# Pet rats



## Fennwick (Nov 15, 2008)

hello hello,
i've been thinking about getting a pet rat. i hear they make good pets, apart from the short lifespan. can anyone tell me what sort of caging or equipment i would need to keep one. whats the difference in the types of rats? and is anyone selling any?
cheers.


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## Vixen (Nov 15, 2008)

Some simple rules that might help. And yes they make great pets, if cared for properly they can easily reach 4 years of age. 

1. Avoid petstore rats. Find a rat breeder ( the kind for pets not food! ), it will be much healthier and better socialised, ie making a better pet fullstop.

2. Get two, either a pair of females or a pair of males. They need company of their own kind. Males will get along if raised from a young age.

3. Females are more active and playful, boys are much more laidback and enjoy cuddles. Females are more prone to tumors however. Tumors are very common in adult rodents, usually non cancerous so does not cause a problem until it gets too large. You can either opt for surgery to remove them, but often will grow another very quickly, or when you feel their quality of life is reduced simply have them put to sleep.

Avoid fishtanks for housing them ( bad air circulation ), also cages that have wire floors. Best bet is something like a reptile enclosure that has solid floors, and a few different levels, with a door at the front made of mesh. Lay down fabric or newspaper as substrate, with a large box somewhere with shredded paper they can play in.

You can toilet train them to use a certain area so if you do this its much easier on cleaning.

Anything else just google, google is your best friend for this kind of info, there is tonnes of websites about rat care! 

- http://www.dapper.com.au/ (awesome site)
- http://ratguide.com/care/
- http://www.petratscanada.com/ratcare.htm
- http://www.ratz.co.uk/


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## Hetty (Nov 15, 2008)

VixenBabe said:


> 1. Avoid petstore rats. Find a rat breeder ( the kind for pets not food! ), it will be much healthier and better socialised, ie making a better pet fullstop.



I agree with avoiding pet shop rats, but you're wrong about the second part. If you're active on rodent forums, you'll find most pet rat breeders think feeder rats are healthier, I've had several contact me wanting to buy feeder bred rats because, for the most part, they have stronger immune systems and thus don't get myco flare ups (most common cause of rodent illness, in Australia anyway).

The only rats I've had with myco flare ups have been rats from pet breeders, my feeder rats, although kept outside year round on wood shavings never have flare ups.

The more socialised thing is true, because they handle their rats from birth, but feeder rats are genetically friendly. By this I mean people who breed rats for food cull rats that bite, so over several generations you get rats that don't bite. Rats bred as pets are handled from a young age so you wouldn't know which ones are friendly and which aren't (in a genetic sense). Either way, both kinds of rats probably won't bite, as long as you get them from a good breeder.


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## Australis (Nov 15, 2008)

At the risk of vomiting, i must say i totally agree with Hetty.


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## Hetty (Nov 15, 2008)

Australis said:


> At the risk of vomiting, i must say i totally agree with Hetty.



You haven't vomited all the other times you've agreed with me have you? Otherwise I suggest you go to a doctor.


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## funcouple (Nov 15, 2008)

i have lots of pet rats. i never get attached to them. my snakes seem to like them


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## Philip77 (Nov 15, 2008)

Rat cages are really inexpensive from good pet stores a 3 storey white mesh cage 440mm Lx 440mm W x 500mm H will cost between $60 - $80 depending on where you buy it, they include a wheel, tunnels and varying levels, Water and feed dishes are only a couple of dollars. Rats are quite intelligent and can be trained to use a toilet which i cant remember what they cost and newspaper for bedding although there are commercial products available they are not neccessary. then there are accessories such as hammocks, even leads and harnesses.
Any good pet store should be able to give you the right advice though as with any pet it does pay to do your home work, Barrons pet books have a couple of good books one called Rats and another on training rats
It is wise to aviod chain style pet stores and try and find one where the owners are the ones serving you they are normally more friendly, helpful and keener to give you the right advice. They will also be be more likely to give you a discount as they want your business
Cheers,
Phil


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## cris (Nov 15, 2008)

IMO some reptile keepers would probably have the best rats around, simply because they generally dont have much trouble getting rid of the animals they should get rid of and produce far more rats. As a byproduct of my breeding for reptile food i would like to be producing good quality pet rats in the future, its just for now there are too many mouths to feed.

Rats are great pets, if they were bred more for health rather than just appearance then they would probably live much longer, but there short lifespan and need to crap often are 2 issues that make them less than perfect. You can toilet train them though and if you manage to find a genetically sound rat it should live for over 2 years, possibly a few more years if you are lucky. They breed like mice so it isnt hard to replace them when they die, its just you have to do it more often than you would have to with a dog. Having said that i would much rather have a pet rat than a dog that resembles a rat.

