I am extremely pleased and proud to be involved with the Tabi Initiative, a group of breeders working closely with the specific aim of improving average lifespan - the theory being that together we can achieve far more than on our own. The first Lovecraft litter, the Contralions, is a pure Brandywine litter and will hopefully become a future outcross for the main Tabi lines.

The Tabi Initiative

A group of breeders has been forming from around the UK over the past year or so, who breed with similar ethics and aims and have decided to work together to try to extend average lifespan within their rats as a primary goal. These breeders include:

Lloyd Allington: Eximius Rats
Alison Campbell: Shunamite Stud
Stacey Cochrane: Honeyduke Rats
Jemma Fettes: Isamu Rattery
Mary Giles: Zephyr Stud
Lilly Hoyland: Lilliput Rattery
Lisa Maurin: Lovecraft Rats
Kyra Murray & Tom Bunce: Atlas Rattery
Annette Rand: Brandywine Stud
Alison Triggs: Valiance Rattery

All of the breeders mentioned are at varying stages of breeding and developing their own lines, and may as yet be unable to work actively on the specific goals below; however, they still support the principles and are working towards these goals for the future. The group shares a private forum space which is used for information sharing, general discussions about longevity, litter information and such like. Our initial approach is to try to improve the average (median) lifespan of our rats, whilst maintaining temperament, health and type, initially by trying to delay the onset of life-threatening illnesses.

We aim to do this using a combination of tools and techniques including:

• Line-breeding with increasing selective inbreeding.
• Backwards selection with an emphasis on ancestral health into old age.
• Selecting slower growing rats who mature later in life.
• Delaying litters until our does are at least 9 to 13 months so that more information is available for their ancestors.
• Keeping detailed records on all of the rats we breed.
• Choosing fit, healthy, typey rats as our breeding rats, though colour and variety may (at times) be sacrificed.
• Good nutrition and care for our rats and kittens.
• A stimulating environment and active life.

We are also looking into specific screening tests, such as albumin tests on adult males as an indicator of predisposition to kidney problems later in life.

Within the wider group a few of us have chosen to work very closely together - breeding highly related rats from the Shunamite agouti/black/dumbo line which has been affectionately labelled 'tabi' for some time. The tabi rats have a recognisable 'throw yourself at life' kind of temperament and are exceptionally people oriented. They are generally sound in health and lifespan in terms of current expectations in the UK. We feel they are a good diving board for this project and also wish to maintain the unique temperament that we have grown to love. We aim to achieve show standards but our kittens are not guaranteed to be of show quality.

The initiative brings together 5 ratteries who are committed to working to improve the longevity (median lifespan) of this group of rats, the theory being that together we can achieve far more than on our own. The ratteries are Shunamite, Eximius, Honeyduke, Isamu and Lovecraft. We will be working by initially (over 2011) breeding 6-8 litters from a closely related combination of rats (all siblings or cousins). Each combination will be a unique pairing and in the main, each rat will only be used once. Does will normally be bred between about 9 and 13 months, with a preference for late matings if possible. This will mean that by the time we are looking to do the 2nd generation litters, the parents of the rats we will be considering will be around 2 years old and we will be able to note how they are aging, and what health issues they have had (eg age at which a doe developed a mammary lump). At this stage we will only choose to breed on from the rats whose parents are aging best and have been healthiest. We will then between us keep a wide spread of siblings of both genders from each litter and repeat the process.

The TI is a partnership; anyone wanting to join the waiting list for kittens will be part of a wider TI waiting list and as such all applications will be considered by all five ratteries. Interest in our babies continues throughout their lives so in choosing to provide a home for our kittens, you are inviting us to be part of your lives for the next 2+ years. We aim to build a good relationship with each of our prospective parents; many become friends. We have designed a Tabi Initiative record booklet that will go out with each of the rats we home. This gives owners a place to record detailed information about their rats as they grow, meaning the information is readily to hand when we are looking for updates.