paperheartrats

I am a little late, but wanted to wish everyone a Happy New Year!  And happy holidays.  I took this picture of Target about two weeks ago, but didn't get it uploaded in time.  Oh well...better late than never!!!

Due to the holidays and some unfortunate personal "stuff," I am way behind again on my e-mails :(  I am going to try to get caught up tomorrow.  But I thought it'd be better to post here tonight, so everyone can read it.

Target's litter looks to be on track - it is due around the 4th.  It doesn't look like Violet's breeding was successful.  I will probably try to breed Lucy in the next few days...because I do have some sad news :(

Jackpot passed away about a week ago...I am really heartbroken over it :( He was my one-in-a-million rat, and he was wonderful.  It was just a freak accident...but he was such a special boy :( \
RIP little man...



I may try to breed Joly and Lucy soon, in hopes of getting another special harley boy.  

I am looking forward to 2010.  2009 was a big year, and some big steps were made....my first himis, my first dove/russian cinnamons, the closed rattery, and some major downsizing and reworking of my breeding program.  In 2010 I hope to continue downsizing somewhat, and hopefully keep improving my rats with each generation.  

I also wanted to mention that I have a NEW website coming.  I have about 300 pages to convert...it is a daunting task, but I think the end result will be worth it.  I have gotten a lot of compliments on my current site...but this one looks so much nicer! I am very excited about it!  There may be some downtime in the next week or so as I get switched over, but hopefully it won't be for long.
 

I have some new video of Payday's litter, taken on Monday. They are so precious and did I mention sweet???
And everyone can see what a sweet licky girl Payday is. Now i just need to think of good candy or chocolate themed names for my keepers...that's going to be a tough one!

I wanted to post a quick update that I can now make videos of the rats! I got a camcorder today as a belated birthday present and I managed to record a few minutes of video before the battery died on me.
Sorry if the song is bad - I couldn't find any songs I knew on the youtube list!! I will try to find some better ones LOL


This video wasn't the best quality - I need to figure out the best settings and best program to edit with since the quality isn't the best. The little black boy and girl sort of stole the show but I will try to video more equally next time around!

I also wanted to mention that I've decided the rattery is now closed to visitors. With some local cases of SDA popping up, I don't want to take any risks with my rats. So all adoptions will be done in a neutral location. I will be updating my site to reflect that as soon as I get a chance.

I will finish getting caught up on e-mails tomorrow - I still have a handful left to do, but I have a nasty cold and my Nyquil is kicking in - so tomorrow it is!

Well I am back from my weekend away, I had a great time but now it's time to get back to work!

I just finished taking some updated pictures of the babies.  Payday's babies' eyes are starting to open, I will updated their page with individual shots in another day or so once everyone's eyes are open.
For now here are some group shots!   

The boys - sorry about the poor quality of the picture, the phone rang while I was taking them and when I was done I forgot that I hadn't gotten a good shot.



Siamese rex berkshire dumbo, siamese mismarked hooded dumbo, black mismarked bareback rex dumbo, black berkshire dumbo rex, siamese berkshire dumbo, mink berkshire dumbo.

The girls - 


 Black self rex dumbo, mink mismarked self rex dumbo (has a few white hairs on belly and feet), mink berkshire dumbo,  siamese self dumbo.

The minks are much darker than I am used to seeing.  They could be chocolates, but I don't think they are quite that dark.  They could also be UK minks, but the shade doesn't quite look right for that either and there is no UK mink that I know of on Payday's side of the family.  I think they are just nice dark US minks.  If I keep a mink I will probably test that theory out at some point.

More random photos...

Some of Glitter's gang today...


One of Payday's babies, eyes halfway open!



This girl of Glitter's is very photogenic!



