Help with pet rat?

Question

I have a rat called Mischief who's just over a year old and I want to make her cage more entertaining for her.
Any ideas of stuff that I could put in there to make it better for her? Simple things around the house or something?

Also, because she is on her own, what can I do to make her happier?

Thanks

Answer 1

I have had three pet rats over the years. If you have an old sheet, give that to her. I had my rats in a bird cage, I'd give them sheet, they would pull it through and make a bed. One time he pulled it through the top and slept up in the top corner of the cage. If you can buy a big hampster ball, you can put her in that. or if you don't mind, let her crawl all over you. Be careful, they don't mean to scratch, but if she does on your bare skin, it might itch like crazy. PS If your rat gets into your soda (i.e. coke), DON'T let her. If you give it to much, it will kill her.

Answer 2

Of course a playmate is the ideal answer but not always possible, so you need to spend time playing with her. Let her out of the cage everyday for a while, in a safe area. let her explore,climb, run about etc while you prepare the cage. I buy hazelnuts & peanuts in thier shells & hide them around the cage. I've put in ping pong balls & they like to roll these around, or you can get the ones for cats that have things inside or are wieghted to move funny - she will really use her brain to work it out! A ball of rolled up newspaper or loo roll works as well. Even a few wine corks on a bit of string will provide hours of entertainment!
They love a bone ( chop bone - never a chicken bone ) to chew on, also a big branch ( apple or cherry tree is better ) to climb and swing about on. They will also gnaw on the wood, helping to keep teeth in shape! I bought a parrot mirror, ladder and lots of hanging wooden toys, anything that they can climb, swing on or hide in is usually a hit. A hammock is a great idea, you can make one by tying a bit of fabric from one side of the cage to the other or you can get one from the petshop for around £7. Hope this helps and love to Mischief!

Answer 3

You could put in things like tubes, hammocks, tunnels, wooden things for her to chew, but the best thing you could give her is a playmate, or better still two.
Rats are social creatures and need freinds of their own kind to play with, cuddle up with, scrap with, and groom each other.
We started with one, but after finding this out we ended up with five.
It may sound a lot, but we found it less work to have five happy rats playing together, than to try to entertain one lone rat.
Theres nothing inanimate you can give her that will make her happy, and human company just isn't enough for them, they can get depressed.
We learnt a lot by reading as much as we could about keeping them, and joining rat forums so that we could ask other rat owners questions.
Introducing another rat after this long may be a bit difficult at first, but would be well worth the effort.
We have bucks and haven't had a problem introducing babies, and I believe its even easier to introduce does if done slowly.
If you decide to do this though, please read everything you can about introducing rats, they can't just be stuck in a cage together at first.
But seeing two/three or even more rats playing happily together is possibly one of the lovliest sights you'll ever see, we watch our boys for hours.
All the best to you and mischief whatever you decide.

Answer 4

How about looking at the ferret items in a Pet Store? Most Pet Stores cater more for ferrets than they do rats, but rats can use exactly the same things.
If you can't afford these items, then just use their ideas and shop around for similar products and make your own.
Rats love hammacks and ropes and things they can chew. Try giving them different textured things but make sure its safe for the rat. A bird mirror could be another thing to try.

When I used to have rats, I used to have them out everyday and they'd sit on me while I gave them a treat or go on a little adventure around the room. But make sure your rat is tame enough before you let them out, for a scared rat is not something you will catch easily. You can also get a harness for it, thats always good.

Rats are very intelligant, so you could try something task orientated. My brother and I (when we were kids) used to make cardboard mazes for them with treats in.
Just keep things interesting for them but don't overload them all at once.

Answer 5

You really should have done your research before getting a pet rat. They are intelligent social creatures and should never be homed as a lone rat. Try introducing another rat. It really is the only way to make her happy.

Answer 6

Seriously consider getting her a friend. I've known rats over 2 years of age who still enjoyed meeting new buddies.
Also, they often like those jingly balls that you can get for cats or ferrets, those hanging bells that are often marketed for birds, & just about anything they can climb into, climb over, gnaw, make noise with or carry around. Our hooded girl loves the plastic cap from a can of cooking spray-- it was supposed to be a temporary food dsh, but she kept dumping the food out to play with the cap. She actually taught our hairless girl to play with the cap, too.
Hammocks are great & you don't need to buy them-- just use a bandana, square of fleece or whatever & hang it by the corners. In cooler weather, we give our rats larger pieces of fabric folded to make hanging 'sleeping bags'. We also hang cardboard boxes for them to play or nap in.
Mischief is a great name ;-)

Answer 7

I'll sometimes fill a toilet paper roll with timothy hay for my rat and let her tear it apart. She loves hiding in cardboard boxes. You could tie and old towel in and make a hammock. Wooden bird toys are great because not only can they chew but they can clib on them too. You can also go to Lowe's or Home Deopt and pick up a pastic pipe set and make a maze for her. Tissue boxes filled with shredded paper towels are great because you can hide treats in and they have to dig through to find them. Rats aren't too picky when it comes to their toys.

Answer 8

PVC pipes are good, wheels, cardboard pieces and wooden ladders are all cool things. Is there any way you could get a companion for your rat? They seem to be a lot happier when they have a buddy.

Answer 9

rats aboslutly adore towels, scarfs, hats and anythign soft they can burrow into to. also hang some of those bead neclaces from teh top of the cage and they love to hang and chew the beads off those. also take a long string and tie it from on end of the cage to the other at the top and a towel or something rover it to make it like a tent. just be creative and im sure she will love whatever you give her

Answer 10

With the last rats I had, we bought them a mirror, you know like what you buy budgies? They'd both just sit there looking at themselves in it :S lol
I think really they'll play with anything. They like stuff that makes noises or with ropes etc. You can also buy these wooden shapes that come on skewers. I found that they weren't really interested in the wood so I made fruit kebabs for them :) She'll like that ;)
Another thing they liked were cat toys :)
You know like you can get little balls with bells inside?
Hope this helps.
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