Mentoring

If you are considering starting to breed rats you will need to consider the option of being mentored by an experienced breeder. Dictionary.com defines a mentor as "a wise and trusted guide and advisor." Mentors can be a great help to a new breeder, but some people prefer to surround themselves by a number of experienced breeders to gian different perspectives before deciding on their own position. Whether you feel you would prefer the solid relationship of a one to one mentor or the more independant approach of having a number of loose 'mentors', it is important not to feel that you can go it alone. Even experienced breeders need advice and support on many occasions.

The biggest advantage of being mentored is having access to all the accumulated experience of the mentor(s) (and their own 'resources' including other breeders), and also to some degree, riding on their reputation. For the mentor, the main advantage is the certainty that the new breeder is grounded in excellent practice.

Having mentored a few people through their first litters, I would say that the key to a successful mentoring relationship is trust and a shared philosophy. This is equally important for the mentor as the one being mentored, as you will be linked to those you have helped and supported whether they stand or fall.

Choosing a mentor

Your choice of mentor will probably be determined by two things:

  1. Your breeding philosophy
  2. Your chosen variety

Your breeding philosophy is something that will be very close to your heart. It includes why you want to breed, what your priorities are and which breeding practices you consider to be 'excellent' (I am assuming that no-one sets out with the aim of being mediocre). Once you have formed your own philosophy look for a mentor who's own breeding priorities and practices are very close to your own. This will avoid conflict and issues of conscience in the relationship.

Once you choose a variety to breed you may want to be mentored by someone who is already breeding (or who has previously bred) the variety, as they will probably understand more fully the issues specific to the variety of your choice.

Laying the ground rules

Before entering into any formal mentoring relationship, be sure that you discuss with the mentor exactly what they (and you) think mentoring means. Breeders have all sorts of different 'requirements' and it is important to clarify these before any mating is undertaken. This will help to avoid conflict of opinion later on.

What might mentoring mean in practice?

Mentoring might include receiving/entering:
  • help with choice of breeding pair, with all deliberations properly shared and reasons understood;
  • help to judge which rats are of 'breeding quality'. (Do not expect that every rat bought with a hope of breeding will actually end up being of "breeding quality");
  • simple genetics explanations to get to grips with the basics of what varieties you will get from a particular mating, and how best to breed your chosen variety.;
  • a general agreement to ask the mentor for advice *in the first instance* on all matters relating to the breeding;
  • a commitment to follow such advice... especially relating to choosing rats for breeding, pregnancy care, feeding, birthing and homing issues;
  • agreement to follow excellent (agreed) practice regarding homing of kittens... (e.g. the use of application forms, contracts, family tree);
  • a commitment to only sell to homes approved by mentor (especially where rats are requested for breeding). A mentor may feel it necessary to impose this sort of condition where the beginner is breeding from the mentor's own lines;
  • 24 hour access to the mentor for emergencies, especially around the time of the birth;
  • Help with 'advertising' and homing the babies (perhaps through a website).

This list is not exhaustive, but it gives a flavour of the kind of agreement that might be made. All breeders are different and have their own personal emphasis. This is why it is important to clearly establish expectations (on both sides) prior to entering a mentoring relationship.

Personal experience

The first time I mentored someone it was a loose and informal arrangement (as I had bred the father of the litter), and the outcome was good all round. Having experienced this I began to see the potential pitfalls and decided that, should I do it again I would try to have a more formal arrangement. This wasn't because there was anything negative about the first experience; simply that it had opened my eyes to the potential for things to go wrong. Any situation where our passion for our animals is concerned has the potential for conflict; I simply felt it would be better to try to prevent problems rather than pick up the pieces afterwards.

Since then I have mentored four breeders through their first litters, and am currently in mentoring relationships with three others. These relationships became more formal (though still based on trust), for a while and centred around the practices outlined above. Then having had one breakdown in the metoring relationship, I came full circle and decided to only loosely mentor people in future, offering support and advice but encouraging people to seek other opinions and find their own path.