Oh and I have some exciting news!  Every year the Goosemoose rat forum holds a calendar contest...I entered 3 pictures this year - my photo of Retro was chosen for the cover and two were used inside the calendar - Hershey in August and Ophelia in October.  Here is a link to the calendar if anyone would like to buy one!
http://www.cafepress.com/ratsrule.415066912

And one last photo to share - my lovebug Jackpot.  This boy is the sweetest, floppiest little teddy bear!  Not to mention his color...okay he needs some help with his ears, they are a little ugly, but there are worse things in life than ugly ears LOL

It feels like forever since I have been online - I have been having internet issues for the last couple of weeks once again.  Unfortunately there is only ONE ISP that services our area...so I don't have much of a choice but to put up with the unreliable internet :(

I will try my best to catch up tonight and tomorrow, since I will be away this weekend.  I worked on the site for a while today and I believe everything's up to date.  Individual pictures are up of Glitter's babies.  Payday's litter was born on the 26th and pics of her litter are also up.

I will be starting reservations on Glitter's gang shortly - they are getting big and are super sweet! 

Here is a group shot from Tuesday -



And here are two of Payday's litter, taken just a few minute ago.
First - the siamese (mink and seal point) -


And here are the black and minks -


I also wanted to mention that I've figured out a way to post pedigrees with pictures of the rats' ancestors.  I am really excited about this, it provides a great look back into the past!
I still need to put the finishing touches on it (and to figure out the best way to credit the photos from other ratteries), but here is one pedigree as an example:
http://www.paperheartrats.com/brightyxpaydayped.html

Glitter had her litter on the 10th; a big litter of 14!  Everyone is doing very well, Glitter is being a great mom and the babies are growing quickly!

Here is a picture taken of the boys last night...
 

And the girls...


There are 3 dumbo girls; the boys and the rest of the girls are all standard eared.  I am really excited for their colors to start coming in!

I also thought I'd share a few pictures taken over the weekend.  Fall is my favorite time of year, and I brought the dogs to a farm stand nearby for pictures!  It was a mob scene with people walking around and everyone wanting to pet the dogs...but I managed to get ONE nice picture!

And one of the scenery on the way home...taken from the road that the Land of Make Believe is on, lol



And I have to say - today's weather has been crazy.  I was in Flemington today training Kessy for a trial this weekend...it was cold and pouring rain but it's supposed to be like this all weekend, so we needed to train in it!  By the time I was done I was soaked to the skin and I couldn't feel my fingers or toes...and I found out on the way home that the heat in my van doesn't work :(  It was not a very pleasant drive home!  About halfway home the rain turned to sleet and then to pretty heavy snow that was sticking - there's about an inch of snow on the ground at the moment here...

I did get a semi-decent picture of Djenga in the snow, she LOVES snow and runs around like a nut...Kessy and Gizmo are not so fond of it and would rather be inside!

 

Well between some technical difficulties and visiting family, I have not had a lot of time to get online :(  But I just wanted to post a quick note to let everyone know about a possible SDA outbreak in the area.  I am NOT affected, but I wanted to post to warn everyone to be vigilant about quarantines with new rats!
Please be careful anytime you bring in new rats from ANY source.  SDA especially is very deadly and is not something you want to mess with!
Again I am NOT affected by this outbreak, I have not brought any new rats in for quite a while...but I think it's very important to keep track of viral outbreaks!

It looks like most or all of the youngsters and most of the babies  I mentioned in my last post have homes lined up.  I am really happy to see them all find great homes!
 I bred Trouble and Glitter about a week ago.  I am very excited to be expecting my first himilayans!  They should be gorgeous. I updated Trouble's picture not too long ago - he is one hunk of a rat!

I have also had requests to keep posting pictures of the dogs.  Here is a picture of Kessy's last herding lesson.  She is doing amazingly well!

 

I will update again in a couple weeks, once Glitter has her babies!

 

Well the last 2-3 weeks have been crazy for us!  I just thought I'd share a few pictures I took recently!

This weekend we were at a show with my little guy Gizmo.  He did really well, he won his Go-To-Ground class, placed second in agility, and 6th in Trailing/Locating and the Barn Hunt.  Here are a couple of pictures - I also have a video I will try to get uploaded soon.




 

We always have such a great time at these terrier trials, everyone isvery friendly and the atmosphere is just FUN!

