Rats

[IluvMyBeagle]

Hey I need HELP!!!!! My friend has 2 rats that are sooo cute and I am trying to convince my parents into getting me one..... I wanna write everything about them so help me with any tips what rats eat and how they act because I can not find any info!!! If you could give me any tips or info that would be great I would really apprieciate it!!!!! Thankz

[guster girl]

There are tons of sites online and lots of books to read about the care of rats. You could even do a search in here and find all sorts of useful information. I know rats are very social, so, having more than one is a good idea (I only have one now, but, only because her girlie pal passed away). It's a good idea to keep males and females separate, unless at least one of them is fixed. They make rat food that you can buy, but, you should supplement them with fresh fruits and veggies and even stuff like pasta and scrambled eggs. I actually feed my rat parrot food as her main food. They can eat all sorts of fun stuff! They like to climb, so, it's good to have a cage with levels, the more the better. Don't get a ball for them to run around outside the cage, but, do get an appropriate wheel for them to exercise in the cage. Cubby holes and hiding places are good too, like hammocks and igloos and things like that. They need stuff to chew on, and, lots of interaction with you and other rats. I know this is a very general answer, but, you will get tons of advice! Or at least links to tons of advice!

[Uabassoon]

I'm pretty new to being a rattie owner, so I know that there are a lot more people here who could offer better advice. But I will suggest checking out rats rule I have found a lot of useful informtation on that site.

[Desert Arabian]

UABassoon posted the best forum you could ever rely on for rat information. I am Crazy4Rats over there.

I have owned rats since 2001.I currently own 5 rats, two passed away on May 11th. The most I had at one time was 23 when Violette had her (13) babies. I once had 10 rats, without babies. They are extremely expensive to care for the more you own. Their vet bills are henous- $550 for tumor removal, $80 for x-rays, $37 for general vet visit, etc.

You need to make sure you get a same sex pair and get a two story cage or larger if possible. It is best to keep them in a wire cage vs. an aquarium. The ammonia from their urine is due to build up faster in an aquarium, making it an unsafe habitat for the rats. They are extremely social, you have to spend over an hour playing with them. They need lots of toys in the cage such as hammocks, hide boxes,tubes, various bird and cat toys, etc. Rats are omivores and eat all sorts of food. My rats love to eat waxworms, deer, duck, beef, liver, bologna, turkey, chicken, ham, small amounts of tuna, watermelon, strawberries, bananas, oatmeal, and more. They get Nylabones and Jumbones regularly to make sure their teeth stay in shape, and it gives them something other than their hammock to destroy. Here is a picture of my rats' cage. It looks a little different now than in the picture. There are guards on the edges of the shelves and there is aspen shavings for bedding instead of towels.


I have 4 females and 1 neutered male. The girls are Violette, Phoebe, Suzie and Chloe, the male is Oscar. Chloe's sister and Oscar's brother are the two who passed away. Violette and Phoebe are mother and daughter. Chloe is an Agouti Hooded, Suzie is a Black Hooded, Violette is an American Blue Berkshire, Phoebe is a Silvered Black Berkshire, and Oscar is a Black Capped Dumbo. My rats who are up at the rainbow bridge are Peanut (Lilac verigated rex), Nugget (Agouti Berkshire), Sweet Pea (Agouti Berkshire), Oreo (Black Hooded), Punkin (Black Hooded), Skittles (Russian Blue Berkshire rex), Fred (Black Capped dumbo), and Daisy (Agouti Hooded).

Luckies4Me is a breeder and I won't bother giving you anymore advice because a) it will be repetative and b) she gives better advice. She will post here soon, give her a while to find the thread.


-YLL

[luckies4me]

Originally posted by YellowLabLover

Luckies4Me is a breeder and I won't bother giving you anymore advice because a) it will be repetative and b) she gives better advice. She will post here soon, give her a while to find the thread.


-YLL

hehe I found it LOL! You give EXCELLENT advice YLL, don't worry, and you are faster than me. Dylan is getting to be a handful so I don't have as much internet time as I used to.

I usually do not recommend feeding store bought mixes due to the amount of seed in the diet and the use of corn/Ethoxyquin. They just lack the right amount of goodness for a rat. Didn't know what else to call it LOL, besides goodness? hehe OK, I must be tired. Anyways, if you want to learn more about feeding I have a feeding article up on my website here:

http://www15.brinkster.com/luckies4me/feeding.html

If you are set on buying a mix from the store I would only recommend 8and1 food. It is naturally preserved and the protein and fat levels are just right for rats and it contains hardly any seed, though it does have corn. The corn does appear to be good quality though. I also feed my rats lab blocks. Mazuri, Halan Teklad and Oxbow make great pelleted diets.

As far as caging goes something like YLL has would be excellent if you would build something like that! You can also try Enchanted Forests cages, which have excellent custom cages for a good price. Here is their website:
www.enchanted-forest.biz

I am ordering some cages through them as soon as I can come up with a design. You can also try SuperPet cages which I use, as well as www.Martinscages.com and www.Qualitycage.com

As far as bedding, I use Aspen and Hemp as well as Carefresh Ultra. They all have igloos, ferret tubes, hammocks, parrot toys, cardboard boxes etc. for stimulation. Rats are very social and need time spent with them throughout the day. So if you are never home then I would suggest looking for another pet. If you have a lot of free time then it's all great.

I will concur with YLL on veterinary costs. Rats are mighty expensive animals to keep. Most are prone to Myco outbreaks, tumors etc. which can get to be pretty costly. I usually recommend if you are thinking about getting girls, that they be spayed before the age of three months in order to avoid getting mammary tumor once older.