Good day house.
Please I intend to start exposure and treatment in Rats and Mice on the first day of pregnancy. So how do I determine the first day of pregnancy which is always designated as Gestational Day 0?
If possible a material containing step by step protocol for this will be appreciated.
Thanks.
after overnight coupling, if rats have mated, you can find vaginal plug in the morning.it is considered as a first day of pregnancy.
To second the above answer for mice, the vaginal plug will occlude the vaginal opening and it will be white in color. In general, it may be best to house one male with female(s) together only for short periods when someone is available to examine the females each day for plugs. Look for a plug in each female each day after mating (housing with male). You may want to house the pregnant females separately until they deliver if you need to associate the pups with their parents (the reason for only including one male in cage with females). This setup may be good practice for record keeping.
I agree with the previous answers, you need to check the vaginal plugs. As they tend to mate at night, make sure to check the presence of plugs in the early morning not to miss them.
- Badges
- Science topic