Here is a lure coursing shot:



I am exhausted, it's been a LONG weekend.  We also had a concert on Saturday night so I'm going on about 2 hours of sleep a night right now!  I will try to catch up on my e-mails tomorrow and Tuesday, I have learned not to do e-mails when I'm exhausted because I never end up being very coherent...

Before I go to bed, I wanted to share some photos I took recently.  Here is Brighty - he is very photogenic!

Jelly Belly - he is such a handsome boy!

and miss Payday who is a BIG and stunning girl!

I still have some babies available - although I have a few inquiries I need to reply to!  But until the current rats are adopted out, I am holding off on breeding any more litters.  I do also have some young adult rats (both male and female) up for adoption - I am slowly updating my site and will be adding them soon, but if anyone would line info now I can provide it in e-mails.  

An adopter is returing her 3 rats along with an unrelated cagemate to me tomorrow.  Some of these rats may be looking for new homes, although I need to get them here to evaluate and QT them...some are seniors and I may just let them live out their lives here. Moves are a lot of stress on a rat, especially an older one.  I'd hate to put them through it any more than I have to. But I can provide more information to anyone interested.  Their pictures are on my Available Adults site, but again, they may not all be adoptable.
 

 

I received an e-mail last week from a past adopter.  Her daughter took her rats to their county fair.  Mindy, one of her rats (from Templeton and Saffron's litter last year) won not only Best of Breed, but also Best Small Animal at their 4-H show!
Here is the picture she sent me.


I am so proud!  This was the first rat I've bred to be shown and she did great.  Way to go Juliette!

In other news - I have wanted a second cat for a long time, but have been waiting for the right one to find me.  I was at Petsmart in June or July, and went to see their adoptable cats.  And what do I find - a siamese!  I looked at him, figured he was purebred and would be adopted quickly.  Then I looked at the card with his info on it.  He was 13 years old!  Dumped at a shelter, labeled as a "victim of the economy."

He stared out at me and was meowing pitifully.  I couldn't resist and I e-mailed the rescue shortly after I saw him.  I wanted to give him a chance to be adopted by someone else since I really didn't NEED another cat.  But no one called about him, and I couldn't stop thinking about him!  Of course I wasn't sure about how TicTac (my current cat) would react to another cat. I don't think he's seen another cat since we got him as a kitten!  I asked if I could foster the old guy for a while to see how he fit in.

The first week or two were rough.  I was getting very frustrated, and was thinking TicTac would never accept him.  But finally he started to relax a little, and each day after that they were better and better.  I decided to name the new guy Beau.  
TicTac and Beau are now pretty much inseperable.  They eat together, sleep together, and follow each other around the house.  Beau has really just fit right in, he never caused a single problem and follows us around like he's always been here.  I e-mailed the rescue tonight to let them know - he's staying!  So meet my new guy Beau! 

He is actually very good with the rats, he either just doesn't have the instinct to chase things or he's too old to bother.  Either was it's nice to have a cat that's...well, as trustworthy around rodents as a cat can be!  He lets them run all over him and under him and he just doesn't care.

 He was/is pretty overweight.  When I got him home he weighed in at 13.9 lbs.  He is down to just over 12 now and still has another pound or two to go.  His belly was pretty much dragging the ground.  Poor guy! 

In my last post, I think I mentioned that my "dream rat" from Lucy's litter would be a russian cinnamon or dove harley.  I really wanted a male dove harley but wasn't going to be too picky!  But I got exactly what I wanted anyway!  Well I got one!  I calculated the odds of it happening - it was about a .5% chance (yes that's point 5 percent!) that I would get a male dove harley...so he really beat the odds!  I am calling him Jackpot.  It seems perfect for him, I really feel like I won the lottery with him!

I have been trying to document the growth of the two harley-rex girls in Lucy's litter.  There is so little information about harley rats online;  I would like to make a page about them once I get more photos.  I have seen them referred to as curly-coated harleys BUT I would prefer to call them what they are genetically which is rex plus harley.  Since it's not a standardized variety in most clubs I'd prefer to stick with something easy to understand! 

