Rats!

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Rats!

Posted : 7/30/2008 4:30:58 PM

A good friend of mine is going to be out of town for two weeks and she asked if I would keep her two pet rats while she's gone. I told her I absolutely would ratsit for her as I think they are so darn cute and have really great personalities. Joey has stayed at her house before and he rarely does more than acknowledge their existence. No sweat, bring 'em on over! Well, she was leaving the following morning so they'd be at her step mom's house until Thursday when step mom was going out of town. Neat. Step mom and I get along just fine so I'm not worried about that but I kind of feel like I'm being left blowing in the wind with these two because she gave me zero instruction.

There's a plethora of info on the net but is there any advice from fellow rat parents out there? I'm guessing Denece left us instructions about feeding but what else should I know, in general? They are two adult girls, Tater and Lucky.

Thanks!

Cita

Posted : 7/30/2008 6:28:29 PM

I was very very very close to getting a couple of rats, so I have a fairly good idea of the rat care basics... a lot will really depend on what they're used to. Are they litter trained? Do they get daily "free time" loose in the house or a room? If so, it would be lovely to "rat proof" a room and let them scamper about.

I used to read this forum constantly - then, when I ended up with Rascal, I switched to this forum because I already knew lots about rats and very little about dogs. Stick out tongue Here's the link: http://www.goosemoose.com/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,118/forum,rat

Basically they're pretty easy to take care of. Depending on how they've been raised, they might need/want a lot of human attention, but as far as basic needs... nothing too complicated!

Edit: oh, and I forgot. Don't pick them up by their tails unless it's an emergency. The best way to pick them up, I've found, is to grab them gently around the middle (just behind their front legs) gently encircling their middle with your thumb and middle finger, then to gently lift them up and slide your other hand underneath them for support. (Just like dogs, they don't particularly fancy dangling in the air with legs all over the place - they prefer to feel something stable underneath them.) And if the rats are biters, which I hope they're not, grabbing them right behind the legs like that keeps you relatively safe from being bitten.

Don't forget that rats are nocturnal, so they might make annoying noises at night. So, if you're a light sleeper, you might not want them in your bedroom.

Here's a great website with a whole bunch of informative links, including vet referrals. Make sure to get vet contact info lined up juuuuuuuust in case - a lot of small animal vets won't see "exotic" animals such as rats, and even if they're willing, they might not be up to date on the particulars of rat care.

Sorry, that was a really long edit :)

jjsmom06

Posted : 7/30/2008 7:22:07 PM

I had a few pet rats in college and I loved them.. they are very bright and never underestimate them.. they can be sneaky! Stick out tongue

But what Cita posted is dead on. They are pretty easy to care for and do like to have time out of their cage, but be very careful because they can get away and into holes and such very fast. I once lost a rat for 5 days and then he just came back.. I got lucky. But most really love human attention and to be held. Give them a chance to learn your smell though and feeding them by hand helps get them us to you if they are a little uncertain.