I am thinking about getting a pet rat, i have been trying to find out as much information as I can, I havent been having very much luck with finding any websites...if you know any that would be great. I also have a few questions that you could help me out with if you know the answers:
how big of a cage does 2 Rats need?
what kind of food do they eat? and how much per day?
what type of treats do they need?
do they need to be bathed?
what about there teeth?
do they need something to chew on?
what about there bedding?
do they need to be hot/cold?
and if you could give me any more info that would be awesome! :)
2007-01-12 10:08:54 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Kudos to you for doing your homework *before* you get pet rats.
Rats are definitely different to care for then other rodents.
I have very little faith that people who work in pet stores give out the proper info for rat care, so it's good that you've come to talk to real rat-keepers.
I don't understand? I've had pet rats for 10 years and continue to search the internet for more info on them. There are hundreds of websites you can browse, and forums you can join, to learn about pet rats.
Pet rats:
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=pet+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=pet+rats
Cage space for pet rats:
Minimum of 12 x 24 inches of floor space for 2 rats. If you can afford it get the biggest cage you can.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=cage+space+for+2+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=cage+space+for+2+rats
Feeding your rats:
Rats are omnivours and will eat anything you can eat. Just remind yourself that they can eat all the *healthy* stuff you can eat. Some exceptions:
http://www.ratpalace.com/index.php?name=Sections&req=viewarticle&artid=189&page=1
You can buy foods for them from the grocery store, from the pet store in the way of rodent food, dog food, cat food, including treats of any kind. There is no set amount of food per day. Each rat is different in it's food consumption, you will have to judge their food intake. Rats stash their food in little caches around the cage. Rats have high metabolisms and should always have something to munch on. For this purpose they always have giant dog biscuits available. They get their fresh food at night.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=Feeding+your+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=Feeding+your+rats
Bathing your rats:
Only bathe your rats if they really need it. Rats are fastidiously clean and will groom themselves up to 20 times a day.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=Bathing+your+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=Bathing+your+rats
Your rats teeth:
Rats keep their teeth trim by bruxing and by chewing on hard foods like nuts in the shell, dog biscuits, etc. Rat do chew and cardboard tubes would do nicely, and cheaply, to keep them occupied.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=Rat+teeth&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=Rat+teeth
Safe bedding:
Personally I use bed sheets, pillow cases, t-shirts, Yesterday's News, and rabbit pellets.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=safe+bedding+for+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=safe+bedding+for+rats
Proper temperature for comfortable rats:
Rats do best in a cooler temperature of 68 to 75 F, and a humidity of 45% and 55%, which is basically room temperature, and humidity, that we are comfortable at. Rats suffer and pancake (flatten out, exhausted) in the heat of summer, but there are ways to keep them cool and comfortable.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=proper+temperature+for+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=proper+temperature+for+rats
Rats love to play with toys
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=toys+for+rats&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ans&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAnYM54NvMNPtXBeKUqFf2zcazKIX%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAs6qPmKbEGuHV570VYkOMTkazKIX%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=toys+for+rats
You can also check out my website,
http://spazrats.tripod.com.
Or join my forum, Holistarat (rat-only group), http://groups.yahoo.com/group/holistarat, to talk to other pet rat experts.
I'm a member of over 12 really great all-rat forums, or, check out Yahoo Groups for a rat group you would like.
New motto: "If you can't say something nice about pet rats.......don't say anything at all".
spazrats
Rat slave to many since the age of 38
Specializing in the health and care of pet rats since 1997
2007-01-12 14:19:38 · answer #1 · answered by spazrats 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I had a pet rat and he was awesome. Rats are very clean animals so bathing is usually not necessary, but you can if you want. You can buy rat pellets at a local pet store, i got these little cube things. Usually one or two is enough per day. They are nibblers so put in a few things for them to chew on. The bedding can consist of pine chips or hay. They are warm blooded so room tempature should be perfect for them. Treats can consist of pretty much anything since they are scavangers. I usually favored veggies or fruit. if you have 2 rats a medium sized cage should be plenty. And remember, Clean out the cage regularly.
2007-01-12 10:19:56 · answer #2 · answered by //// 3 · 2⤊ 3⤋
The cage should be big enough to allow them to run around a little. Check in the pet store.
Your best bet is rodent food. You can feed them table scraps, too, or cat food or dog food. However, if you feed them designated rat food, their poop won't stink as much.
They should have some clean wood to gnaw on. Don't give them construction scraps. That wood often has been treated with chemicals that are harmful to the rat.
You can use shredded paper (cheap!) for bedding, or buy wood chips (not so cheap)
Average temperature is fine. If you're comfortable, the rat will be, too. Avoid exposing them to very high temperatures in the summer. They can overheat.