Here are a few from last night.

First is the mink harley-rex girl.  I am going to call her Jazz.  She is pretty bald right now!


Here she is next to her brother Jackpot who is a regular, straight coated harley.

 
And here is my little man!



 I have spent the last few days working hard to get caught up on e-mails.  I still have a few to go but will get those done tomorrow.  The last few weeks have been so busy and have really flown by!  I can't believe that Ditto's litter is ready to go home already and Lucy's litter isn't far behind.  It feels like they were just born a few days ago! 
I need to make some major changes to my site, I will be updating the My Rats page, I just would like to get some updated photos and make decisions about whether I am going to keep a few of the young rats I have, or whether they'll be adopted out.  I meant to do this a few weeks ago but...time just got away from me!  So that is on the schedule for next week, when I have enough time to figure out which I am going to keep and to get photographs of all the young and available rats.

Right now it's 2:30 AM and I need to get some sleep!  Listening to the rain I am sort of dozing at my desk!

I have a lot of updates so this post might get LONG! Bear with me ;)  There is some good news and some bad.

First - the good news! In the last month I have done 2 shipments. The first was to CMMR in Colorado, and the second was a return shipment from CMMR to me! I am thrilled to have these guys. Some are descended (some closer than others!) from rats I sent to CMMR last year, and others are completely new blood. Both will be very valuable for my breeding program!  
The pictures were taken within about 12 hours of their arrival in NJ.

Meet the new guys!!!

Here is CMMR Icon. He is a very special boy and I am lucky that Michelle was willing to give him up! He is a black-eyed siamese. He carries dumbo and may carry russian and/or american blue. He seems to think he's more human than rat! He is as sweet as it gets.


Here is CMMR Jasper. He is a grandson of my ANR Abigail, and he looks so much like her! He is a good sized boy and is a dwarf carrier. He looked cinnamon as a baby but as an adult I am thinking he looks agouti.





I haven't named this guy yet! He is a pearl self and is another dwarf carrier. He is my first pearl rat and it's a beautiful color!

 

I haven't picked out a name for this little guy either. He is an adorable black masked/patched downunder dumbo rex. What a mouthful!!


This little girl is a sister to the last boy. She is a variegated downunder dumbo rex.



This little girl is a burmese dwarf. She carries american blue. She has awesome self markings which is something my rats need work on ;)




This is CMMR Karma. She is an american blue dumbo. She's nice and dark!  I am excited to have american blue back, since it seemed like I've pretty much lost it in my current lines.



Last but not least is CMMR Glitter, a himilayan self. I believe she is the oldest of the bunch - she was born in December. I have been wanting a himi for ages and am so happy to finally have one! She is a dwarf and dumbo carrier, and may carry mink and american blue. Once the rats are out of QT I will be picking out a boyfriend for her :)



In other news, Ditto's babies are doing great!  She is a great mother - the babies are always well fed and cared for, but she is not worried at all when I handle her babies (unlike her mother!).   There are a couple babies that look very dark - I think they must be agoutis.  So Ditto must be an american blue agouti, and that also means that there should be some russian silvers.  In another few days I will be sure.  I do see several colors which would support that theory but they could also be many other things, since there are a lot of dilutes in these lines.
I did not get many marked babies - just one variegated male, but I am very happy with these guys regardless!

Here are the boys -

And the girls:

Lucy is looking nice and round, and I am expecting her babies to be born in about 3-4 days. My dream rat in this litter would be a russian cinnamon or dove harley. =P Although the chances of that are very very slim, I can dream!

