Post by Thelodar on May 6, 2021 12:31:38 GMT -8
Not sure how many breeders we have on here anymore, but I feel like I need to reach out to SOMEone for their thoughts.
I introduced Edgar and Peggy on April 2nd while Peggy was in heat. They mated, but four days later on the 6th Peggy went into heat again, so clearly the first time didn't take. I did not see her go into heat again over the course of the following week so I assumed she became pregnant on the 6th. I also began tracking her weight. Unfortunately my initial attempts at weighing her were not perfect, I had not perfected my "get gerbil to hold still on the scale technique" yet. My first two weights for her were 82ish grams on March 26th (before putting with Edgar) and then 89ish grams on April 2nd (the day she was put with Edgar). I highly doubt she gained 7 grams for no reason, so I'm assuming one of those is wrong. In any event, she started somewhere in the mid to late 80's, 89 grams at the most.
Fast forward and we were expecting babies somewhere between April 30th and May 4th (days 24-28 of pregnancy). She has steadily gained weight throughout the pregnancy but never looked particularly pregnant. Just a bit of bulging at her sides, but I have fatter looking males lol. On April 26th I thought I saw some signs that she might be getting close. The male tried mounting her a few times (which she rejected)and she was super energetic and in a nesting mood. But nothing came of it. On Saturday (day 25 of pregnancy) Peggy went into heat and they mated. I checked to see if pups were here but found nothing. I weighed Peggy just to be sure and she was up to 102 grams. I've been told sometimes they will mate up to a few days before the birth so figured we were very close. But nothing came. Tuesday came and went. I weighed again on Tuesday and we're at 104.1 grams. Weighed again today and we're at 105 even.
So I'm super confused. On the one hand I thought maybe she didn't get pregnant on the date I thought she did, I missed a heat that happened later (which would surprise me because they're in my bedroom and carry on mating for hours, I have a hard time believing I missed it when I went to bed, but it's possible). But the mating this past Saturday would only happen very close to the due date, so if she was pregnant but it was just a bit later than I thought, they wouldn't have been mating Saturday. The other likely option is that she did give birth and the babies died. The only thing that contradicts this is the continual weight gain. I mean, I know not all baby weight is actual babies, but if she gave birth, even if she ate them, wouldn't her weight have dropped some? Or no? I guess it's still the most likely scenario at this point which is a big bummer. My last attempt at breeding (different parents) resulted in no living babies from the first litter. I was hoping I wouldn't have that sort of luck twice. Any other takes on what might be going on?
I introduced Edgar and Peggy on April 2nd while Peggy was in heat. They mated, but four days later on the 6th Peggy went into heat again, so clearly the first time didn't take. I did not see her go into heat again over the course of the following week so I assumed she became pregnant on the 6th. I also began tracking her weight. Unfortunately my initial attempts at weighing her were not perfect, I had not perfected my "get gerbil to hold still on the scale technique" yet. My first two weights for her were 82ish grams on March 26th (before putting with Edgar) and then 89ish grams on April 2nd (the day she was put with Edgar). I highly doubt she gained 7 grams for no reason, so I'm assuming one of those is wrong. In any event, she started somewhere in the mid to late 80's, 89 grams at the most.
Fast forward and we were expecting babies somewhere between April 30th and May 4th (days 24-28 of pregnancy). She has steadily gained weight throughout the pregnancy but never looked particularly pregnant. Just a bit of bulging at her sides, but I have fatter looking males lol. On April 26th I thought I saw some signs that she might be getting close. The male tried mounting her a few times (which she rejected)and she was super energetic and in a nesting mood. But nothing came of it. On Saturday (day 25 of pregnancy) Peggy went into heat and they mated. I checked to see if pups were here but found nothing. I weighed Peggy just to be sure and she was up to 102 grams. I've been told sometimes they will mate up to a few days before the birth so figured we were very close. But nothing came. Tuesday came and went. I weighed again on Tuesday and we're at 104.1 grams. Weighed again today and we're at 105 even.
So I'm super confused. On the one hand I thought maybe she didn't get pregnant on the date I thought she did, I missed a heat that happened later (which would surprise me because they're in my bedroom and carry on mating for hours, I have a hard time believing I missed it when I went to bed, but it's possible). But the mating this past Saturday would only happen very close to the due date, so if she was pregnant but it was just a bit later than I thought, they wouldn't have been mating Saturday. The other likely option is that she did give birth and the babies died. The only thing that contradicts this is the continual weight gain. I mean, I know not all baby weight is actual babies, but if she gave birth, even if she ate them, wouldn't her weight have dropped some? Or no? I guess it's still the most likely scenario at this point which is a big bummer. My last attempt at breeding (different parents) resulted in no living babies from the first litter. I was hoping I wouldn't have that sort of luck twice. Any other takes on what might be going on?
