African soft-furred rat
ASF Breeding Guide
African soft-furred rats, raised right.
How to keep and breed African soft-furred rats (ASF) as feeders: biology, housing, breeding, health, people safety and humane culling, checked against lab-animal research, veterinary guidelines and experienced breeders. Every chapter ends with its sources, and anything that is our own choice rather than a sourced rule is marked our plan: how we are setting up our own colony.
Disclaimer: I'm not a veterinarian and I don't hold a degree in animal science or animal care. This is a guide I compiled for raising feeder rodents for my own snakes. Follow your local laws, and ask a vet about sick animals.
- 01Start here
What ASF are, why snake keepers breed them, the legal basics, people safety in one paragraph, and how to read this guide.
- 02Getting started
What breeders to start with and what to avoid, why groups raised together matter, two bloodlines, quarantine, and the equipment list.
- 03Housing
The room, how much floor space a pair or a group needs, cages versus tubs, escape-proof lids, bedding, nests and cage changes.
- 04Food and water
Lab block and protein levels, extras for nursing mothers, and water every day without floods.
- 05The breeding cycle
When to pair, gestation, litter size, rebreeding right after birth, how pups develop, weaning, and what a female realistically produces.
- 06Running a colony
The daily and weekly routine, cage cards and records, when to retire breeders, choosing replacements, avoiding inbreeding, sexing and handling.
- 07Health and safety
Quarantine and biosecurity, the problems seen in Mastomys colonies, mites, signs of illness, and keeping people safe from Salmonella and LCMV.
- 08Humane euthanasia and freezing
CO2 the way the AVMA guidelines describe it, why newborn pups need more, confirming death, why nothing is ever frozen alive, and packaging frozen feeders.
- 09Feeding ASF to snakes
Feeder sizes by age, what is and isn't known about ASF as food, snakes that won't eat anything else, and how keepers switch them back.
- 10Glossary
Plain meanings for the words used in this guide, A to Z, each linked to the chapter that explains it.
- 11Sources and credits
The main references behind this guide, how far we trust each kind, and where the evidence runs out.
Last revised November 6, 2026.