And once again I have fallen way behind on e-mails. When life gets busy my communication is the first thing to suffer.  And this last month or so has been crazy.  It's always something keeping me from my computer duties...
I will be trying to put a dent in my e-mails tomorrow!!  And hopefully I can get caught up by the end of the week.  I know everyone must be frustrated with me but I wish I could hire a secretary or something to keep on top of things...I am awful at it!!
If anyone who has e-mailed me recently with an adoption application is reading this - most likely the babies in Ditto and Lucy's litters (assuming there are no problems with Lucy's of course) will be going to people already on my waiting list.  The next litters will be paired in the near future, and I should have some rats available in September.   There may be some available sooner, but I'm not sure at this point.  If you are looking for a rat sooner rather than later, I can point you to other reputable breeders in the area with available rats or to local rescues!
I will be addressing everyone individually very soon.  Thanks for your patience!
Oh also - check your bulk mail folders if you're waiting for a reply.  Apparently Yahoo mail sends e-mails from my new address to its bulkmail folder; I am not sure about other e-mail providers, but better safe than sorry.  

Over the next few weeks I will be evaluating my young rats and deciding which varieties I really want to focus on.  I was originally going to focus on siamese/burmese and russian blue marked rats - but I may have to choose a third specialty.  I really love the russian cinnamons I have and may try to work pearl into the line to make russian pearls and russian cinnamon pearls.  I may also work american blue into my marked russian blue line to focus on russian silvers.  But again - I need to sit down and evaulate each and every rats' type, temperament, and health, their entire pedigrees, potential mates and their pedigrees...so it's a big project!  But there should be some very nice young adult rats available in the near future.

I also wanted to post some sad news - ANR Cameo passed away earlier this month to a pituitary tumor.  PH Zelda also passed away; her cause of death is unknown and her passing was sudden.  Their pages on my site have been updated.
RIP sweet girls :(
 

It looks like there are a lot of boys in Hailey's litter!  The final count is 7 boys, 3 girls. I believe there were 2 male and 2 female rexes.

I also got a nice surprise tonight!  I got an e-mail from Ed at CBS news - he was the one who put together the segment with my rats in it!  He told me they are re-airing the segment on June 28th!  I will post again when I know a time range of when they're showing it - but for those of you who missed the segment the first time around - set your TIVOs :)

Hailey had her babies right on time tonight :) There are 10 of them, all dark eyed, and all look well fed and healthy!

Kit Kat doesn't appear to have gotten much of a belly.  I've separated her into a maternity cage - there's always a chance it's just a small litter - but I think she might have fooled me this time around and just taken advantage of the extra treats...If so, I will try to breed her again and will also breed Violet's litter at the same time, since her breeding didn't work out last time either.  Hopefully the second time around I'll have better luck!

I will get some photos of the new kids and update my site tomorrow evening.

I have made a few changes to the front page of my site - added a few small pictures in.  I hope it looks okay on other screen resolutions or in other browsers - if anyone sees any problems, please let me know so I can fix it! Thanks :)

Well Kessy did very well at our show this weekend!  It was the Northeast Regional Conformation Show, a German-style show for German Shepherds only.  Kessy was 3rd in the working female class which would sort of be like the Best of Breed class if it was an AKC show - but it's a German show, things are named and done differently.  To compete in the working class the dogs have to have a schutzhund title.

Also on Sunday she was breed surveyed as Kkl2, which means she is suitable for breeding.  To be breed surveyed the dog has to have a show rating, an AD (which is a 12.5 mile endurance test), hip and elbow ratings, and a schutzhund title.  They also have to do a short bitework routine to show they have the proper temperament and drive to be bred.

Here is a video of Kessy's bitework.
 

And some photos from the show!

Podium shot - sorry I cut myself and the other dogs out, I look like a BLOB!

 

Off-leash gaiting is required in the working class.






All dogs are measured to be sure they fit within the height standard.







So it was a successful weekend for us!!!

I will be working on getting caught up with ratty e-mails today and tomorrow!
Also - Hailey is definitely pregnant, she is looking pretty large!  KitKat also has a belly, but it's not a huge one.  I think her litter might be fairly small, but we'll see!  I've been wrong before ;)
 

Well, my new rats from Serendipity Rodentry came home today!  As always - many thanks to Shanna for meeting up with me and of course for these beautiful ratties ;)

I got a few photos when dropping these guys off at their QT location.