If you get a bad rat just dont get attached to it, it wouldnt be hard to find someone who wants it on a site like this...


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## Hetty (Nov 15, 2008)

At the risk of vomiting, I must say I totally agree with Cris.

I breed rats for pets and food, I cull probably 80% of the rodents I produce, so I can keep the ones that look like, say.. this-






And breed from them. In that litter, there were maybe three rats I'd keep for breeding in the next generation, culling ten or so rats, so I am able to breed some really nice rats, keeping the best 20% (or so) of what I produce.


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## RedEyeGirl (Nov 15, 2008)

aw how cute!


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## xenathepython (Nov 15, 2008)

advice..ummm get hetty's healthy rats!! I so want some!!!


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## cris (Nov 15, 2008)

Hetty said:


> At the risk of vomiting, I must say I totally agree with Cris.



After vomiting i accept your agreement


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## redbellybite (Nov 18, 2008)

pet rats do fine in bird cages, you get ripped off when its stated "a rodent cage" same thing just add some toys and climbing rope a hide and the bird seed containers can be used as a rat food holder but invest in a bottle dripper for the water .......have had pet rats for over 18 years now ,,we even took one around aussie with us for 3 years as it was my sons pet and he wasnt going unless his rattie could come ...she did die at the end of the trip but she was a well travelled rat and had a very exciting life ....


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## Tatelina (Nov 18, 2008)

Australis said:


> At the risk of vomiting, i must say i totally agree with Hetty.



Bahahahahahahahahah!!

But I agree with that comment as well... biters are always culled when breeding for food.


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## xenathepython (Nov 25, 2008)

hetty are you anywhere near CR


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## mungus (Nov 25, 2008)

Think I'm going to be sick.............................


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## GrumpyTheSnake (Nov 26, 2008)

You'd be amazed at what you can train a rat to do. I used to have a pet rat that lived for four years, he came to his name, was toilet trained, and lived in an opened door cage. Basically he was a very small dog.. only better behaved.  He was a solitary rat, he only had human contact, and he was very well mannered. They can make awesome pets.

I have to agree with the others.. feeder bred rats do seem to be healthier and better behaved. I breed for food also, but I have released some as pets. So far, no complaints. I cull any biters or cannibalistic rodents immediately, and from what I've heard, so do most feeder breeders.

You should be able to pick up a pretty large flight cage for around $50-60 from most pet shops, just add your own playthings, and you have a rodent cage.


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## xenathepython (Nov 26, 2008)

I will ask again, hetty are you close to coastal rodents at all?


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## Hetty (Nov 26, 2008)

xenathepython said:


> I will ask again, hetty are you close to coastal rodents at all?



No, not really.


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## palmej (Nov 26, 2008)

I used to have two pets rats, there really good pets they will just sit on your shoulder and chill with you. I had a girl and a boy the girl got a tumour in her face and her face dropped off =| and the boy got a tumor a few months later and he died aswell ( not to turn you off).. apart from their short lifespans there really good pets. I housed mine in a wired cage and it had a plastic floor not wired


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## Noongato (Nov 26, 2008)

Simply handle the rat/s before buying. It might clig on a bit in risk of falling, but overall should be kinda inquisitive and run up your arms and stuff. 
If a rat bites in fear, dont get that one.
If a rat goes nuts while your holding it from fear, dont take that one either. It is incredibly difficult to socialise a rat once it is afraid of humans.
I only have 3 at the moment. 1 is extremely aggressive and thats due to being brain damaged, and another is very scared and will kick and squirm when you pick her up, and my other one is a happy-go-lucky sook.
Ive had up to 15 or so female rats living together in a large ferret cage, mind you the rats had to be fully grown before moving into the ferret cage, as the bars are too far apart and they can escape.

Rats are awesome, they will eat anything you eat, and unfortunately will crawl into your coffee cup and your fridge and will help themselves...


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## benashki (Dec 2, 2008)

Hey there
Im a rat breeder for fancy rats aka pets.
Im also in the sutherland shire.
I can hook you up with some pets ...
Cheers
Lyn


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## benashki (Dec 2, 2008)

oh and u can pick up a fligh cage for under $20 that would be ok for boys.. girls tend to need more space.


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## gman78 (Dec 3, 2008)

Are you going to breed them for food or just want same sex?


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## benashki (Dec 3, 2008)

I dont breed feeders but i do know people that do if you are after them for food.

Drop me a pm I can fill you in


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## benashki (Dec 8, 2008)

any more thought?


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