mating

[hollysmithy]

hi ive been keeping chippies for bout 3yrs now just want to ask a question about breeding,
when my females have ther babies i now they can mate again when the babies are 12wks old does it mean that they will everytime they have babies ,
dont want to sound stupid as ive kept them for a few yrs but i had to separate my females when they wer pregnant 11wks ago,but would it be ok to put them back in with the others now caus ei dont want them to mate again this yr so any answers would be great,

[tarcus]

They will mate twice a year to produce young ones.
Most however prefer one litter a year as it is draining on their system.
Although they are capable of breeding after twelve weeks the time of year and length of day seems to determine whether or not they will mate combined with the amount of space they have and availability of food.
In short I would say put them back with the rest of the crew they will be fine.
Until end of january at least