Here is the handsome russian silver rex.  I think his name will be SERR Gambit of PH.  He looks like a little scruffy teddy bear - super cute!


Here is the handsome SERR Bernie of PH.  Shanna said she called him "burmese' and that he knew his name...so I thought it would sound the same to him!  He is a nice solid boy!



Here is the pretty PH SERR Flower.  She and her brother Rocky were from a co-breeding between myself and Shanna.  For some reason she reminded me of the skunk in Bambi whose name is Flower...so that's where her name comes from :)



And here is Rocky, he's an agouti hooded dwarf.  He is precious!



And last but not least...well I haven't come up with a name yet for this little girl yet!  But something will come to me before long :)  She's a beautiful black self dumbo.

And I just wanted to post for anyone who will be e-mailing me over the next week or so - responses will be delayed, so please be patient.  I have a BIG dog show in CT this weekend, and between work, scheduled rat pickups, and preparing for the show, I will not have much time to sit at the computer.  After the 25th, things will calm down - until then, most nonessential e-mails will have to wait!  I will respond as soon as I can when I get home from the show early next week.  Thanks for understanding!

Whoops - I almost forgot to mention that it looks like KitKat and Hailey are both putting on weight, so I think their breedings were successful!  I will post again when I know more :)

I have added a couple new pages to my Links page.  The first is a Past Breeding Rats page - something I have been working on for a while.  I have included all rats used for breeding with links to their individual pages and offspring.  This will be used as a guide to help track health, longevity, etc.
I've also made a photobucket album for my dog photos and included a link on that page.
http://s545.photobucket.com/albums/hh391/paperheartrats/My%20Dogs/?start=all

I keep forgetting to post these, but I have a few cages I am looking to sell.  I will also post them on my site soon but here is some info for now!

The first is a My First Home for Exotics.
I only used this cage for a few weeks.  It's in excellent condition.  There is some very minor rust on the bars from where it was left outside in the rain.  It comes with all ramps and levels, but no hammock, wheel, or food dish.  I will recoat the bars before selling.
I don't have any current photos but here is a link for it at Petsmart:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753352&utm_source=googleproduct&utm_campaign=5124704&utm_medium=cse&mr:trackingCode=F8ECD052-4519-DE11-B0EA-001422107090&mr:referralID=NA

And a photo from when I first got it.  I am asking $50.


The next cage is my old boys' cage.  It's a Martin's F-477, powder coated.  It can be seen on their website here:
http://www.martinscages.com/products/cages/ferret/
Overall it's in good shape.  It's a very large cage and can hold up to 12-14 rats.  A small amount of the PVC coating has been chewed off.  I added solid shelves made of cloroplast.  These are cut to size and have been slightly chewed also.  I have some fresh "shelves" to put in, but I think these are still usable but can replace them if whoever takes the care would like.  The top section is removable for a travel/hospital/isolation cage.  Bar spacing is 1" square - not appropriate for dwarf rats or standard sized rats ~8 weeks or under.
More photos are available by request.  The cage is available to be viewed.  I paid $285 for the cage and am asking $150.   There is a litter tray for the bottom, but I forgot to include it in the photo.



Last cage is a smaller cage, probably more of a rabbit cage but could make a good rat cage with a little modifying.  I have 2 of these cages - one has a tray and one does not.  I would take $25 for the one with the tray and $15 for the other.
I believe they are 18" tall by 24" by 24"  There is only one small shelf in the back.  Shelves, hammocks, or levels would need to be added.  It oculd also make a good hospital cage for an injured rat.  The bar spacing is 1" x 2" so again not suitable for very small rats.  These cages are clean without rust or wear and tear.




 

I have a lot of people who ask me how I first got into rats.
Today, I found some old photos of the first rats I ever got from a breeder.  They were very special girls!  Telly was a silver fawn, and Sazi was a champagne.  Telly lived to be 2 years and 9 months old and her sister made it to 3 years and 4 months.
These photos were taken in May of 2000.  Telly was about 2 1/2 at that point, and was starting to look old, but Sazi still looked great.
I never bred these girls, they were just pets, but they started me on my journey with rats over 10 years ago.  They were very special girls!

