Rats... Cost/type/Cage etc [Archive]

hels1977

28-07-2007, 16:38

Let's see - Rats are social so a group of 2 or more is much better than one - they need their own species company as well as lots of human company. Girls are generally more active and run around a lot. Boys are calmer and more squishy and prefer cuddles. It's a personal choice. Intros when done correctly on neutral territory - ie bath etc usually go just fine, so they don't have to be siblings but if you're getting rats for the first time then they probably will be anyhow. Don't be tempted to put girl and boy rats together, they'll be down to business in seconds and you'll have many baby rats on your hands:hihi:

Costs wise - relatively cheap for bedding and food, although high initial cage & kit cost sometimes. Health wise - can be rather expensive. Girl rats are prone to tumours which are costly to have removed and rats generally can be prone to respiratory problems to name a few.

Cage wise - the bigger the better. Rats are climbers, so tanks are no good as they have no ventilation, pong and the rats can't climb. There's a cage calculator here (http://www.fancy-rats.co.uk/information/habitat/cagecalculator/) which is a good start. Lots of ferret cages are pretty good but make sure the bar spacing isn't too wide as rats can (and do) collapse their rib cage to squeeze out of wider bar spacing. Beware that sometimes rats chew plastic, not many, but some, so bear that in mind on your choice of cage or get the rats from the aforementioned rescues so you know if they are chewers or not before hand!

For bedding it's best to use some paper based substrate such as Bob Martins cat litter or Bio Catlet - most supermarkets sell 1 or the other. Make sure it's the green paper based one though - some wooden ones and woodchips can cause respiratory problems in rats and are best avoided. It's also very cheap to keep them on paper - if you shred all your bills/stuff with your address on then that's a good choice of bedding too and it's completely free! :D

Rats are intelligent for the most part so need lots of stimulation and handling. An interesting cage with toys, hammocks etc is lovely for them and some time out of the cage every day to see you, stretch their legs and steal whatever they can given half the chance.:suspect:

I end up cleaning mine once a week and wiping down their shelf and bits daily - they seem to think it's their toilet:help:

Diet, many people feed a diet that has a base of PAH nuggets, dog kibble with healthy cereals (not the ones with sugar) and fresh food as well. Curly kale is a rat favourite along with any veg cooked or crunchy, they're not fussed. They are omnivores as well so a little bit of meat now and again is also good. Chicken bones will be ground to powder for the most part! :D

Umm, that's pretty much it! Group animals, big interesting cage, paper litter, generally cheap to "keep" but vet bills can and do mount up if you have a sickly one. Diet is quite simple, bit of their food and some of yours too. Lots of free range time and you'll have happy ratties! :)

Good luck, I hope you find the right pets for you at one of the rescues, they all need loving homes:love:

madowl

28-07-2007, 18:22

Im a animal lover... but these rats will not be for me...:suspect:
Ive a daughter who has a friend who has rats and she has been after one for about 2 years, ive already got 4 dogs, a Budgie, 2 Parakeets, 1 cockatiel and 8 fish.. plus 2 daft guinea pigs.... so there's no worries they will be neglected in any way... ive just never had a rat b4 and want to find out as much as poss!! b4 we have yet another pet... and b4 anyone says anything about kids and pets.... my daughter is more pet minded than me, and is going to Collage as she wants to become a veterinary nurse..... save me a few bob in the long run..;)

thanks for all your replys and pms folks..:D
keep'em coming....:D