Are pet rats specially bred? For example- if you caught a wild rat, could you tame it?
2006-10-12 05:43:14 · 21 answers · asked by msj2uk 3 in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Since my lad had a pet rat I have become very fond of them. There are lots of stories locally in East Anglia about people 50 years ago and more who befriended wild rats: a child who would go and play with the wild rats in a barn; another child who had a wild rat that was generally kept in a pocket...I think you'd need to be extremely patient and not frighten them and befriend them while still in the wild: do you really have that much patience? They are naturally really sociable and so I'm sure wild rats could be friends to humans!
2006-10-12 06:18:51 · answer #1 · answered by carly s 2 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Rats are highly adaptive. Even a wild one could learn to live in captivity if that means free food.
I don't recommend this, however, as the wild rat may not be so sweet natured. It will fight for its life in the begining, simply because it does not know you are trying to be nice. After a while the rat would more than likely catch on and decide you aren't so bad. But you may suffer bites from all this. Considering, you do not know the history of the rat, it could carry diseases.
I personally wouldn't attempt to take any animal from the wild and call it a pet. That is just my opinion.
I would think you would be happier with a store bought one and look at it this way, you may be saving it from someones snake.
Good Luck and Take Care
2006-10-12 06:08:50 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
he's a wild animal. he won't be happy in a domestic situation. I do know of people that have hand reared wild rats from disturbed or orphaned nests, and even then they are not the same as domestic rats. rats have been domesticated since the early 1800s. considering the lifespan of a rat, just think how many generations of breeding that is, to produce the tame, outgoing, human friendly little animals we have today. wild rats don't have this. he will never be fully content in captivity. quite simply, it would be selfish to take his natural, wild life away from him. he will never be fully happy in captivity. life in the wild is what he's made for. so release the poor guy so he can have that. don't try and live out some crazy rat whisperer fantasy by taking a wild animals freedom. you can always get some domestic rats. they will be happy and thrive in captivity, and be so much more rewarding.
2016-03-28 06:28:51 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Due to natural selection, a wild rat would die very quickly and become infertile. This happens when any wild animal is domesticated, the first few generations become infertile and die very quickly due to their unfamiliar habitat. Those who do survive, do so as they are more adaptable and therefore start a new generation of more adaptable rats until naturally all new generations of rats are then adaptable. For that first wild beasty though it's a very sad life in captivity. Also, rats are like humans and can only survive well (and be happy) when living in colonies so cannot be kept on their own or will die prematurely. They are intelligent and emotionally driven animals, one of the only species which hold empathy for one another and will help each other eg. Give up food for another member of their colony. In short, it would be hard to tame them but due to their level of intelligence they can be tamed but it would be a very sad life for them.
2015-05-01 02:52:42 · answer #4 · answered by Kerra 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Wild rats CAN be tamed but i seriously suggest you dont !!! Pet rats are called Fancy Rats and the nasty, dirty gene is bred out of them. They are loving, intelligent creatures! I have 2
2006-10-12 21:24:41 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Why? would you want to tame a wild rat or any other wild animal for that matter??? Saying that I do think some are specifically bred for domestic use, but I can't think why?
2006-10-12 05:57:00 · answer #6 · answered by Littlehoneybee 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Hell no! the wild rat (rattus norvegicus) is a different beastie altogether.
Fancy rats are bred specifically for keeping as pets and have certain genetic problems bred out of them.
2006-10-12 06:03:40 · answer #7 · answered by neogriff 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
My sister had a pet rat and it was not specially bred. It was a female albino rat. My sister stole the rat out of a laboratory that was about to put it to sleep. Her rat was a very sweet creature. She loved to burough her head under your chin and go to sleep there. She knew several words, including her name; she was surprisingly smart. She was a very cuddly little creature and would let you hold her and pet her all day. I always thought it was funny when you would give her a fruit loop, she would stand on her two hind legs in her aquarium, grab the fruit loop from you with one hand, and put the other hand against the glass. She would then eat the fruit loop in that same position, grasping the fruit loop with her hand as she ate it. She looked very human when she did that. We all loved her and she routinely displayed her affection towards us as well. Unfortunately, rats don't live very long.
2006-10-12 05:53:03 · answer #8 · answered by Kelley S 3 · 3⤊ 2⤋
Oh Please don't do that. Like i couldn't kill one are harm one but i would never try to tame a wild one. If you like rats why don't you get a pet one
2006-10-12 07:16:20 · answer #9 · answered by chass_lee 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you could probably get it relatively tame if you caught it as a baby.. but if it's more than a few days old, it's probably too late.. you're much better off buying one though!
2006-10-12 05:50:38 · answer #10 · answered by Byakuya 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