I'm getting a pet rat and I dont know what I need for my pet rat any tips?

Answer 1

First tip, get 2 rats of the same gender. Rats are VERY social animals and need constant companionship. We, as humans, cannot provide them with the 24/7 companionship they require (rats engage in mutual grooming, playing, and so on). Taking care of 2 rats is no more difficult than taking care of 1 and they WILL still bond with you and want to be around you. Rats kept by themselves often become neurotic, which leads to behavioral problems and medical problems caused by such.

That said, a large cage is very important. Keep it out of direct sunlight, drafts, ect. Rats are NOT like hamsters. They're very intelligent and opportunistic. They get bored very easily and they enjoy solving problems and climbing around. An ideal cage is one made out of metal with the bars spaced closely together so that they can't squeeze between them. This offers the best ventilation and opportunities to climb. Ideally, it should have 2 levels and a solid bottom (to prevent sores on the rats' feet). You can fill it with any bedding material you want except cedar (cedar has far too much dust in it and is highly aromatic---it irritates the rats' delicate respiratory system and sinus)---Sani-Chip bedding is good. Your local feed store should have wood pellets used for horse bedding at a very cheap price---these are highly absorbent, smell nice, and are very low in dust. Because the wood is heat treated it removes any volatile phenols which may increase liver enzymes.

Make sure there's TONS of toys. A hanging hammock (a ferret hammock) is a favorite hang-out for rats. A piece of twine laced through flavored rawhide (yes, the kind for dogs) are a good toy and helps keep teeth nice and trimmed. Wood hanging toys are also favored, as are thick edible braided ropes, which the rats enjoy climbing on (you can use an edible rope and a hammock to create a 2nd level in a cage if you want). A wheel is also recommended. Make sure the wheel has a diameter of at least 16 inches. Some rats won't run in the wheel---females tend to use it more often than males (who're much lazier). Empty toliet paper rolls can also be a fun inexpensive toy. And 'pea-fishing' is also fun. Just fill up a dish with luke-warm water, add frozen peas, and rats. The rats will have a blast digging the peas out of the water (and getting drenched in the process).

As for food, rats are omnivores---they can digest most foods--even some chocolate (though it's best NOT to give it to them because it's just empty calories and harder to digest). You can make your own food mix for far less than buying some at a store. Most sites will tell you to just feed rodent lab blocks as the staple of your rats' diet---DON'T. Those lab blocks are made of, mostly, corn, which is a filler with little/no nutritional value. Lab blocks get their vitamins/minerals added in which means they're not as good as the vitamins/minerals you'll get from foods which contain them naturally.

Personally, the staple of my rats' diet is Great Choice Dog Biscuits (multi-flavored-- $2/bag @ Petsmart). They have all-natural ingredients and less than 16% protein (which is very important---you could also use a premium dog food that has less than 18% protein). I break the biscuits up into rat bite-size chunks. I mix these pieces in with uncooked vegetable rotini pasta ($1/box @ Walmart) for carbs, plain Cheerios ($3/box @ Walmart) for carbs and fiber, and Puffed Wheat ($1/bag @ Walmart) for more fiber. That blend lasts me about 2 months (depending on how many fosters I have!). I supplement their diet with either fresh herbs, tomatoes, broccoli, carrots, green beans, peas, banana, apple, or peach about 2-3 times a week. I also provide some low-sugar low-fat yogurt in small portions every other week. Finally, a stale piece of whole wheat bread soaked in a bit of olive oil does wonders for their fur and seems to help keep the male rat 'musk' down. I give that about every 2 weeks or so. Of course I also offer other 'treats' too...such as pieces of cheddar cheese, pieces of ham/chicken/seafood and a portion of hard-boiled egg (which they -love-). I offer those when I have them---usually about once a week. Keep in mind I'm only giving them TINY portions--a portion about the size of a quarter or half-dollar. Remember, too much of ANYTHING is not good.

Clean water is also very important. Just make sure it's cold and changed daily. Offer it in a water bottle.

My only other tip would be to handle your rats often. Let them 'shoulder surf' while you do homework or something. Mine enjoy hanging out in my hoodie pocket when I go to the store. They'll poke their heads out and greet everyone (and freak them out in the process---it's great). Handle them gently, of course. No tail-grabbing (you can strip the skin off).

Because rats are all about the food, they are easily trained. Make sure you teach them the word 'treat' everytime you give them food through the bars of their cage so they won't automatically bite anything that gets put between the bars.

Answer 2

The most important thing is considering how much time you will have to play with the rat--if you are not going to be able to have it out of the cage to play with for at least an hour or so a day, it would be a good idea to get two rats. They are very social creatures and like to snuggle and play together...just make sure they are the same sex!

Next...rats need plenty of room. A hamster cage will NOT work for a rat...they need at least 2 cubic feet per rat. Martin's makes some nice rat cages, as well as the SuperPet brand, as long as the rat does not get determined and try to chew through the bottom... They can be kept in aquariums (for example, 20 long) but a wire cage is usually better because it allows for better ventilation and also gives the rat something to climb. As far as bedding/litter goes...please, please, please do NOT use pine or cedar chips. There is great concern over the possibility that these aromatic woods cause harm to not only the respiratory tracts of animals, but also do internal damage to the liver. It is highly recommended that you use a paper-based bedding such as CareFresh or Cell Sorb Plus, or else if you really want a wood bedding that smells nice, use aspen--it does not contain the aromatic oils like pine and cedar.

Rats love to climb and play. Mine enjoy tunnels they can go through and toys such as those designed for birds (such as rope and wood toys--great for rodent teeth, or the kind with nuts hidden in them), ferrets and even cats (they like the balls with jingly bells in them).

As far as food goes, there are several different types made specially for rats, including lab blocks and various grain mixes. I used to make my own diet, based on Suebee's Rat Diet, but it got too expensive when my population grew over 3 rats. Lab blocks are complete and balanced, but they are rather boring. Seeds on the other hand tend to be picked through to pick out the yummy bits, which usually are the fattening and not so healthy bits. I feed my rats a mix of the two. They also like fresh veggies, fruits, nuts, even meats such as chicken. There are some foods that can be harmful to them, so it is best to look into that before getting too creative with treating.

I am including a few webisites that I frequent, and there are many, many more available...just go to yahoo and search for "pet rat care".

Last of all...good luck and have a great time with your new little friend(s)!! :-D

Answer 3

I have a rat and everybody thinks I'm weird. But really she's smarter than my puppy. There are several good websites out there for info on them--they're very interactive animals, you can teach they to do tricks, and they like to play and figure out interesting things. I made a cage for mine out of a bookshelf, with holes cut in the shelves so she can go to the different levels, and chicken wire on the front. They're scavengers, so they'll pretty much eat anything, but they sell rat food mix at any pet stores. Mine likes my puppy's dog treats occasionally too.

Try this website--I learned TONS from it, but I'm definitely not that crazy! http://www.dapper.com.au/

Answer 4

They are the same as hamsters,use the same stuff.....exept be more careful.....longer teeth and longer tails