing very well, and Fiona is doing a wonderful job as a new mother. Looks like there are 3 Black Hooded females, 1 UK Mink Hooded female and 1 Agouti Mismarked Hooded male. More information and pictures of this litter can be found here: http://www.serendipityrats.com/LoganxFiona.html

I recently made changes to the Adoption Process. Due to a number of non-responsive potential adopters on my Wait List, I decided to charge a $5 non-refundable deposit to be added to the list. The deposit will be deducted from the total fees for the rats that are adopted. This change is effective for all new applications received after April 8, 2009. Please see the Adoption Process page for further details: http://www.serendipityrats.com/AdoptionProcess.html

I have also switched to a different form builder program and have changed my Adoption Application slightly. This is not a big change, and does not affect anyone who has already submitted an application.

Also, I've created some new pages over the past few weeks. These pages include information on general rat care, rat product reviews, sexing rats, comparisons of male and female rats and a breeding policies page. The following links will take you to the new pages:

Breeding and Rodentry Policies http://www.serendipityrats.com/FAQBreeder.html

Sexing Rats http://www.serendipityrats.com/SexingRats.html

Males or Females? The Gender Debate http://www.serendipityrats.com/GenderDebate.html

General Rat Care and Product Reviews http://www.serendipityrats.com/FAQRatCare.html
(still under construction)

Please check out those pages and fee free to send me any feedback via email!
serendipityrodentry@comcast.net

Orchid's Litter Has Arrived!

Orchid delivered her litter of 13 little ones in the early morning hours of March 31, 2009. The delivery went very smoothly, and Orchid is doing a wonderful job of being a first-time mother. There are 7 boys and 6 girls, all with Black eyes. This litter will most likely all be Black with the slight possibility for a few Burmese. To visit the litter page, please follow this link:
http://www.serendipityrats.com/BonsaixOrchid.html

What I find especially interesting is that Orchid's mother, Lotus, also delivered a litter of 13 with the same gender count - 7 boys and 6 girls. If you would like to see Lotus' litter, please follow this link: http://www.serendipityrats.com/BjornxLotus.html

In other news, Rogues babies are now 3 weeks old and doing great! These guys and girls are so much fun, and there is a really nice variety in this litter. Reserves for this litter have started - those on the Wait List are currently being contacted in order to reserve their little ones. ;)

Rogue's Litter

Rogue delivered her litter of 14 on March 11th, 2009. Rogue's litter got off to a rough start, but seems to have stabilized. The delivery was difficult, and quite a few of the babies had moderate bruising. The four that had the most significant bruising did not make it, leaving us with ten little ones in the litter - 5 girls and 5 boys. The remaining babies are doing very well, and Rogue has been keeping them warm and well fed. I am fairly sure at this point that all 10 will make it. :)

There are some surprises in this litter, marking-wise. Looks like we have quite a few babies that are Barebacks, one Capped and quite a few with headspots. I finally got up the Baby Development page for this litter, and posted pictures of the boys and girls. If you would like to see these pictures, please follow this link: http://www.serendipityrats.com/RiverxRogue.html

Luna's litter has now gone home to their new families, with three little ones staying at SERR. I will be working on their updated individual pictures and pages over the next few days.

New Addition and a Visitor

We have a new additon to the family - PH Moxie SERR! She is a tiny Wheaten Burmese Dwarf who definitely lives up to her name. She is very spunky and playful. Thank you to Meghan of Paper Heart Rats for this wonderful girl!

We currently have a visitor from Paper Heart Rats - PH Fiona. She is visiting for a co-breeding with Cama Touch Too Much SERR. The pair were placed together on March 2nd, and if this attempt was successful, we should expect a litter on or around March 23rd. More information on this pairing can be found on the Planned Breedings page: http://www.serendipityrats.com/PlannedBreedings.html

Reservations Starting Soon for Luna's Litter

I am actually running a bit behind on this litter, so I apologize in advance. Today I plan to get individual pictures of Luna's litter and start contacting those on the Wait List to get this litter reserved. Of course, before reservations officially start, a Wait List Updates email will be sent out to those on the Wait List. :)

These babies are doing really well. Their eyes began to open on Saturday, and all 9 are very active and exploring their nursery cage.

Luna's Litter Has Arrived!

Luna delivered a litter of 9 on February 6, 2009. There are 6 boys and just 3 girls. All 9 babies are doing very well, and Luna is a wonderful mother. For more information and pictures of this litter, please check out their litter page: http://www.serendipityrats.com/ZenxLuna.html

Pick Ups are starting this week for the current litter - Cama Vertigo SERR x Cama Calypso SERR. If you have babies reserved and have not yet finalized your pick up date and time, please email me asap.

I have updated the Planned Breedings page, as well as added a new page - Male or Female? Determining Gender. This last page is still a work in progress, so look for updates coming soon. :)

Reserves Have Started and Website Updated

Reserves for my current litter have begun! Which means individual pictures of the babies are now available on the litter page.

I finally managed to get the website updated with a page for my keeper girl (SERR Orchid) from Lotus' litter and some new planned breedings.

In other news, it would appear that Jitterbug is unable to conceive. After multiple unsuccessful attempts to breed her, I have decided to retire her. She will be available for adoption to a pet-only home soon.

Calypso's babies......and Jitterbug.....

Calypso's babies are doing great! The gender count is 4 girls and 9 boys! Looks like we have mostly Blacks, a handful of Red-Eyed Siamese and two Black-Eyed Siamese in this litter. Pictured above is one of the Manx babies - looks like he will be a Black Berkshire Velveteen. :)

In other news, Jitterbug went back into heat today, so instead of placing her back with Zen, she was placed with Vertigo to try once again. They were together most of today, and if this breeding took (crosses fingers), she will be due February 4th.