My mother rat isn't in the nest. Are her babies abandoned or dead?

Thanks for reaching out about your hamsters and including photos. First, continue to look for the mother. Kitten or cow's milk is not the same as hamster milk and quite possibly will lead to diarrhea in the babies. Hamster milk is typically very concentrated so using a mixture of goat's milk and condensed milk might work. Try offering finely chopped vegetables, placing them in the mouth and monitor for ability to chew. This will be difficult. Good luck.

Ideally, you should wait at least two weeks before disturbing the nest. If you must move it, scoop it and the pups up in one piece and relocate them to the larger cage. Be sure to transfer some of the cleaner used bedding as well.

Thanks for reaching out about your mice. This is probably not the best idea. First there is no commercially available milk replacer for mice. Mice are not cats or dogs, and therefore those milk replacers are not applicable to mice and will likely lead to abnormal intestinal bacterial proliferation and questionable digestions, and death. Secondly, the mother could reject the remainder of the mice. Recommendations would include allowing mother to raise the babies, but once the babies' eyes are open and eating some solids, the start handling them to acclimate them to your touch, smell, etc. Good luck.

Hello. The first thing to do is remove or isolate the male rat so he does not harm the pups. Then, just relax & let mum do her thing. She is providing warmth & protection to her young, & as long as she has easy access to food & water, she will nurse them well. Good luck & thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

At home you probably can't do much for her, she is probably suffering from an infection, it could related to the pregnancy (pyometra), you will have to take her to the vet ASAP in order to get her checked and treated but it's hard for me to tell you what treatment she will need without having some tests done.

You'll need to set up a baby safe cage. A basic cage (preferably one without fancy tubes and tunnels), paper towels, Pet-safe bedding (NOT sawdust), Hamster muesli, Fresh vegetables (carrot or cucumber being better choices for babies), and a water bottle. Keep this all warm with a hot water bottle wrapped in two thicknesses of towel or a heating pad underneath only half the cage, that way if it gets too hot they can move away from it. From 1-14 days old hourly feeds with kitten formula are required. Pups get dehydrated in a matter of hours so not feeding them hourly could kill them. It is a very time-consuming task hand feeding pups.You have to take it slow. Any hurry or forceful feeding can lead to milk being inhaled into the lungs and causing death within the minute. Gently hold the pup in your hand being careful not to squeeze them tightly. Using a pipette or eyedropper full of milk, place it near the pups mouth. They are not used to being fed this way so resistance is natural. Try not to squeeze vast quantities into their mouth, they’ll choke! Little and often is the way to go. Allow the pup to lick/bite the end of the pipette on their own to take in milk. If they don't show an interest, a small drop of milk on the bottom lip can be licked up. Wait for the pup to stop ‘chewing’ the milk (its how they swallow and is normal) then repeat About 2 or 3 drops in one sitting is plenty for a little hamster. Anymore and you may be doing more harm than good. When the pups are eating soft/solid foods (approximately between 10-16 days) the milk weaning can begin reducing feeds to every 3 hours. When the pups are comfortably feeding themselves, milk feeds can be stopped altogether.

Other hamsters in the environment can harm and bite babies, so it is best to make sure mom and babies have an entire cage to themselves. If mom isn't caring for the babies even after a reduction in stress and removal of cagemates, there could be something wrong with her or the babies, and a vet visit may help check for illness. You may also need to begin to supplement feed the babies with a KMR formula if they aren't getting enough from mom. Hamster babies mature very quickly, so lots of care is needed to help them pull through. Looking up "hand rearing hamsters" may point you to some useful links about how much to feed, how often, and the right environment for care.