Some people really don't give a rats ass (ha!) about rats. They think that rats should not be kept as pets. If this is you... This post really isn't for you.
For those of you who are still reading, chances are you love your rats or are thinking about getting one or two for yourself. That's great! Mostly they make really cool pets. There are just a few things that I have learned over my 10 years of having rats that people don't generally talk about. I'm going to bust that shit wide open.
1) Don't buy your rats too young! If the breeder or pet store clerk tells you that the rats are too young to *sex* DON'T BUY THEM. It is super easy to tell a rats gender VERY early on. If the babies are too young to sex, they are too young to be away from Mama. Don't let anyone tell you different. Why is this important? Let me tell you a story. One day, my partner and I decided that we wanted rats. There were no rats available at our local shelter so we went ahead and bought them from a pet store. They were really young. They had only had their fur for maybe half a week. The clerk told us they were all females. WELL... the clerk lied. Fact is, none of the male pups testes had dropped yet.
We kept our little fur balls in the same cage, thinking that they were the same gender. We had read about "pseudo testes" that sometimes developed in a more dominant female rat. 2 Months after we brought our cute little bundles of joy home, we found 12 little pink things in the cage. Unable to find homes for them all, the bundles of joy went to the pet store. Because the parent rats were related, the pups were used as snake food. After the pups were removed from Mama, she went nuts and killed the Papa. Moral of the story? Just wait.
*To Sex a rat, is simply telling what it's gender is.*
2) You MUST Keep the Cage Clean! Yeah I know this seems like a no brainer. But it really is very important. Dried rat urine becomes dust. That dust can cause Hantavirus. It really is unpleasant. Aside from that nasty little piece of info, a dirty cage means a sick rat. They can get all kinds of respiratory illnesses very quickly and easily. A dirty cage will stress your rat out and that too can cause illness and infection. My rule of thumb for my rats is cleaning the cage once a week per rat in the habitat. So if I have 1 rat in the cage, I change and clean it once a week. If I have 2 I clean and change it twice a week, etc. Why did I specify cleaning and changing? Well cleaning the cage means that I remove everything and wipe it down. The bottom, the toys and each rung of the cage too. I do this with vinegar and hot water. Vinegar is a natural disinfectant and residue won't harm my rats. I also boil all the water bottles and food containers. It takes 5-10 mins and makes it so they won't get any diseases from contamination. Changing the cage is simply changing the bedding and food. I do this as often as it looks like it needs it.
To learn about Hantavirus
3) Wash Yourself After Handling Your Fuzzbutts. For those of you just starting out on your ratty adventure, you read this over and over again. You read it for a reason. Our furry little shoulder pets walk in their poo and pee with no care about what they are walking on. Their little claws pick up teeny tiny particles and then transfer it to our skin. Not really of big consequence until you factor in that their tiny little claws leave tiny little cuts when they walk on us. Get the picture? Now. Let's factor in that rats will pee and poop wherever they want. Your shoulder, neck, chest, back, arms... yeah pretty much, if they are on you... you are their litter box. This isn't their fault. They literally can't help it. If you don't wash yourself after holding them, the cuts will get infected. This is unpleasant. Also, dried rat excrement stinks. I have a poop hoodie. I wear it every time I hold my rat. It gets washed every day.
4) Bagged Rat Food is Healthy Right? SURPRISE!!! Nope. What a huge shock that was to me when I first found this out. In most cases there are lots of things in a bagged rat food that rats don't generally eat. Some are better than others, but don't hold your breath.
It's perfectly ok to keep some in the cage for snacking on (although I bet your rat wont touch it.) but you really want to make sure that your rat has a good variety of fruits, veggies and meats. You want to stay away from a lot of processed foods (as you should for yourself) and if your produce seems a little iffy for you to be eating it, chances are your rat shouldn't either.
This is my "Go to" Guide on ratty nutrition. (Not my article but I use it so often it could be!)
5) Rats NEED Toys. I used to think that all those pictures of those cages, over crowded with toys and climbers were ridiculous. Then my rat got depressed. Yes! Under exercised rats get depressed. You know your rat(s) is/are depressed when: They are lethargic and won't do anything. They won't eat or drink even their most favorite treat. They don't want to cuddle with humans or other rats.
Those toys and climbers? Yep, they saved my little guys life! You can make them yourself (but please research rat safe materials) or buy them at the store. You can repurpose all kinds of toys made for other animals. Those jingly balls your cats never actually play with? Your rat will. Mine likes them hanging from the cage with a string or pipe cleaner.
All those little, brightly colored wooden blocks you see at the pet store? Yep! Those are actually useful toys! Rats teeth never stop growing and chewing on those wood blocks keeps them filed down so you don't have to pay ungodly amounts for the vet to clip those teeth! That brings me to my next point...
6) Not All Vets Will Treat Rats. Nor do all vets know anything about them. I'm serious! I have been turned down by 3 vets in my 10 years as a rat mommy. Those 3 vets told me that if my rat needed to see a vet, it should be euthanized. Before you get a rat, please make sure there is a vet in your area who will treat it.
7) Just Because it SAYS Rodent Bedding... doesn't mean it's good for them. There are tons of different kinds of rodent bedding out there. My least favorite is the woodchip style bedding. Those wood shavings (ESPECIALLY CEDAR!!!!) are horrible for your rats lungs.
My personal favorite bedding is free. In my area we get free newspaper twice a week. That newspaper is mostly (except for the glossy fliers) printed with vegetable ink. If it's not a glossy insert, it goes through the paper shredder and into my ratty-tat-tat's cage. This is particularly awesome because when the rats are done using it, it gets a good dose of water and goes straight into the compost pile. The water washes away the majority of the urine and my tomatoes, roses and lilacs get a nutrient rich diet. Zero waste= happy planet= happy me!
8) You can't Not handle your rat and expect it to be tame! I have seen so many people make the mistake of getting a pet rat because it's "easy." They rarely take it out, rarely play with it and expect that it won't bite their 3 year old nephew when he wants to hold it. Rats are social animals (yeah, I know, you read that EVERYWHERE... probably because it's TRUE!) If you have another rat for it to play with, chances are you can go for a day or two(max!) without socializing with it. If your rat doesn't have a little ratty friend to keep it company, YOU are the only family it has. They need a MINIMUM of 2 social hours A DAY!!!!!! (I can't stress that enough!) to stay a pet. They can and will revert back to their wild instincts if they are not socialized. It's really as simple as plopping your furbaby on your shoulder while you check your email or sweep the floor or play your game console. Reach up and pet it every so often and scritch its neck. Get a rat harness and leash and take it for a walk. Just make sure you socialize with him/her every day. If this seems like too much work for you, get a fish.
