2006-08-30 15:35:11 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Undomesticated rats that occupy human living space/farmland are considered pests because they can transmit diseases, destroy crops, and cause damage to homes/structures. But people don't keep wild rats, they keep domesticated rats. These are rats with a pedigree :) It took thousands of generations until they were considered "domesticated". You can breed them for certain traits, not just color but even behavior traits (And you may have thought that a white lab mouse was just a white lab mouse! Not so!)
Domesticated rats are highly intelligent, they are not aggressive, they keep themselves clean, and they love to interact with their owners. They make great pets because they are a manageable size, they do not require vaccinations, they require less space than a dog/cat, and they can be confined to a cage when you are not home. This is appealing to many people, especially those who rent apartments or do not want a cat or a dog.
2006-08-30 16:24:16 · answer #1 · answered by Amanda C 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because theres a bunch of different kinds. The ones that most people have as pets are called "Fancy Rats" Which basically just means they have different coloring then your everyday wild rat. Some people do keep regular wild rats as pets though. But they are very Intelligent, friendly, and clean pets. I work at a pet store, and this is definately one of my favorite animals.
2006-08-30 19:22:50 · answer #2 · answered by living2die_0110 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
people dont like wild rats because they carry diseses and are very unattractive. mostley the ones with red eyes. but they are actually really smart and can be smarter then dogs. my 5th grade teacher and the class had a class pet that was a rat. Coffee. She was soooo awsome. we built a maze for her and she got out on the first try!
2006-08-30 15:39:41 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Pest is a relative term.
I consider children pests.
2006-08-30 17:25:08 · answer #4 · answered by Zoo 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because rats make great pets.
It is no different than those in India who would not dare eat a cow. But we eat them every day.
Or those who keep hissing roaches as pets.
2006-08-30 15:38:57 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
because they like them I guess, in fact now that you mention it, a lot of pets could be considered pests.
2006-08-30 15:39:23 · answer #6 · answered by redheadedjilly 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
people usually buy rats becuase they think they are rather clean and are less work than hammies.
my friend bought two mice for her brothers snake to eat, but no one in their family could do it (ecxept for the brother) and they ended up keeping it out of pity. now they only feed the snake frozen mice.
2006-08-30 17:42:18 · answer #7 · answered by MyMuNcHkiNzPLz 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
pet owners are sometime geting pets because they like them it is perfectly natural that people choose rats for pets
2006-08-30 19:48:39 · answer #8 · answered by chris r 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
People don't keep wild rats, they keep domestic rats
2006-08-30 16:06:35 · answer #9 · answered by Captain Cottontail 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No matter whether pests or germs they like it as one can say as simple as this 'they like it'. How can you forget the movie "stuart little".
2006-08-30 15:41:56 · answer #10 · answered by vjkiran 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