Pet Rats

[Kanon]

Hi Guys!
I was looking on Pinterest and found this cute little guy.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/kaelintully/marty-the-rat-will-change-how-you-feel-about-pet-rats#.ispxN29Gj

He is so damn cute and I seriously think of getting two (one would be lonely :P).
Does one of you have some kind of list of what you have to buy? and some advices what is important?

I want to think it well through.

[Katie]

I had a pet rat named Madonna for awhile (she was blonde :p)

They can live in a guinea pig type set up, but make sure you get a tight fitting top. They are good escapers. I'd get a metal or ceramic food dish so they can't chew it up and a water bottle so they can't get their shavings in their water.

As far as toys, chewing stuff is a must cause their teeth have to be worn down. They make all kinds of rodent chew stuff. For food, places here sell rat diets, but if you can't find it, hamster or gerbil food works. You can give veggies and fruit occasionally, but not too often. It will give them tummy trouble.

Mine also liked dog biscuits.

They are good pets, but you need to clean after them pretty frequently or they'll smell.

[Mew]

http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/2014-09/3/13/enhanced/webdr11/enhanced-19812-1409766700-1.jpg
Awwww!

[Kanon]

Thanks Katie :D

Our petshop sells special rat food and even high class versions and bio snacks for them :D
You said you had one, wasn´t it lonely? Most people I know say you should have two, so they can entertain each other.
I think one would be easier for me to handle.

Another question is how big should the cage be? I wanted to build one with lots of ladders and levels, so they can run around a lot.

[Mayhem]

A couple of folks I know in the US have kept rats, nice critters really, with a sadly very negative press. One guy would let his out to run around a bit, and climb all over him, but knew to go back to the "nest" to do... business. Now that's an obvious sign of intelligence and training heh.

[Katie]

Thanks Katie :D

Our petshop sells special rat food and even high class versions and bio snacks for them :D
You said you had one, wasn´t it lonely? Most people I know say you should have two, so they can entertain each other.
I think one would be easier for me to handle.

Another question is how big should the cage be? I wanted to build one with lots of ladders and levels, so they can run around a lot.

She never seemed bothered by being alone. I handled her a lot so she was pretty tame and sat on my shoulder as I went about my day at work.

The cage I had was about as long as I am tall, so a pretty decent size. It was about as wide as one of my arms. It was an aquarium used for reptiles with an attached sliding screen top that could be locked down.

I never did levels, but she had ferret tunnels to play in and a hammock to sleep in. I have seen people keep them in multilevel ferret or cat pens, but wire cages seemed like they would be messy to me given how much burrowing and moving around of shavings happened with her.

[senpai]

I thought about getting rats too but I don't see myself ever getting a caged animal again. I just feel like I'm not doing anything for them. Rats are so cute and there are forums out there that will prefer you get a much larger cage to house them in so they won't get depressed. They are smart creatures and get bored very easily. If I was to get one, I'd make sure it was big like this. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EMw2Fj0p8tU/SdYVNjwDUcI/AAAAAAAAA-A/dRdJELryphI/s400/CIMG3938.JPG

Just make sure to do as much research as possible before investing into an animal.

EDIT: And unless you have a lot of free time, I think getting two would be best. Rats are social animals and depriving them from interaction from their species could have a negative impact on your pet. Also, whereas tanks may work, I think getting something that's better ventilated is optimal.

[Kanon]

Thanks for the picture and your thoughts senpai :)

I plan for two rats and will get everything they need long before.
Those cages are often on flea markets, but I want to build one out of a cupboard or I will use an old terrarium.

I used to have mice as a kid and know that you have to consider everything well through.
I think about keeping rats 2 years long and now I finally want to do it, but not hasty :lol:

[senpai]

My pleasure! :)

You want to make a cage out of a cupboard? I think that sounds really neat! Keep us posted! And I wanna see pics once you got your new friend! :tlove:

[Metalwolf]

Some things to know- Never pick them up by the end of the tail, always do it by the base. Doing it by the end can cause the skin to 'deglove' and come off, so you don't want that. Also, find a vet that does 'exotic' animals like rats. Not just for things like regular rat checkups, but also just in case your rat(s) get into something or gets sick, you'll want to know who to go to in an emergency so you aren't rushing to find somebody at the last minute.

My sister had pet rats, and they can be the most awesome and people orientated creatures, far more then mice or hamsters. The only bad thing about them is that they don't live that long, although I think do it's theoretically possible for them to be bred to have longer lifespans, like they have done with mice in the laboratory.

[Kanon]

Today is a bad day.
My Mom and I went to the petshop and wanted to watch the rats. A worker came to us and we got the chance to touch them. My Mom was like: "Ieeek their tails look soo ugly" and was happy when she realised that rats are kind of big mice. Then suddenly one of them bite her veeery deep and we had to go to a doctor. He had to sew it with 2 stitches :teek:
My Mom is now totally against rats and don´t want to see one in the near future. :cry:

BUT in her anger she said that mice would be okay. Maybe I will go with them and train for keeping rats. ;)