I got a rat at Petco!?!? please help?

Question

I got a rat from Petco. Everyone says you should get it from a breeder but I don't know any. The conditions where good there and the cage was clean she hasn't had any problems yet but I was thinking about getting another one from Petco.
Should I?

My rat I have know I got in November about and she just arrived at the store, her name is Lily by the way. :)

Answer 1

I got my two female rats from a nearby Petco in August and they're doing fine. It all depends on the conditions of the store. Like, I would never buy an animal from the Petsmart near me because they keep them in tanks far too small for the animal.
They actually had two very large male rats in what looked like a 15 gallon tank. The rats themselves were extremely scruffy and unclean. A few weeks later, they were replace by guinea pigs. Needless to say, I feel horrid about whatever happened to those boys if they weren't bought.

Yes, as long as the rat shows no obvious health issues [no porphyrin stains, clear eyes, easy breathing] you should buy another one. Be sure to quarantine the new rat, just in case she does have something.

Answer 2

If you can't find a rescue or breeder in your area, a small pet shop is usally a better place to adopt as they often have fewer rats @ one time & give them more attention. One of our current rats is from Petsmart & she is a little love. She is every bit as sweet & friendly as our rescue boys & our hairless girl (who was from a breeder). We adopted 2 girls from Petco about 2.5 years ago, 1 surprised us with 5 pups a couple weeks later & the other one *still* bites whenever she has the chance. The Petco girls were from a feeder bin & weren't socialized @ all (though mama rat eventually became quite sweet). You've already got some good advice about what to look for when you select your new friends (please get 2), but I'd like to emphasize that you handle the rats before bringing them home so you know how social they are.

Answer 3

It doesn't matter where you get a rat from every rat has a different personality and different traits. So what if the cages are dirty you would feel even better giving it a nice home. My new rat is a rescue girl and i don't know anything about her but that she came from townsville and was the product of a poor pet stores performance. She is affection and a beautiful wee thing. I would always say rescue before breeders.

Answer 4

Your girl would be happier with another female for company, just be sure you quarantine the new one before doing careful introductions. With our girls, often they instantly become friends but on 1 occasion it took a couple weeks of keeping the cages next to each other before I could happilly put them all together-- after that skaky beginning, they're great friends now.
We've had *very* mixed experiences from Petco, but if this is your only option & Lilly is healthy & friendly it should be ok to get another rat there. Ask to hold her before taking her home so you have an idea of her health & personality. A few years ago we got a young female rat from Petco & although we kept trying to make friends with her until she died last summer, she never accepted us & was an unrepentant biter.

Answer 5

well i have 2 girl rats they are cream colored. I got mine from a breeder but it doesn't really matter where you get them you should look up what diseases rats can get so you know what to look for so your rat doesn't die.you have to get is as a baby so you know its not pregnant and if you already have a rat you should buy another cage because they will most likely fight my rats are sisters from the same litter they were in the same cage i got 1 first then the other like 1 month after and i tried to put them in the same cage they were fighting a lot so i had to separate them.Also i heard the male rats are more hyper then the females. if you are planning on mating them you should do research on it first.hope this helped you out

Answer 6

yes, I would get her a friend. Most rats are fine with meeting new friends, and they are very social animals so the prefer to be kept in pairs or more. Petco is an ok rat source, obviously not as good as a breeder, but if your petco takes good care of its animals I wouldn't be too concerned. Just make sure you pick out another young female who looks healthy. If your unsure of thier health, wait and come back another time. So long as its young, healthy, and female, you should be good to go :)-Neb

Answer 7

While I don't often promote getting animals from petstores, rats do better in pairs/groups...... your rat needs a friend for mental health.

be careful in choosing, and see if you can find a local breeder on www.ratseek.com or www.goosemoose.com before going with a pet store rat.

Answer 8

It depends on how the store takes care of their animals in general. Some comercial stores like that take very good care of their animals, while others are terrible. if the place is generally a clean, well run place, then it's fine.
If it's one of those "We-only-care-about-profit" places, watch out, your animal's most likely sick. if you feel that Petco was a good place, go ahead. If not, think about a different place.

Answer 9

yh i got 2 rats from a normal pet store and they were fine
if ur goin 2 get a new rat i would do it soon before ur 1st 1 gets 2 territorial otherwise they may fight
make sure u dnt hav 2 males 2gether or a male n female who arnt neutured
=]

Answer 10

i got my rat from petco...
i would not get the rat a friend. it is best to get one from the same littler or cage mates, if not they could fight