I realized today that I haven't posted here in a long time.  So I thought I'd post a few updates and some recent photos of my guys :)

First of all, I started a new job about a month ago.  I am working primarily on weekends (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday).  This will make pickups in the future a little tricky since I know most people prefer to come out on weekends.  I can still do weekend pickups but they will have to be after 6 PM.  On weekends I may not have time to reply to e-mails and will do my best to get to them as soon as I can the next week.

I am working on a few changes and updates to my site.  I've changed how the rats' names are labeled and also the titles to some of the pages.  Not major changes but I think I like how it looks.  I am also adding a link to my new photobucket album.  I am working on uploading ALL of my favorite rat photos for people to view.  I love to take pictures so this will be my chance to share my rats with everyone.  Right now, I am just getting everything uploaded.  I may leave the album as one large folder, so people can just do a slideshow and see all the photos.  It seems easier than if I was to separate them into individual folders...I think.  But once I get everything uploaded I will put name labels on all of the photos.  I will also be making a folder for photos people have sent me of adopted rats - and would love more!  I think I am missing some off my old computer.  I will try to get them off the computer and uploaded soon. 
If anyone has a problem with me uploading their photos into a separate album, please let me know and I will remove yours!

Here is a link to the main album.
http://s545.photobucket.com/albums/hh391/paperheartrats/rats/?start=all

I also dug up a few of my rat photos from around 1998-2000.  Not the best quality, but they were scanned years ago.

Most of the babies from my current litters have gone home now!  Right now, there are still 3 girls and a boy available right now.  The boy could go home with Indigo, who is on my Available Rats page.  He was born in January and is a very cute russian blue variegated dumbo.

Here are a few photos taken this week.  Enjoy!!
And happy Mother's Day to everyone ;)







Monkey -



Bailey -




 

 

I spent several hours today working on a new page for my site.  I think it turned out pretty well!  It's the "About Me" page at the bottom of my main site - www.paperheartrats.com/

Apparently I have been having more problems with e-mails...I have sent e-mails that people haven't gotten, and people have sent some to me that I haven't received.  I will try to figure out some kind of solution - but for now, I just made in AIM screen name - paperheartrats.
I will leave it on most of the time, so if you don't get through to me via e-mails just send me a message on there.  I may not be at the computer to reply, or my husband may be on the computer, etc - but I will get back to you as soon as I get the message!

I realize it is not ideal, but until I can figure something else out it's the best I can think of!  I will do some research about new e-mail providers this week.

Now for ratty news -
New litters are being bred this week, so I am hoping to have babies available in May.  I do still have some babies left from the January litters - mostly siamese, a wheaten burmese, and an agouti.
I also have some adults that are looking for new homes.  Check out my adoptions page for more info!

I just wanted to make a quick post - I know a lot of people have been wondering where I am and why I haven't responded to any e-mails in the last couple of weeks.  I was in the hospital and got back early this week - tired but getting better fast.

Then two days after I got home my husband got into a car accident.  He's okay but my poor truck's not looking too hot at the moment :( Unfortunately he decided to drive it to work that day...

I have some family stuff going on tomorrow, but I'll try to sit down tomorrow evening and Sunday and really work on getting back to all the e-mails I've missed.  I might not get everything done - but I'm working on it!

I did post some new pictures of the babies.  I need to get some of Sienna's litter, hopefully I can do that tomorrow.  And I want to update Ophelia's babies too now that everyone's eyes are open.

Well, Ophelia and Sienna both had their babies (very) early this morning.  Ophelia had 11 babies, 3 with light eyes which could be either siamese or champagne.  Sienna had 10 babies, I think I see more light eyes than dark but she was a little upset when I tried to get a look at her babies so I'll give her some time before I bug her.

Echo and Saffron's babies are doing well, and I'll try to get pictures up tonight!