Hi, i am a vet tech in Central Florida.

I aquired a 1 month prego (toy?) rat terrier a month ago. She is now ready to pop. I was formerly very involved in large breed working dogs (ie: dobermans, shephards, etc). I love her, and I am falling in love with the breed in general.

Here is my delima.. I am wanting to learn all that I can about ratties. And will admit I know little about them. My biggest questions, aside from personality (which I quickly discovered all by my lonesome) are:

Size identity standards (ie: toys, standard, large etc)

Common colors (she is tan(fawn) and white, but at the clinic I have only seen tri-colored terriers)

Maternal behavior

etc

Also, what should I expect for litter sizes, puppy sizes, special info etc

Thanks

Hello, and Welcome to the group.  Sure hope you stay around and let us know when the puppies are here, and then stay even longer and share your info with us.  She sure is a cute little girl.  Like Mary Beth (Mitzy's Mom) just said, there is a lot of info that might help to answer some of your questions at the top under FAQ.  If you still have questions, just holler----someone here will certainly have an answer! 

Glad to have you as part of the group!

She is registered, and I know her father was a rat terrier also... but I do not know if they match in size.

Sophie was 7 pounds, at a healthy weight, when I got her. So she is probably a toy. She stands about 10-11 inches at the shoulder.

I did rescue her, by default. She was bred by a "breeder" and then given up for finacial reasons. At this stage, it was too late to safely reverse the process.

I am assuming that she runs a risk of needing a c-section if the father did not match her size?

I am, thankfully, prepared for the option of surgery if the need arises. And am taking her to work with me in these final days so that we can be there if something goes wrong.

I also have found homes for most of the puppies. The palpated estimate is 5. I have whelped many times over, but honestly am rather frightened of her size and her mortality rate in this situation.... she is also not very old and this will be her first litter.

Thank you for the advice, I will go have a look. I want to go into this as prepared as possible.

Hi and welcome.  I don't have anything to add, but it sounds like you are prepared and in a good situation to care for Sophie.  I hope everything works out OK for her and you.

Thanks everyone! I checked out the FAQ. It was very helpful.

I did not see any size standards in height, though..

And, she is about a year old so I am kind of worried about her. We're going to hope she whelps at the clinic, then if she is having trouble we can be there for her.

She's a little clingy, probably because I gave her a lot of positive attention when I got her.. and she's not used to that. But I love her. She's a great companion. I was sick last night and my bf said he couldn't have pried her away.. she slept next to me all day/night.

Hi and Welcome to the site! Your little girl sure looks like a sweetie and bless you for taking her.

It's good to see another vet tech on board! I was one for many years and still miss it! You will find plenty of good advice here and it sounds like you already have a plan. Sice you will be taking her to wrk with you during the end of her pregnancy if any problems arise during whelping you will heve plenty of help. She is a tiny little gal and that could be a factor.  But, ratties are very resiliant little dogs and as you already know, packed full of personality.

Keep us posted and I sure hope that things will go well. It's sounds like she is in good hands

Thanks everyone

I am about to post a crazy update

Crazy update with a happy smiley sounds like good news!! I hope, I hope

Here's link to types and standards:

http://www.nrta.com/newratstandards5.html

My vet told me that Ratties make great mommies and they are very attentive to their babies.  It looks like from your other post, she may be a mommy by now.  I hope that the delivery goes well.  It sounds like you are prepared for a c-section and I think that is the biggest worry when the mom is so little and you are not sure of the size of the daddy.

Ratties are very loyal and loving to their owners,so she may seem clingy, but it's just love.  My rattie sleeps attached to me unless I put her in her crate at night.  Sometimes we have to move her because she gets so close she pushes us off  the bed!  Good luck on your puppies.  Please share lots of pictures!

Carol