Rats as pets

Justaysam · Post by **Justaysam** » Oct 09, 2005 12:31 pm

I don't know why I posted it that way, I think I am still getting used to the idea

My 9yr old DD got a pet rat Sat. afternoon. Anyone have any pet rats? Any good sites? I will be reading up on them this week. I admit, I kind of like her. I'll take some pics and post them later.

wishiwere · Post by **wishiwere** » Oct 09, 2005 4:25 pm

Ew!!! I know there are those that like Rat, and other rodents as pets, but ew! I don't think I could have handled that as a parent! Thank heavens the asking never happened in this house!

Congrats and GOOD luck on the info!

doublemom2 · Post by **doublemom2** » Oct 10, 2005 1:17 am

I had a white lab rat in college, had to train her as part of one of my psychology courses. We had the option of adopting them when we were done with the course, so of course I did. I can't STAND The tails, but they're actually really good pets, kinda smart too if you use food and water as a reward system.

Andi

outtahand · Post by **outtahand** » Oct 10, 2005 7:24 am

I had a pet rat as a kid. I got him just weaned from the pet store,
handled him numerous times every day while he was growing up.
He was a really neat pet, VERY tame, would never bite, and
much smarter than hamsters or gerbils or guinea pigs I had
before him.
He would come to me when I made a kissing noise, he rode around
on my shoulder, with his tail around my neck for security.
I took him out in the yard a lot in the summer. I could put him down,
run 20 feet away, call him, and he would run to me, climb my clothes,
and sit on my shoulder.
Just have a lot of patience, (their brains ARE tiny), give lots of rewards,
and be gentle, they respond to affection.

Justaysam · Post by **Justaysam** » Oct 10, 2005 9:05 am

Thanks for the insights. She is the sweetest thing! I am wondering if she needs a wheel? She is out almost all day with my DD, with breaks inbetween to rest/releave herself in her cage. Someone had her and gave her up to the pet shop, so she is very tame and affectionate. She comes to you, crawls up onto your shoulder, likes to burrow and hide in DD clothes and blanket. The cats and our terrier have not caught on yet

It has snaps on the top of the grill thats on top of the cage, but she has been putting a book at each end also just to be safe. The tail grossed me out too at first, but after touching it, it is really silky and not scaley at all. She is making a great pet so far.

LucyGoose · Post by **LucyGoose** » Oct 10, 2005 9:18 am

Never had one, but have heard pretty much what everyone says....they are supposed to be better that the girbils and hamsters.....Any pictures? Good Luck with her!!

gardenandcats · Post by **gardenandcats** » Oct 10, 2005 9:25 am

Just make sure that her cage is not placed near any wiring !!she can chew. I had a friend this summer whos kids had a pet rat. Thew rat was able to chew on a wire that went to a window fan. The bare wires started a fire!!! Burned the whole bedroom.. Luckily someone was home and able to call the fire department..And the house was saved.. But the bed room was totally destroyed...

Garden_of_Mu · Post by **Garden_of_Mu** » Oct 10, 2005 1:33 pm

I had a pet rat for a couple of years (they are short lived), adopted from a lab, and really enjoyed it. Her name was Princess Penelope Greenpeace (as a rat I felt she needed a distinctive name to overcome the stigma of her species) and she was very tame and loved to be handled. Her brother Norvat, owned by my friend, was twice her size and just loved to sit in a lap and be petted. He was fat and lazy, unlike Princess who loved to roam about and explore. They would both sit on your shoulder and ride around without problem.

My only issue with them was the smell. No matter how often I cleaned the cage it always stank. Always. There was just no getting that odor dealt with.

patsue53 · Post by **patsue53** » Oct 10, 2005 2:37 pm

My kids had several pet rats. Our first one was obtained from a disreputable pet store that didn't separate the males from the females.......so she soon turned into 16 pet rats!!!

We kept a couple babies. They're extremely intelligent and friendly. Unlike the hamsters and gerbils that run from you when you try to handle them, the rats come to the cage and ask to be picked up. They never ever bit anybody. The tails are gross but if you can get past that they're very nice little critters. Big problem is that they are prone to cancer and get humongous tumors on their sides. Most vets charge as much to put them to sleep as they would a rottweiler! We finally found one compassionate soul who charged us $5.00 to euthanize a rat.

Our last rat was a hairless rat. We named her Scarlet O'Hairless.

PeggyC · Post by **PeggyC** » Oct 10, 2005 2:54 pm

My youngest brother had a pet rat and really enjoyed it, but ended up selling it back to the pet store because he was allergic to it. I hear they make great pets!

~dirtbug~ · Post by **~dirtbug~** » Oct 11, 2005 5:15 am

rats can make really good pets.
my lil brother had 2 rats that turned into 36 rats

they were really cool, until ya walked past them in the dark night and ya could feel all these eyes looking at ya, bit like rats of nimh

but other then that i rekn they are way better then mice etc.
(but ya cant beat me ferrets!!!)

~dirtbug~

Annie · Post by **Annie** » Oct 11, 2005 10:02 am

I love rats!
They are so cute, if ya don't look at their tails LOLOL.
They only live about 3 years. But they do make GREAT pets.
We had one get loose when I was a kid, but all we did was put it's cage back on the floor (with door open) and he was back in there asleep the next morning. They are pretty smart and trainable too.
Just make sure you have no food smell on your hands as that may make them bite, not on purpose though.
But then again that goes for most rodents

Old earth dog · Post by **Old earth dog** » Oct 11, 2005 11:26 pm

As a kid, I had just about all of the rodents as pets. The rat is, without a doubt, the smartest of the lot. Also the least apt to bite. The hamsters are the worst biters if not raised properly. My very first pet rat was one I rescued

from a nest in the ashpit out back, by the alley. I named him Zorro...and I have absolutely no recall why

. Zorro was LOTS faster and smarter than any of the petshop variety I had later.