Pet rats you can buy in a store are usually healthy. Do not domesticate a wild rat. They can carry some really nasty diseases that you can catch, too.
If the rat has enough room to exercise in, you can just offer as much food as they want. If they get too fat, you'll have to ration the food. Only feed as much as they'll eat within 10 minutes, 2-3 times per day.
Most rats are friendly enough and won't bite you. Be careful around a mother with babies though. The Mom WILL bite you if you get too close to her litter.
Also, any animal if mistreated or threatened is likely to bite, so be gentle.
Remember that rats don't go to the bathroom on schedule. They'll poop all over everything - including you when you handle the rat.
2007-01-12 10:18:18 · answer #3 · answered by flywho 5 · 1⤊ 3⤋
This only makes the 5th I am getting a rat question today.
Rats eat anything. However keep them away from sweets/sugar cereals with sugar.
Veggies are great and once in a while fruit.
Let them swim in the tub, no baths please unless you are showing them.
Keep the cage clean.
Give them a chew block for their teeth Bedding, corn cob bedding is one of your better bets to avoid their allergies.
here are a few web pages.
www.nfrs.org/stud.htm
www.ratfanclub.org
www.freewebs.com/bighog
www.spoiledratten.com/raisingpupscontent.html
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12221924&dopt=Abstract
2007-01-12 10:27:21 · answer #4 · answered by danielle Z 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Dont listen to the people who say rats are gross. they've obviously never had one and dont know anything about them. They need a decent sized cage to run around in. a lot of pet stores sell cages specifically for rats. it definitely has to be bigger than a hamster cage.
I have 2 bowls in my rats cage (i have 2 rats) and i usually have to fill them about once a day. they sell food especially for rats but you can mix in things like peanuts in the shell, sunflower seeds, grainy cereals (nothing really sugary), etc.
as far as chewing, I buy my rats things like wooden blocks and small wicker baskets from the dollar store, they sleep in the baskets and chew on them.
they'll also need a wheel to run on. but it HAS to be a wheel made for rats (the big wheels) Ive heard people say that their rats never use their wheels..then i found out they were using hamster wheels for them. a rat cannot fit into a hamster wheel. Whatever tempature your room is, is probably fine for a rat, just make sure you buy them something to sleep in (like a tube, or those big plastic igloos the pet stores have. My rats have one and they love it.
If youre thinking of getting a pet rat, unless you have lots of time to spend with him or her, you should probably get 2. they're very social.
I love male, and female rats, but female rats are prone to tumors. they never stop growing so you either have to take them in and have them removed, or you have to have your rat put to sleep.
Rats are NOT gross. theyre wonderful, curious creatures and they make great pets. jack hannah refers to rats as the dogs of the rodent world and he couldnt be more right. if they barked you'd probably think they were teeny tiny dogs.
I'd suggest getting a book or 2 from the library about rats, just so you're extra prepared for your new pet.
I know I already said this but please make sure you get him a cage thats big enough. Ask the people at the pet store if you have to. a little too big is better than too small. they love to climb and they need their space.
Also --for fun toy ideas- the dollar store is a treasure. the baskets like i said. they also have this crinkled paper made for stuffing gift baskets and what not, My rats love turning this into a comfy bed. I also buy white towels and cut them up into a bunch of pieces. they chew them up, and make a bed out of them. the best part is when its time to clean the cage, theyre cheap to replace.
Good luck, and have fun with your new pet, I dont think you'll regret getting a rat.
Anyone who says theyre gross has obviously never had one as a pet.. Because Im pretty sure its impossible to own one as a pet and not fall completely in love. so why they answered your question in the first place is beyond me.
2007-01-12 10:58:48 · answer #5 · answered by Dani 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had a pet rat years ago, and she was a great pet, they are smart too.
However they only live about 3 years or so.
As far as your questions when you go to the pet store they will be able to answer them for you. Good luck
2007-01-12 10:23:22 · answer #6 · answered by Z 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Rats are given a bad rap. They are not as gross as everyone thinks they are and make wonderful family pets. They really don't bite and are very social. This web page seems to have a lot of information on them. Good luck!
http://www.petrat.info/
2007-01-12 10:21:41 · answer #7 · answered by mzwest83 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
i saw a guy on the train with a pet rat, he had it in a cage about the size of a loaf of bread and he wus playing with it so i guess teeth arent a problem
2007-01-12 10:12:25 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/careofrats/a/ratscare.htm
2007-01-12 10:12:49 · answer #9 · answered by mistresscris 5 · 0⤊ 3⤋